Hysterectomy

[eclipse]

So due to Tamoxifen causing uterine fibroids, polyps and thickening and being 55 and still not officially in menopause I’m having a hysterectomy hopefully in November! I know it will be 6 weeks off riding but how much core weakness can I expect?

I have another ultrasound tomorrow to make sure there’s no more changes, so hopefully it’ll be a straight robotic non abdominal opening! But, I’m assuming it will be harder to get my strength back than it was than after my mastectomy as that didn’t affect my abdomen at all…. Am I correct in this thinking? Any and all advice is welcome! I’ve had hot flashes ever since starting Tamoxifen (so chemical menopause but after 1.5 yrs period free it came back like a murder scene…. Sigh and my hormones are showing my ovaries are trying hard to work! ) so hoping they will stay about the same!

[Risuena]

No experience or advice but sending you all the jungles and I hope it goes smoothly! As another tamoxifen-taker, this is on my radar.

ETA: keeping the typo or autocorrect of jingles —> jungles because a two-week excursion into a remote jungle sounds AWESOME

[trubandloki]

Maybe it is because I did not have much core strength to start with, but I did not find getting back to life after my six week wait to be overly difficult.
Mine was done laparoscopically.

[candyappy]

I was 11 years younger than you when I had mine and it was a vaginal so no incision.

I don’t see how it affected my core strength much and I was fit before my procedure so I got right back at it asap.

ETA: Post- Op Fatigue was my biggest issue but that is common after having something like that I assume? I tired easily for a few weeks.

Good luck. I’ve never regretted having that part of life gone!

[kaya842]

Not a hysterectomy but maybe relevant? I had my appendix removed laparoscopic-ly through my abdomen and felt I lost a lot (all?) of my core strength. Not necessarily due to the surgery but due to not doing PT (it wasn’t prescribed/ advised at all) so not relearning to use my core after not using it for a few weeks due to the trauma. The surgery was not bad - the first few days were a little tough but I was in college dealing with climbing in and out of a loft bed and walking to the cafe for every meal which sucked. Again, not sure if that’s helpful! But, IMO, if you are having it done through your abdomen I would do PT when the Dr says it’s okay (if it fits into the budget, as I know it can be expensive depending on insurance).

[B_and_B]

All I can say is that I am so jealous!!

[Kyrabee]

I had a vaginal hysterectomy and didn’t feel like it took too much out of me. I did wait 8 weeks to start riding again as I had some slow healing tissue on the cuff. At my 6 week followup, she suggested I wait 2 more weeks…so I did. Then I went right back to riding. I feel like it only took me a couple weeks to get my mojo and balance back and never looked back.

Susan

[eclipse]

Thanks everyone…. Surgery is this Wednesday! So far still laparoscopic is the plan and 1 night in hospital…… and then, just because when it rains it pours…. My FIT test came back positive, so colonoscopy in January! Good grief!

[Live_Wire]

I did not have a hysterectomy but I did have an oophorectomy and a bi-salp. They were two separate procedures. I had an incision for the oophorectomy and it took a lot out of me. I don’t feel like I ever got my full core strength back. The bi-salp was laparoscopic and didn’t make much of an impact.

[eclipse]

Well it’s all done and I was able to come home same day. Not much pain except for the trapped gas…. And even that’s not as bad as I expected as the gave me meds in surgery to get rid of it. Currently resting

[candyappy]

Just take it easy. I did too much too soon and I regretted it as I had some pain.

I don’t do pain meds.

[eclipse]

Update….been back riding for about 3 weeks and so far so good! My core strength is crap and the weight gain is, well, holy balls!! But, otherwise I feel great….next up, colonoscopy on March 24 because of course my FIT test came back positive….might as well go for the trifecta of “hey let’s go into the hospital for cancer procedures and testing”! Knock on wood, this comes back normal!

Just a reminder to everyone to get those screening tests done!