The weeks leading up to my endometriosis surgery, I searched the internet looking for personal accounts of what the surgery entailed, how I would feel before, during and after. I found only the webMD version of what I was facing. From that account I figured I would be up and going about my "normal" life after a few days of laying in bed being pampered. During my pre-operative appointment with my surgeon I asked him the questions I was dying to know the answer to: how bad is recovery? Is this worth it? Will I feel better after? How long will it take to feel better? At this point, my surgery was scheduled on a Monday morning and I had taken that day off of work and planned to be back to work by Wednesday. He very politely informed me that I would not be able to walk let alone drive or sit in a car comfortably for at least a week. He was far less reassuring than the watered down WebMD version. But, what did he know. He was a male, he had never had an emergency C-section after 36 hours of labor. I knew I could handle this and anything it threw at me.
Boy was I wrong...
The point of the post today is to put an accurate depiction, on the internet, for women everywhere to know exactly what to expect from this procedure and the recovery.
My surgery took place on Monday morning at 7:30am. I was nothing short of terrified of what they'd find inside my body that had been causing so much pain for such a long time. Being wheeled into the OR I remember physically shaking and the staff trying the mood light. Seemingly minutes later, I awoke in recovery feeling very beaten up. Like someone had just run me over with a car. I could walk and understand clearly what the staff was explaining to me. I arrived home and was in bed by 12:30pm. Not too shabby medical staff, not too shabby.
Some things they didn't explain to me: I had long burns under my armpits from being strapped to a bed tilted head first towards the ground. The gas that they pumped inside my so they could clearly see my organs (which left me looking like I was about 4 months pregnant) doesn't have a way to get out of the body so it settled in places like my diaphragm and collarbone. The pain from my surgery didn't hit until about Wednesday morning because the gas and burns caused so much pain that it far outweighed the rest. The rest of the recovery was to be expected, all my organs were swollen from the places that the camera bruised or the laser burned excess tissue. The incision sites hurt for another week and the overall feeling of sensitivity has still not gone away.
Life has returned to somewhat normalcy, I have returned (begrudgingly) back to work and for the most part I can wear regular cloths (so long as they do not rub on any incisions).
My advice for anyone embarking on this journey. I know that very soon I will feel 100% better and recover better off than I was before the surgery. I know the pain relief is coming and I am going to have more good days than bad. I do not regret this procedure one bit. I simply wish I had been more informed and had taken at least 10 days off to recover fully. The scar tissue, endometriosis and cysts that were found and removed gave me and my spirit such validation that it made the whole experience worth it. I could not have done this procedure without the love and support of my family and friends. I am beyond grateful that I had the opportunity to have this procedure and that I had so much love and support behind me.
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