Has anyone had a laparoscopy for endometriosis?!

Has anyone had a laparoscopy for endometriosis?

I am going to have a laparoscopy on july 6th for my endo and I am really nervous. Anybody have any advice or have any tips for before and after surgery? I here there can be quite a bit of pain while recovering, what can i do to help ease the pain or make recovery go by faster? Also, I know that even if the doctor goes in & removes as much endo as possible it can still grow back and the pain will come back. What are some other things I could do to help fight endometriosis? Thanks Alot.

3 weeks ago
I pretty much know everything there is to know about endo I just wanted some tips on how to make the healing process go by faster. But thanks everybody! :D

First I'll try to answer the last part of your question. Endometriosis has no cure and many times will come back. Your best option that is closest to a cure and will give you a better chance at long lasting relief is to have a dr. that specializes in endo and will remove all of it by means of excision-lasering the endo will just about guarantee that it will be back as it does not remove all of it-excising it basically means they cut it out. Having a hysterectomy does not cure endo as endo is capable of producing it's own supply of estrogen-what endo thrives on. Many dr.'s think it is a cure b/c of the ovaries being removed and therefore estrogen goes away also but if any amount of endo is still inside lurking somewhere it can and eventually will start producing estrogen and then start to cause you pain/symptoms again. I would strongly suggest talking to your dr. about the method he will be using to remove the endo, how often is there endo left behind, what will happen if you need a laporatomy-(will he sew you back up and reschedule the surgery or will he just perform the laparotomy at that time), how often does a lap turn into a laporatomy, how comfortable is he removing endo from vital areas such as bladder/colon if it is found, how hard does he try to save certain organs like the ovaries? I hate to say this but if your dr. does not remove all of the endo by excision than you can certainly expect it to come back. Finding a good dr is very hard-try googling dr david redwine or dr andrew cook-these dr.'s know what they are doing and have the best success rates b/c pretty much all they do is treat endo-they have lots of good info on their sites. As far as the lap itself, the amount of pain/how long it will take you to recover is different for everyone but how much endo is removed and where it is removed from will have a lot to do with it. I myself took a week off from work and was in a lot of pain, but I also had it in several places and had adhesions that, among other places, had glued both ovaries to my pelvic sidewall, and had to have a ureter dissected. A lot of women find the gas very painful-especially in the shoulders. When you have the lap they pump gas into your abdomin so they can see better. I've heard many women, including myself, not have a lot of pain from it but a lot of women do-some dr.'s try to remove as much as they can before closing you up and the more they can get out the better. It may be hard but if you try to walk, just a little bit around the house every so often, it will help dispell the gas-I've also heard a few women swear by ben-gay. During your pre-op appt. I would ask for a pain med prescription and get it filled before surgery. Hard to believe but some women have only been given pain meds in recovery and were refused a script they could fill to use if needed in the following days. if you find you are very nervous about the surgery tell your dr and he should be able to give you something to take the night before to help calm you down so you can get some sleep-they can also give you something right before surgery if needed. many women find it very common to be nausous after surgery from the anesthesia-ask your dr. about that also-mine gave me something that looked like a tiny round bandaid to put behind my ear before and I was not nausous. You can expect at least 3 small incisions, 1 right above your pelvic bone and one on each side a little further up-some women get more-I had 4 incisions. they are very small and just about 2 years later and I have to really look to see them. A lot of women try to have someone stay with them the first night-if you live alone-to help them out. Some women suggest bringing your ipod with you and listening to relaxing music right before and also bringing anything you may find comforting such as pillows, blanket. Some women will also pack themselves a little bag with clothes, pads, books/magazines and anything else to help pass the time or if they have to end up having a laporotomy in which case you would be staying the night. I would ask the dr. about taking and giving you pics of the surgery and even doing a video-although most dr.'s do not do videos due to the legal ramifications in case anything should go wrong-but if in the unfortunate event that you deal with endo again in the future it is a great thing to give any new dr. you see. my mom went with me to my surgery and waited for the dr. to tell her how it went-I wrote down a few questions I wanted her to make sure she asked him so that I didn't have to wait until my post op-did you find endo and where? Was all of it removed-if not how much was not removed and where? How minimal/severe was it? Your dr. may have you do a bowel prep before surgery, kind of common. Many women find bringing a pillow to place against their stomach for the ride home helps as well. One thing that is kind of important, you will be given a consent form for surgery to sign-if you are wanting to have children and are adamint about keeping all of your reproductive organs inform the dr. of that and write it on the consent form. Some dr.'s will check your appendix for endo and will want to remove your appendix during surgery should they find endo. A lot of dr.'s before surgery will discuss what treatment they want you to start right after surgery to help the endo from coming back-such as birth control pills or lupron. I would research this so that you feel comfortable with whatever med they want to prescribe so you can make the best decision for you. I can't think of anything else and this is already very long-maybe try going to www.obgyn.net and then go to endo zone and go through the archives of the message boards for good info on the lap and what to expect-lots of info there. just plan on having movies/books/magazines and such for after, take it easy, wear comfortable, loose clothing and try to get lots of rest. the surgery is pretty much always better than you fear! Hope this helps and good luck to you!