re: reasons for avoiding hyst.

[Guest guest]

I have to agree with what Pat said about keeping her uterus. It is a

combination of emotion and concern over one's health. In my case, I saw my

mother go through a hysterectomy when she was about 39 for fibroids. This was

1958. She had what seemed to 7 year old me, a very, very long recovery. It

really did last several months. Afterward she had to go for hormone shots,

suffered pain from adhesions and irritable bowel syndrome. I have always felt

that

I wanted to avoid all that.

Then in 1981 I gave birth to my daughter by way of emergency c-section after

planning for a natural birth in a birthing suite with my husband, etc. I was

emotionally traumatized by that experience and decided that I wasn't going to

ever be railroaded into an unnecessary hysterectomy. (I know it was for the

best. My baby and I were both healthy but, I was an emotional wreck for a long

time after. I felt that I had failed at one of the most basic and important

events of my life.)

When you consider the possible health impacts of hysterectomy you have to

wonder why soooo many women have them with so little thought. Aside from death,

stroke, and heart attacks while undergoing major surgery, there are things

like bowel and bladder function that can be impaired if the surgery does not go

well. Women have more heart problems and osteoporosis after hysterectomy. My

mother and grandmother both died of heart disease, my mother had osteoporosis

and I already (age 52) have it. I don't need hysterectomy to add to my health

woes.

P.