u/AidaSkates

I have a question about post-op pain & recovery:

I had my lap 12 days ago where they removed adhesions and fibroids. The first week or so I was definitely uncomfortable, but it was so much less uncomfortable than I expected. And the pain was definitely decreasing.

The last two days or so, I’ve been in increasing discomfort. I have deep pelvic pain that I’m assuming is due to ovulation, and my legs ache. My incisions have also been aching - I can’t reach for anything and it almost feels like something is pulling internally. Lastly, I’ve had ongoing discomfort anytime I empty my bladder. It hasn’t improved at all.

I have been getting out and walking my dogs with a friend, and I’ve been getting antsy sitting around so I’ve been doing a little of this and that, like therapy baking. I can’t figure out if I’m pushing it too much, or if this is all normal post-op pain. I’m trying to get a sense of what a realistic recovery timeline looks like.

What did your lap recovery timeline look like? Has anyone else had pain worsen around week 1.5/2? When were you able to get back to normal activities like walks with dogs, returning to work, gardening, or cleaning the house? And if you still had pain at that point, when did it finally pass for you?

37(f). I had a lap yesterday morning. They finished up an hour early so I worried they hadn’t found anything. But when I saw the surgeon, he confirmed that in addition to several fibroids that hadn’t shown up on the ultrasound, including one in my uterus, they found both scarring and active endo adhesions. I found out that the endo was infiltrating my abdominal wall, among other areas. They finished up early (3 hrs instead of 4) because it wasn’t as deeply infiltrating as they thought it might be (which, honestly, yay!).

I’m lucky. I had painful periods when I was a teen, but in my 20s things were more controllable (though that could be because I was taking birth control at that point.) Even in my early 30s, when I wasn’t taking BC, things weren’t so bad. So I haven’t been suffering for years and years like many of the people on this sub or across the world.

My symptoms hit hard in September of last year. But because they initially involved just bowel pain/issues, I waited to be seen so I could track my symptoms and make sure they were truly tied to my cycles. I didn’t want docs referring me all over the place for stuff I didn’t have.

I’m pretty sure my symptoms were triggered by extreme stress. I had a lot of trauma from a couple of tragedies, school and work leading up to the extreme increase in pain/symptoms. And my symptoms worsened considerably over the last 7-8 months, especially those months that followed particularly stressful events.

Thankfully, my PC took me seriously when I saw her in mid-Feb, about 5 months after my symptoms flared up. I had the ultrasounds (which revealed a single, superficial fibroid, but nothing else) and was referred to a specialist. The specialist put me back on BC, which was an epic disaster, and referred me to an endo-specializing surgeon. I saw him in mid-March. Because the BC was making me feel horrible (off the charts brain fog, feeling like I was walking through quicksand just to do anything, complete exhaustion, etc.), he recommended surgery. And after a lot of scheduling issues, I finally got scheduled for yesterday. It just happened to be my birthday, but it was get the surgery now or wait months. I was in too much pain for the latter.

And I gave myself two incredible bday gifts: Taking care of myself (I really did not want to have surgery), and validation. On the days when I felt the best, during that week and a half-2 weeks each month I wasn’t ovulating, PMSing or menstruating, I had a tendency of telling myself it was all in my head. I really internalized the general “it’s just period pain” philosophy of most doctors. So I lived with this imposter syndrome because surgery also felt like such a dramatic measure. What if it wasn’t endo? What if it was all in my head? But then the pain would come back in spades, worsening every month, and I couldn’t wait to be free of it.

I don’t want endo. I don’t want fibroids. I’d generally like to feel good. But damn it felt so validating to hear that it’s all real. I’m not being dramatic. I’m not struggling silently. I almost cried from the relief that I felt just simply knowing this wasn’t nothing.

I don’t know yet what the next few months look like, but even one day post-op I already have more energy than I did even on my non-period, non-ovulating days. My body isn’t expending all of its energy on fighting inflammation. And yes, I hurt like hell right now (it’s mostly my abdomen and my uterus aches like a son of a gun), but I am so hopeful that in a few weeks, I’ll feel like myself again.

For all of you who hurt, who feel unheard, siloed off from family, friends, work, school, etc., know you are not alone. It’s a frustrating journey, and I know I’m lucky because I got incredible care relatively quickly. I can’t imagine waiting years to get the right care. But I hear you, see you, and validate you. ❤️