Ladies of DU, have you had uterine ablation?

[Connonym]

If so, do you feel that overall you are pleased with the results? Did it completely eliminate menstruation or just reduce it? Was it painful? I'm going to the GYN (yay! I have insurance starting on Monday!!) and I want to discuss this with her but thought I'd also get some opinions from women who have had it done.

[Saphire]

1. I chose not to have it done. To be honest, I felt my OB/GYN

was pushing me a little to hard. She suggested to me that I have it done, and I said I needed some time to think about it (as in go home, talk to my hubby) She came back to the room 5 minutes later and kept pushing me for an immediate answer. I told her I felt she was not concerned with my health so much as some kind of kick back she would get from the manufacturer. I left and have not gone back.

Moral of the story....get a 2nd opinion.

[yellowdogintexas]

3. the real value of this procedure is as an alternative to hysterectomy. There are

many situations in which the treatment of course used to be hysterectomy that now a laser ablation or a myomectomy can resolve.

I would resent hell out of having it pushed on me for its own sake; having it heavily promoted in lieu of a much more invasive procedure to resolve a condition is an entirely different matter and I would be grateful for the option.

[yellowdogintexas]

2. yes. very pleased. very very pleased. no periods for a year, then little bitty

spotty ones. My doc used a general so I didn't feel a thing. He did some other stuff too, like check for lurking endometriosis ( I had a history of that), and lasered some old scar tissue out from prior surgery

The whole process originally was to just stop my very heavy periods however he found I had endometrial hyperplasia which is a precancerous condition, mine was Stage II, non malignant but aggressive. Since my grandmother had uterine CA, it was a good idea to remove it.
. I definitely felt better afterwards, no more cramps, pain, messy stuff, etc

Bonus, my migraines pretty much stopped; they were strongly linked to my cycle

[CC]

4. My step-daughter did and she is

so happy they finally did it. Her doctor made her have her thyroid checked, vitamin K levels checked and checked for adrenal gland fatigue before they would do it for very heavy bleeding. She was a bit frustrated about having all the test done first but her doctor felt that it should be a near to the last resort and wanted to rule out other things that could cause other problems for her.

[Radio_Lady]

5. Good luck with your consult and/or surgery, Connonym.

I've never had the problems you have had, but did have very odd periods at various times in my life.

I did go through a "menstrual regulation" in the early 1970s (which might be termed an early abortion, but I was not able to have it legally in Massachusetts, so I went to New York). We had five children and didn't really think we could have a sixth. I don't know if I was pregnant at all, and asked the doctor not to tell me.

Also, more recently, I had a polypectomy about a year ago (benign polyps in the uterus have to be checked out). The last procedure was under what they call "conscious sedation" and I had no problems with this surgery at all.

OB/GYN problems are part of the "joy" of womanhood, I guess, whether you are 13 or 83. I struggled with fibroid tumors and did take hormone replacement therapy for years due to symptoms. Stopped cold turkey in 2001 when the Women's Health Initiative started reporting their negative results. That's come back to bite us in our crotches and breasts, hasn't it? But, now I've become used to menopause and haven't had any difficulties. A kind of freedom comes over you when you don't have to worry about having those kinds of problems.

Wishing you the best with your upcoming visit. Thank goodness you have insurance. The costs of these procedures are astronomical these days.

Radio Lady in Oregon

[KitchenWitch]

6. I did

It did not completely stop my menses, but made them waaaaaaaaaaaaay more manageable.

I was hemorrhaging for 6 days with every cycle and had to wear depends to be able to leave the house. My hemoglobin dipped to 7.7.