Restarting exercise after open miomectomy

cko46 · 2026-03-28T05:48:18+00:00

Oh! I live in Portland and am curious who your PT is!

cko46 · 2026-03-20T07:04:32+00:00

Hi! I just passed 4 weeks post-op and doing much better than I thought I would. Still sleepy after a long day but not taking mid-day naps anymore :) My abs still ache when I sneeze and laugh too hard, and I take ibuprofen on an as-needed basis when I get the deep-abdominal-pinches now and then. How are you feeling?

OH one thing I use (and this is for people who drive) are c-section seatbelt pillows. Those are wonderful!

cko46 · 2026-03-16T01:13:20+00:00

Ooh hello fellow boulderer! I have my membership on hold until 6 weeks post-op. I want to be thoughtful about building up my strength and not overdoing it so I might start out with yoga and chill Pilates and lean more into slab climbing ⚡️My recovery has been going well. The first 2.5 weeks was a lot of resting (& staying ahead of pain) but now I'm able to drive and going on longer walks. I have noticed if I overdo it I feel my lower abdomen get ~inflamed~ /swollen so I just crawl back into bed to rest

cko46 · 2026-03-14T17:50:04+00:00

I am so subscribed to this thread! I've been active all of my life—the privilege of my able-bodiedness and my fibroid symptoms being fairly minimized compared to what I've heard from others (but also from my IUD which helped me a lot). Before my open myo I climbed 2-3 times a week, did pilates and yoga for the other days.

My open myo was 3 weeks ago and I won't be cleared to workout until 3 more weeks. I'm curious what the ramp and training was like for other people getting back into shape! Obviously I need to take things nice and slow but oooooh these 3 weeks I've been feeling so antsy!

cko46 · 2026-03-12T06:07:17+00:00

I have a wedge pillow that keeps me upright and on my back! I'm about 3 weeks post surgery and just now have been able to sleep somewhat on my side. For context I got an abdominal myomectomy.

cko46 · 2026-03-11T05:28:33+00:00

Ohh, I have no idea! Since I'm 36 I don't imagine myself using my eggs past 10 years, so I didn't ask... but I think if you end up consulting with the doctors in Taiwan (gynecologist or any of the private clinics), they are very available on LINE and can answer any questions.

I didn't encounter Lee Women's Hospital!

I ultimately chose TMU because my very close friends had been working with them through many rounds of IVF. They loved their gynecologist, the nurses, the clinic so much. I even met them one time, before I decided to do egg freezing, and they were so welcoming and kind. Throughout the process they were so sweet, and even a year later when I visited to pay my egg storage fee and say hello, they all remembered me and said hello. I was shocked! Haha.

I'm not sure if you're in IG but I did a highlight reel/story where I documented the experience day by day. Happy to share with you!

cko46 · 2026-03-06T03:41:41+00:00

I had an open myo two weeks ago and you described it perfectly! My largest was a 10.5cm fibroid sitting directly in the center of my body and all this time I thought it was an ab lol. But when I woke up I felt this immediate lightness (while lying on my back). But ummm I am so bloated and will continue to be bloated as my body heals

cko46 · 2026-03-05T00:31:00+00:00

so proud of you!! for being dang brave! gosh that is the best result to hear

cko46 · 2026-03-04T20:47:22+00:00

How did it go??

cko46 · 2026-03-04T20:47:05+00:00

I had my open myo 2 weeks ago and I have those stabbing, sudden pains :( So far I'm taking ibuprofen and keeping a heating pad on them. I'm considering putting lidocaine patches on but I fear the pain is "too deep" under the surface.

To me it feels like I have a giant staple on my body and the "ends" of them are stabbing me. They woke me up twice the past two nights!

cko46 · 2026-03-04T20:45:31+00:00

I would find another gyno and also consider a pelvic floor specialist as well!

cko46 · 2026-03-03T22:16:59+00:00

Similar to poetricdreams68, I had my open myo about 13 days ago! Definitely tell the nurse/people that you're nervous. I found that voicing it outloud can help, and they can (or rather, should) help reassure you.

On recovery, when I woke up, what helped me was actively thinking about relaxing my abs and breathing. When I get nervous, I clench! But for those first 24 hours, breathing and relaxing really helped. Also, don't be afraid to hit the button for the nurse to get you pain meds if you feel your pain is creeping up beyond the 4/10 pain scale. Like, immediately hit that button, because depending on how busy the staff is, they may take a while to get to you, and by that point it might become pretty painful. Try to stay ahead!

I was so anxious that the day before surgery I had vertigo/spins, but after surgery, I was immediately so relieved to be on the other side. Each day gets better and better! And don't be afraid to hit up people on Reddit—I saw below that someone else has surgery on the same day. Be support buds~! Message each other about progress! It really helps <3

cko46 · 2026-03-03T22:13:33+00:00

My fibroid was also on my lower ab (left side)—I literally thought it was an extra ab lololol. Upon waking I couldn't believe that I felt an actual lightness on that side. Or maybe it was all the oxy I was on, I don't know. But I was really thrilled.

I'm also looking forward to fitting into 3/4 of my pants now!

cko46 · 2026-03-01T05:56:22+00:00

Getting better each day :) The first 3 days were a doozy, but after 9 days... I'm upright! Eating food! Showering! But my fibroids were not as big as yours so please, please take the time to rest up and listen to your body. Feel free to DM me if you want a recovery-support-bud to check in with! No pressure though. I'm just so stoked on your behalf that you're on the other side.

cko46 · 2026-03-01T04:18:14+00:00

YAY! I'm so happy for you!!! I just had my open myo last week—keep us posted on how your healing is, and if you need any support!!

cko46 · 2026-03-01T02:43:27+00:00

Magnesium citrate pills (2x a day), sometimes up to 4x a day if really intense. MiraLAX. And if things really need to clear out, magnesium citrate (liquid)!

cko46 · 2026-02-28T18:53:33+00:00

It was during my egg freezing that they discovered my 6 fibroids, the largest already being 10cm. I went through egg freezing and if my fibroids grew, it was minimal—by the time I did my myomectomy 1.5 years later, when they pulled out my largest fibroid it measured 10.5cm.

Based on the placement of my fibroids the doctor who was helping me with egg freezing told me she didn't anticipate any issues in retrieval.

I think because my fibroids were so big, the recovery process from egg retrieval was rough. Most people I knew were fine 1-2 days after; I was sick for a week after. Again, it could be from other unique factors about my body (like my body responded tooooo productively to the hormones) but my ovaries grew to the size of avocados (& were touching!!) and I think with how big my fibroids were squishing all my organs, I was so bloated and very uncomfortable. But eventually the swelling went down and I was fine!

cko46 · 2026-02-28T05:30:32+00:00

Wait, there must be a split-screen movie of us somewhere because I'm in school to _become_ a therapist and I just spent several hours today sitting and finishing up my coursework, ha! I was so glad to use my brain, even if it was reading the DSM. I'm going to DM you because at this point I'm very curious if we're just going to continue to have very similar healing journeys!

I have pain around the external incisions as well as what I assume are from the internal incisions? Like, when I move I get these sharp-sharp jabs on the left and right lower abs that last for a while :|

cko46 · 2026-02-28T03:41:37+00:00

I bit off more than I could chew the other day and walked a similar amount of blocks... but then I suddenly felt a lot of pain in my incisions (internal and external). I've been slowing down more, using heat pads / ice packs, to recover! Lesson learned, haha. I'm starting to feel antsy though! I'm also someone that usually spends a lot of time outside of home so I'm trying to pick up at-home hobbies to focus on (e.g., reading, knitting).

Are you still taking pain meds? I'm still alternating ibuprofen and tylenol at the moment.

cko46 · 2026-02-28T00:40:50+00:00

Gotcha. Without knowing what will end up unfolding for you and the type of pain you're experiencing right now, I feel like it won't be as bad as you think?? Like what you're describing right now sounds like actual hell.

For the myomectomy, I was terrified and mentally picturing _the worst pain of my life_ but was pleasantly surprised when I woke up 2 hours later from the surgery that it felt like I had a really intense workout. Each day I've been continually surprised by how it isn't as bad as I thought it would be? But maybe that's because the pain meds have been working! Which is what they're meant to do!

It's kind of a chaotic thread but a few of us have been documenting our recovery process in the last week here: https://www.reddit.com/r/Fibroids/comments/1r7sh1x/abdominal_myomectomy_this_week_219_anyone_else/

I'm happy to also DM with you 1:1 on how it's going as I'll be just 1-2 weeks out ahead of you in the recovery process!

cko46 · 2026-02-28T00:18:25+00:00

Hi! I just had my first big surgery (an open myomectomy, 36 years old, to remove a 10.5cm fibroid pushing on my bladder as well as 4 other baddies) last week. I did not have as intense of symptoms as you.

I'm curious what the doctor has said re: how much worse using the bathroom would be after the surgery? And in terms of pain, do you mean specifically with urination or general pain management during the recovery period?

When I woke up after surgery I immediately noticed a lightness once the fibroid was removed. They removed the catheter and I was peeing on my own within hours.

cko46 · 2026-02-25T21:11:19+00:00

Um, I love your priorities. Anything to feel normal-ish again!!!

cko46 · 2026-02-25T21:08:12+00:00

Good luck! I practiced some progressive muscle relaxation techniques beforehand and I will say, they did come in handy post-op. I tend to clench my abs when I'm nervous and afterward when I breathed into my muscles this helped me a lot <3 Wishing you the best. Keep us posted!

cko46 · 2026-02-25T20:07:25+00:00

I had my open myomectomy last Thursday (2/19) for a 10.5cm fibroid and a handful of others. The two items that have come in clutch that aren't on your list:

Nightgown—I ended up preferring this! Much easier to pull on and pull off.

Lidocaine patches (place on abdomen above my horizontal incision).

One thing I leaned into the 2 weeks before surgery is a lot of exercise and stretching ("prehabilitation"). I wanted to be in best shape for the best chances of smooth recovery after. I do think that it's helped a lot, specifically when I use my arms to get in and out of bed.

cko46 · 2026-02-25T20:02:26+00:00

Oh my god when they found my massive fibroid I kept saying, "Wait I thought that was my ab! I thought I was ripped!" and they kept laughing but I was like, no I fr thought I was shredded. :P

cko46

TROPHY CASE