Too Young For Hysterctomy?

jennifershoo

:noway: :noway: :noway: :noway: :noway:
Never, ever do that!!!! That is going to mess your hormones soooo badly!!!
If you think the birth control pill is bad, wait for all the side effects of he other fake hormones pills you'll have to take.

JTick

I am 23, and am already possibly moving to a hysterectomy in the (very) near future due to medical problems. I had the Mirena put in 7 weeks ago as a last ditch effort to fix my problems and save my uterus...but with all the issues I'm having with the Mirena I'm about to say screw it and just have the surgery.

As someone who suffers from medical problems, I am all for hysterectomies at any age to put medical problems to rest. However, as just a means to birth control, I think there are other options out there.

lithezebra

:noway: :noway: :noway: :noway: :noway:
Never, ever do that!!!! That is going to mess your hormones soooo badly!!!
If you think the birth control pill is bad, wait for all the side effects of he other fake hormones pills you'll have to take.

Maybe you've had a bad experience, but this is not true for everyone.

calibriintx

Thanks for the feedback, ladies. :flowerforyou: As I said in the OP, I have NO interest in having my ovaries removed, so reduced libido, early menopause, etc. shouldn't be an issue as I understand it. That's why I would want to keep them if I went this route.

I do understand that keeping my ovaries means keeping PCOS symptoms that are unrelated to TOM. I'm not worried about that. My other symptoms have greatly improved with weight loss and based on my own experience, I expect them to pretty much resolve once I'm down another 10 lbs or so. Unfortunately, my cycles have never been completely regular.

As far as irregular periods and cancer being a myth...I think that's completely inaccurate. I'm not here to change anyone's mind, so I'm not going to provide a bunch of studies, but PCOS can mean anovulation, which causes women to produce estrogen, but not progesterone. Without progesterone, there's no period, and the endometrium can grow too much and undergo atypical cell changes, AKA endometrial hyperplasia. If left untreated, it can result in cancer. This really shouldn't be compared to women who spend a lot of time being pregnant. Not the same thing.

^This is NOT my reason for considering having my uterus removed. It's just the reason that I know my doctor would be on board with it.

Anyway. I've tried the mini-pill, Yasmin, Yaz, Ortho-tri, and Nuvaring. All over the last decade, so it's not like I haven't given them a chance...and they all kill my sex drive.

I guess I never really thought of a hysterectomy as major surgey just b/c they can do it vaginally now, but it is an organ, so yeah, I guess that's pretty major.:laugh:

^That part does give me something to think about. It's quite possible that they'd get in there and for some reason need to switch to an old school hysterectomy, which I wouldn't want to go through without a better reason. :noway:

I think I'll talk to my doc about other BCs to try in the meantime, and see what happens as I lose a little more weight. Maybe I'll luck out and have regular cycles once I'm down a bit more. If not, and if I can't find a pill that I like, I guess I'll cross that bridge when it comes.

maiaroman18

I had a partial hysterectomy at 27. My ob/gyn and I discussed it when I was 23, and I was going to have it done then, but I ended up pregnant the next month. It's heartbreaking knowing I will only have one kid, but it's the best thing to happen to me (besides my kid, of course)!

ETA apparently I can't spell today

artsycella

My mother had a hysterectomy for medical reasons at 33, and it was not great for her. She's been on synthetic hormones ever since, it changed her metabolism greatly and she gained a ton of weight... all that not-fun stuff. She had her ovaries removed, too, though, and this was almost three decades ago now, so that may only be tangentially relevant to your question.

I did want to put in another good word for IUDs as a birth control method. I, too, had a terrible time with hormonal birth control. I tried probably half a dozen options and just had loopy responses, from gaining 20 lbs in a month to a never-ending period to severe depression. Blegh. Hormone pills are not my friends.

I ended up deciding to try the Paragard IUD because it has no hormones at all. I've had it about 8 years now (it has a 10 year lifespan) and I love it. I was a little nervous because I do have cramps and generally bad periods, but after the first couple of months they haven't been any worse than they were before. It's also an incredibly reliable birth control method, and requires no maintenance or daily pills or that sort of thing. The only way I could be happier is if they invented a male birth control method.

Mama_Jag

Mine was done vaginally, and still a big deal. Also, consider pelvic structure. I am at risk for prolapse of other organs. Hope I won't need a bladder sling down the road. Also, my ovaries were spared, so I still get cysts and those lovely symptoms.

freebirdjones

I would use google as your asset. People have their stories on websites for why they got it, how healing was, and how life is today. A lot of women I know have trouble with their bladders, it holds it up so some have trouble on trampolines with their kids or doing a whole day shopping trip or long hike. Also with prolapse having a uterus is an asset, I would ask if they ever needed to put your bladder and colon back in place would they have to use mesh because it is not safe. Google it all even prolapse, see what will happen when you are an elderly woman with no uterus as well. Every one has a different story, and also be very careful of the doctor you choose.

southpaw211

I'm 38, and after a botched Essure job (no one should ever get that, ever) and tubal ligation, I now have endometriosis that has been wreaking havoc in my life for the past 5 years. After an ovary removal did not stop the pain, I started birth control continuously. I gained 20 pounds from Jan - April when I finally stepped on the scale to figure out why none of my jeans fit.

So yeah, I'm definitely considering a hysterectomy just to be done with it. Totally worth HRT and whatever else comes my way, just to not deal with the endo anymore. I definitely get where you're coming from! Most of the women I've spoken with who have had complete hysterectomies have said it's the best thing they've ever done.

Ultimately you've just got to weigh out which you want to live with - the devil you know or the devil you don't know.

Good luck!

__Di__

I'm 31 and have one little. She's 3.5 and it took about that number of years to get pregnant. We always wanted at least 2 kids, but I've had no desire to add to our family. Our little is perfect - okay, she has her moments, like every kid, but she's seriously awesome - and the joy of my life. I feel like our family is complete. DH has been pushing to start trying for another since she was born, but he recently said that he's happy with our family just the way it is. He'd be happy if something just "happened" but he doesn't want to try again. < Totally thrilled with that news b/c I've felt really guilty that he's been wanting to add to our family and I've been squashing it. Anyway....I don't think I'm going to want more kids. And even if I do, DH is 10 years my senior and in a couple years, he definitely won't be interested.

Sorry, so here's my question. Is 31 too young to have my uterus removed? I'd like to keep my ovaries, but I'd like to ditch my uterus b/c I have PCOS and the irregular cycles are causing a lot of anxiety for me about unintended pregnancy. I don't want to be on the pill b/c it kills my sex drive. We're using other methods to prevent, but it doesn't make me freak out any less when I'm 50 days into a cycle, taking pregnancy tests every few days just to make sure.

I know it's a personal choice. Just looking for feedback and things I might not be considering.

ETA: Obviously this would be a choice DH and I would make together. But before I take it to him, I want to be sure that I even want to consider a permanent method at this point.

Have you considered sterilisation OP or your husband having a vasectomy?

You definitely need to do something, because reading the bit I have bolded, is showing you are getting disturbed at the thought you could be pregnant and that can be bad for your mental health, you will end up making yourself ill with worry.

Trechechus

Personally, it seems to be quite a drastic measure. I have an IUD, and I understand they help with PCOS, too, though I don't have it, so I don't know. Maybe also, as other people have suggested, you could look into tubal ligation?

jennifershoo

I think you want to take this drastic measure for the wrong reasons.

1- birth control. Condoms, vasectomy, tube tied, monitoring your ovulation and not having sex during that time, etc. lots of other options are available that don't include fake hormones or removing body parts.

2-PCOS. PCOS is an estrogen and androgen dominance condition. It means, you have more estrogen and testosterone than progesterone.
Read this link, it's very well explained: http://www.drlam.com/opinion/pcos.asp

Doctors don't kow how to treat PCOS and it's unfortunate. Like for a lot of other conditions, they give you prescription drugs to treat the symptoms but not the cause.
To treat PCOS, you need to:

- exercise
- lose body fat
- have a good diet low in refined sugar
- avoid soy (it's estrogenic)
- get rid of all the environmental factors that you have control over. Lots of chemicals that we are exposed to have estrogen-like properties. We can't really change the air we breath (well, we could if we all moved deep in the woods where there is no pollution), but we can change other things in our lives. Look at your make-up, lotions, shampoo, etc. Get rid of everything with parabens, phenoxyethanol, sulfates and anything that has a super long list of chemical ingredients. There are plenty of companies that make healthier versions.
- use USP progesterone cream every day (twice a day) from your ovulation to your next period. Do not use prometrium or other fake-progesterone pill. They are progestins, not the same molecule your body produce. Same goes for birth control pills. Do not take them. They are fake hormones (not the same molecules your body produces). Read Dr. John Lee's books about how to treat hormonal imbalances.

jennifershoo

And the only way to relieve PCOS is ovaries and uterus removal. FYI

Not at all. Read the reply I just posted.

ValerieMartini2Olives

I did not have a hysterectomy, but I am 29 and had a tubal ligation.

I NEVER wanted to have kids. I knew from like age 5 that I never wanted to have kids. I always tried to be careful, but I got pregnant at 28 years old. I didn't know what to do. But I thought about it and realized I was not getting any younger and this is probably my only chance to have a baby. So I had my daughter and she is the most amazing thing ever. But I DO NOT WANT ANY MORE KIDS. EVER! PERIOD! Non-negotiable this time around. All during my pregnancy, I was planning to get the Essure implant (a non-reversible implant). When I told my doctor I wanted to be sterilized, he says "How old are you? 29? And you're done?" YES. I wound up having a c-section, so while I was cut, I just opted to have my tubes removed. No more babies for me. Ever. I am 100% happy with my decision. I wish I would have gone the next step further and gotten my uterus removed. Having no period for 9 months was awesome. I am on my second post-partum period and it is still like something out of a horror movie.

SoDamnHungry

If it's the only solution to your PCOS, then it might be a good idea. If your main reason is birth control, getting your tubes "tied" (I know there's way better methods now) or your husband having a vasectomy would be a better bet. You may go into early menopause with the removal of the uterus, not to mention it's major surgery. If irregular periods are stressing you out, certain hormonal birth controls can help you. Mine was awful. Now I only have it every six weeks and it's much less stressful.

envbj77

I had a partial hysterectomy last March '12 at 34 years old. I had large uterine fibroids with really heavy periods. It was really the best choice for me. I was finished having kids. I have not had one issue with "side effects" of my missing uterus since I still have my ovaries.