Re: deciding not to treat your fibroids

[Guest guest]

I DON'T BOTHER WITH IT...I GO FOR ANNUAL SONOGRAMS, EXERCISE AND PRACTICE A

HEALTHIER WAY OF EATING. I HAVE 2 FIBROIDS AND 1 CYST AND MY GYN (WHICH IS

A FEMALE) IS VERY SUPPORTIVE, BUT MY PHYSICIAN (WHICH IS A MALE DOCTOR)

WANTS ME TO TAKE IT OUT. I FIND IT THAT MOST MALE DOCTORS WANT YOU TO TAKE

IT OUT.

ANYHOW, I JUST WANT TO LIVE A STRESS FREE LIFE AGAIN BECAUSE I BELIEVE

STRESS MAKES YOUR FIBROIDS GROW.

deciding not to treat your fibroids

i'd be interested in hearing from anyone on this list who has

currently decided not to treat their fibroids despite their large size.

i'd like to know if your doctor is supportive of " don't bother it unless it is

bothering you " logic, and what you do to monitor your health with regard to

the fibroids.

[Guest guest]

I'm not sure how large is large, but I took a " watch and wait " approach for

a few years. When my doctor first discovered my fibroid, it was 6 cm large.

My doctor told me that coming in for yearly checkups was all I had to do.

The fibroid stayed the same size until I got pregnant.

Since my fibroid was asymptomatic, watching and waiting worked well for me.

My doctor said that if the fibroid had been causing excessive bleeding or

other problems, she would have recommended a different course of action.

In September, I had a myomectomy because the fibroid doubled in size during

the pregnancy and might cause problems if I become pregnant again.

Cheryl

At 04:14 PM 3/3/2004, you wrote:

>hi all - i'd be interested in hearing from anyone on this list who has

>currently decided not to treat their fibroids despite their large

>size. i'd like

>to know if your doctor is supportive of " don't bother it unless it is

>bothering you " logic, and what you do to monitor your health with regard

>to the

>fibroids.

[Guest guest]

Amy,

My doctor holds the rule of thumb if it isn't bothering you to leave

it alone. I've done that since 2000. However, I'm seeing my doctor

this Friday to hopefully now schedule a date for removal because my

fibroid caused me to go into labor and deliver a baby at 24weeks. My

daughter is here and well, but not without some major costs to her.

She eats from a feeding tube and is blind because of her early

arrival. She has gone through more in 19mos than I have in 30 years.

So my doctor advised me if I'm planning on having more children I

need to get it removed. My first GYN said if it's not bothering you

don't fix it. Then when I got pregnant my new doctor said I should

have been warned of the problems a fibroid can cause during

pregnancy. Sure enough I had all the problems. So in order to try

and get through the next pregnancy problem free I'm having it removed.

Good luck in your decision sorry I can't be of more help to you.

> I'd be interested in hearing from anyone on this list who

has currently decided not to treat their fibroids despite their large

size. i'd like to know if your doctor is supportive of " don't bother it unless

it is bothering you " logic, and what you do to monitor your health with

regard to the fibroids.

[Guest guest]

I feel whether or not you decide to opt for a treatment depends on a

lot of things including your age. Your doctor should be supportive

of whatever option you choose. I see my gyn every 6 months.

Gerri

[Guest guest]

Amy, the " don't try to fix something that ain't broke " approach is a

good way to go. If you are not feeling any pain and you didn't know

they were there then continue w/your happy and healthy lifestyle.

Once you begin to stress about it, it begins to go downhill.

My dr and I agreed we will leave them alone unless the 3 of them hit

10cm. Towards of the end of the summer I started having symptoms so I

did go ahead and try some natural ways of coping w/them.

Good luck and enjoy life!

Shaunah

> hi all - i'd be interested in hearing from anyone on this list who

has currently decided not to treat their fibroids despite their large

size. i'd like to know if your doctor is supportive of " don't bother it unless

it is bothering you " logic, and what you do to monitor your health with

regard to the fibroids.

[Guest guest]

Pjkay,

I am sorry you had to go into preterm labor at only 24 weeks. I have

a few questions and hope you don't mind. Are the doctors sure that

your fibroid caused you to go into preterm labor? Do you know the

location and size of your fibroid?

I am trying to figure out whether to remove three

fibroids measuring 5cm/4cm/3cm prior to getting pregnant.

Thanks in advance!!

[Guest guest]

I second this opinion. Quality of your life can be one of the deciding

factor. If it caused you pain or heavy bleeding to point which you

become either cranky or tired most of the time, then you want to look

into a treatment.

Jackie

Re: deciding not to treat your fibroids

I feel whether or not you decide to opt for a treatment depends on a

lot of things including your age.

[Guest guest]

Amy

I have loved my doctors approach to my fibroid ever since I was

diagnosed. Don't need to treat unless I am having symtoms that are

getting in the way of my lifestyle. I was fine and relieved. My

fibroid was 5 cm when 1st diagnosed. No symtoms. Things stayed

the same for about a year, then my periods started to get heavier

and heavier. I started marking them on a calender since they were

becomming a problem. Heavier and heavier....2 1/2 yrs later, I had

a hemmoraging incident which practically had me in the ER. At that

point, I had tests, and the ultrasound said it grew to 10 cm. I was

so frightened! I had never been through anything like this before.

Thank god it wasnt' cancer, but the one gyno (the one I saw the day

after it happenedn, my regular gyno was not in the office that day)

of course, she said the " H " word right off the bat. I tried to

ignore her and wanted to discuss everything with my real gyno. He

still wanted to watch and wait. He said that this may or may not

happen again. He said it may not happen again for 3 yrs, or maybe

it would be next month. We just don't know yet. I was happy and

relieved that he wasn't telling me I needed an emergancy

hysterectomy or something. All he said was to explore obtions. We

discussed the things I had researched, hyterectomy, myo and UFE. I

was most interested in UFE. He was very optomistic!!!!!!! I was so

pleased at his reaction.

Next month's period was light as a feather, but the next

months, the same thing happened. I had been researching and

aligning myself for the procedure just in case. I did have a yearly

exam after this point. I told him whats been going on and he still

was very optomistic about the UFE . He hasn't referred anybody

becuase he said most women want to get this over with and opt for

Hysterectomy. I was shocked. But anyway, time has past, I did get

my UFE 1/30 and feel so great. I am fortonate to have the

motivation have taken this situation into my own hands, do my own

research and and very happy that I made my own choice. It really

helped to have a gyno that didn't try to turn me off from what I

wanted to do. I haven't seen him yet for a follow up but will be

enthusiastic to share with him a specialist whom I found myslef

through the yahoo embo group. Maybe he will start referring

patients instead of just being optomistic about a procedure.

Anyway, I'll stop blabbing. Thats my story. Jen

> hi all - i'd be interested in hearing from anyone on this list

who has

> currently decided not to treat their fibroids despite their large

size. i'd like

> to know if your doctor is supportive of " don't bother it unless

it is

> bothering you " logic, and what you do to monitor your health with

regard to the

> fibroids.

>

> thanks

> amy

>

>

>

[Guest guest]

In a message dated 3/3/2004 1:21:40 PM Pacific Standard Time, ba1070@...

writes:

> hi all - i'd be interested in hearing from anyone on this list who has

> currently decided not to treat their fibroids despite their large size. i'd

> like

> to know if your doctor is supportive of " don't bother it unless it is

> bothering you " logic, and what you do to monitor your health with regard to

> the

> fibroids.

>

> thanks

> amy

Hi,

I'd also like to know if those who are waiting for menopause have seen any

size reduction once they have actually hit menopause......

Thanks,

Cheryl in CA

[Guest guest]

Shaunah wrote:

My dr and I agreed we will leave them alone unless the 3 of them hit

10cm. Towards of the end of the summer I started having symptoms so I

did go ahead and try some natural ways of coping w/them.

**********

Shaunah, your post gives me an opportunity to trot out my favorite

soapbox in connection with this question of what to do about fibroids

with no symtoms. I know that the line docs give out on this subject

is " watch and wait " . But I think there's a very important point that

they DON'T make with this statement. And that is: just what is it

we're waiting for? In other words, do we have an endpoint picked

out; a point at which we know we need treatment? You and your doctor

have do: when the 3 fibroids hit 10 cm., you will do something about

them.

Why do I think it's important to know what you're waiting for?

Because some procedures work better on fibroids up to a certain

size. And some symptoms creep up on us so slowly that our quality of

life has seriously deteriorated without our recognizing it.

So my chant is not " watch and wait " ; it's " Watch and Educate " .

Educate yourself about your options if and when you reach that pre-

determined endpoint. Know what treatments your doctor offers, with

all the pros and cons of each. Know which procedures you're

interested in and know what he/she considers the maximum size for

each procedure and know at what level of symptoms or size you will

say yes to treatment.

I've been on this board since it began 5 years ago and I've seen so

many women come on in tears, saying: " My doctor told me to watch and

wait and I did. Now that I need treatment, he's telling me that my

fibroids are too big for anything but hysterectomy. Why didn't he

tell me before that if they got too big I couldn't have a UAE, or a

myomectomy? " Or even worse in the case of women with severe bleeding

episodes, who finally wind up in an ER in shock because of loss of

blood. At this point, you're in no condition to begin negotiating

for a different treatment option. So many women wind up with

unplanned hysterectomies when they just let things go on and on until

one day their life is at stake.

So, ladies, know your options; know at what point you will choose

treatment over further waiting and know what you want to do at that

point. Have it discussed with your doctor so you know it can be done

at the size your fibroids will be at that point. Yes, waiting is a

good option for many of us -- but please know what it is you're

waiting FOR.

Best,

Leonie

[Guest guest]

Thank you Leonie! I love you slogan WATCH & EDUCATE.

May I expound on one point? That is " what you are waiting for " ...you also need

to know what you are " WATCHING " for!

As you indicated, the " symptoms creep up on us so slowly that our quality of

life has seriously deteriorated without our recognizing it. " This cannot be

stressed enough! It is so easy to think that *I* know how the symptoms are

affecting me, but, you may be surprised how you start modifying your life to

accommodate these buggers without even knowing it. So many have commented that

they had symptoms resolve after treatment that they didn't even realize were

related to their fibroids (one big one is the IBS problems). Others indicated

that they didn't realize just how often they were headed to the porcelain

office!...Or, avoiding those nice looking white pants! So, to Leonie's " Watch &

Educate " I add " WATCH for the QUALITY of LIFE CREEP and EDUCATE " . Watching for

size increase is not enough, you need to be totally attuned to your life style

for any changes you might not recognize on the surface as being in response to

these nasty buggers.

Thanks again Leonie for a great post! You need to trot this one out on a

regular basis!

TxGenes

In a message dated 3/5/2004 9:20:33 AM Eastern Standard Time, finkel22@...

writes:

> Why do I think it's important to know what you're waiting for?

> Because some procedures work better on fibroids up to a certain

> size. And some symptoms creep up on us so slowly that our quality of

> life has seriously deteriorated without our recognizing it.

>

> So my chant is not " watch and wait " ; it's " Watch and Educate " .

> Educate yourself about your options if and when you reach that pre-

> determined endpoint. Know what treatments your doctor offers, with

> all the pros and cons of each. Know which procedures you're

> interested in and know what he/she considers the maximum size for

> each procedure and know at what level of symptoms or size

> you will

> say yes to treatment.

[Guest guest]

<

>

Oh how SO TRUE!!! We HAVE to educate ourselves about

fibroids and our options! I have a friend who was

supposed to have an operation this week (I'm not sure

which one, myo, UAE...) and I hear she postponed it

for the nth time. When she visited me in December, I

showed her the books I have bought in the past 4 years

since being diagnosed, the supplements and herbs I

take, and her question was, " why did the doctors not

tell me about the different medicines and supplements

I could take " ? Doctors are not gods. We can't sit back

and expect them to create miracles. They make

mistakes, too. And *watch and wait* does not mean just

sit and wait and do nothing. We have to try to

understand for ourselves where these things come from

and what we can do to change the situation, i.e.

changing the diet, giving up smoking, taking

supplements, getting rid of cetain stresses in or

lives, or whatever it may be. And I certainly have

learned A LOT from this YAHOO Group and the others.

[Guest guest]

Hey, My doctor is taking the wait and see approach as well. But

mine are small. I think with a wait and see approach it all depends

on your age and if they are causing you problems. Mine are not and

infact I never knew I had them. I knew I had some pain sometimes but

that is it.

> i'd be interested in hearing from anyone on this list who

has currently decided not to treat their fibroids despite their large

size.

[Guest guest]

Hey, My doctor is taking the wait and see approach as well. But

mine are small. I think with a wait and see approach it all depends

on your age and if they are causing you problems. Mine are not and

infact I never knew I had them. I knew I had some pain sometimes but

that is it.

> i'd be interested in hearing from anyone on this list who

has currently decided not to treat their fibroids despite their large

size.

[Guest guest]

With the help of my doctor, I was on the " wait and see " mode for 2

years, for an operation sounded worse to me than my symptoms.

At first, we could see 2 fibroids (1x3.5 cm, 1x5.5cm), but now, we

can only see 1x9 cm (in fact they can't see much anymore; uterus too

difformed)

With time, I got feed up of symptoms and decided to go ahead abd

treat them.

I went thru hysteroscopy and now, i have appointement next week to

decide between myo or hyst ...

I know about pros and cons for both procedures, but you know what ?

At this point, I would almost be happy to have hyst !! and get this

whole $%$ " ?$%$? thing over with !

Lets calm down ... sorry about that ... just venting a bit ... seams

this whole thing is all I think about theese days.

> > i'd be interested in hearing from anyone on this list who

> has currently decided not to treat their fibroids despite their

large

> size.

[Guest guest]

I have 2 large fibroids and a cyst on both ovaries. My doctor wanted to do a

hysterectomy a year ago but I have just not done it. I am not bleeding but do

have some pain and bloating. I also sometimes have a clear mucus like

discharge that seems to coincide with the pain....I am just scared to do

anything. I

am in my late forties. Do you have any pain or a discharge? Thanks for any

information.

[Guest guest]

Sorry you're feeling down. I think we all have days like this (with

good reason!). Let us know how your appointment goes.

Gerri

>

> I went thru hysteroscopy and now, i have appointement next week to

> decide between myo or hyst ...

> I know about pros and cons for both procedures, but you know

what ?

> At this point, I would almost be happy to have hyst !! and get

this

> whole $%$ " ?$%$? thing over with !

>

> Lets calm down ... sorry about that ... just venting a bit ...

seams

> this whole thing is all I think about theese days.

>