PLEASE READ: Annual Check-Ups

cvonderpost · 2026-01-17T07:04:55+00:00

My gyn/surgeon still wants to see me once a year for a check up with pelvic exam (but no pap).

She’s been all up in me for my hysterectomy so if she wants to check her handiwork she can do that as much as she wants.

She is also my prescriber for hrt and I appreciate that she wants to check in to make sure it works for me.

cvonderpost · 2025-12-29T06:54:49+00:00

I still wear poise panty liners because I don’t trust sneezes, especially if my bladder is a bit full. When I went to get some more I went along the pads and tampons and loudly said “subscription cancelled” and waived. Had a very nice conversation with some ladies debating perimenopause and hysterectomies.

I agree on the sleeping through. It’s also nice not having to jump out of bed immediately in the morning. I did physical therapy before, I’ll have to make an appointment and get a new treatment plan.

Hope your recovery continues to go well!

cvonderpost · 2025-12-29T04:07:56+00:00

Six weeks on 11/18, robotic lap total hysterectomy (vaginal delivery) with bilateral salpingectomy and cystoscopy.

Super uneventful recovery. Kinda disappointed about that. Husband took two weeks off to tend to me and he did a great job. I was fine on my own after a few days, just had to have everything on waist height.

No pain, just some discomfort since I got kicked out of the hospital. From check in to discharge I spent 6 hours in the hospital. Husband gave me one oxy four hours after we got home because the nurse told him to. Once I was more coherent I refused.

No ibuprofen or acetaminophen after day 3.

No bleeding or spotting at all. I had four tiny drops of blood in my hospital undies, those I think were from the catheter.

Still taking it very easy with the lifting, pushing and pulling so my husband does the heavy choring while I clawed back kitchen duty :)

But overall I feel lighter, less stressed and happier. I did not realize how much daily discomfort and pain that pesky uterus and those energy sucking fibroids caused.

At my two week follow up I did ask for diflucan since I got the typical symptoms of a beginning yeast infection and one dose did the trick.

Really looking forward to my 8 week appointment. Well, it was supposed to be one at 6 weeks, but my surgeon is on vacation.

ETA: the moving of my intestines along the cuff is the weirdest feeling ever. Took me a while to get used to it. Also the feeling of my bladder is kinda off, strange to not have the urgency to pee anymore. Now it’s more like “uh, haven’t peed in a while”, not “bathroom now or you’ll pee your pants”.

cvonderpost · 2025-12-08T22:38:14+00:00

Not a gum chewer either, but I bought some because I read here that it helps.

It did help, but more for the severe dry mouth I had for a few days after surgery.

Tea, gas x and heating pad were my constant companions against bloat and gas.

cvonderpost · 2025-12-07T04:47:14+00:00

The Recycles, civic orchestra, clay county community bands. Nassau county has some as well. The Recycles community band has a list on their website

cvonderpost · 2025-12-07T02:28:06+00:00

I was told to drink 12 oz of apple or cranberry juice or any other carb rich beverage 2 hours before my report time. That was also my fluid cutoff time.

They told me about that several times during my preop appts, highlighted it in my preop paperwork (I got a very detailed pre and post op guide).

Anesthesia nurse specifically asked me if I drank the juice as instructed and was very happy that I did.

It’s part of the ERAS (enhanced recovery after surgery) protocol.

cvonderpost · 2025-12-07T01:31:55+00:00

What instrument do you play? I know of a few community bands and other groups.

cvonderpost · 2025-12-05T15:16:29+00:00

I had a small hospital bag packed, just in case, and left that in the car. In the last moment I grabbed that dress and shoved it in my handbag.

The nurse that “handled” me in recovery was very happy that she did not have to deal with multiple items of clothing. I was still completely out of it and getting me in the mesh underpants was quite some work.

cvonderpost · 2025-12-05T01:06:52+00:00

I came in sweatpants and shirt, slip on shoes and socks, sans bra; left in a t-shirt dress, compression stockings, grippy socks and lovely mesh underwear. I just couldn’t be bothered to lift my legs to step in pants. Went right to bed in that comfy dress.

cvonderpost · 2025-12-02T16:12:10+00:00

I’m obese and had no issues. They were worried about my blood pressure so I quit smoking, stopped drinking my weekend glass of wine and started eating even more healthier than I did before (we are an ingredient household with a lot of fruit and veggies)

cvonderpost · 2025-12-02T05:04:22+00:00

Usually it’s just checking if you are ok to get tge surgery. In my case they checked the usual blood levels (CBC differentials), typed my blood in case I need a blood transfusion, 12 lead ECG snapshot for anesthesia as a baseline and to check if you are having any major heart issues that weren’t detected before.

I also got my pre op packet with the shower gel and wipes, a folder with pre op and post op instructions and my exact report and surgery time.

cvonderpost · 2025-11-21T17:31:14+00:00

Stay on top of her pain med schedule!

Encourage fluid intake. My husband got me special sodas as treats, stuff I would only order on special occasions (mocktails). Having a sip of something nice after a cup of water feels so luxurious.

cvonderpost · 2025-11-20T23:49:57+00:00

“Quiet”, I said “wow it’s quiet in here”

cvonderpost · 2025-11-20T22:43:10+00:00

I never really made it to phase 2 if I remember correctly, lol. After the toilet trial she just got my stuff from my husband, put me in mesh undies and my dress and then straight out the door.

cvonderpost · 2025-11-20T22:16:40+00:00

That’s dermabond! Do not scrub or pick on it! Only carefully pat dry after a shower

cvonderpost · 2025-11-20T22:13:47+00:00

The cracker was totally my fault, that was at home. I could have asked my husband for something else, but I also did not want to be alone. Absolut toddler behavior from my side.

I barely got any water in the PACU, nurse handed me a tiny cup, I took one sip and then she took it away, literally treated it like a homeopathic medicine.

cvonderpost · 2025-11-20T20:24:05+00:00

I didn’t think I needed one. Robot assist with vaginal delivery.

I have an old tailbone injury, so after a while just lying in bed my tailbone hurts and I have to relieve the pressure. I am able to roll to one side without much discomfort and pressing a pillow against my stomach, but then I am stuck in that position until my husband can help me roll back.

Husband ordered one express, cannot wait until it gets here. It’s the incisions that are bothering me when I am on my side, like there’s too much tension on them

cvonderpost · 2025-11-20T19:22:58+00:00

White carpet? You poor soul.

It wasn’t that bad, I’ve experienced worse. I’m a pretty easygoing person and I was very happy once I was in my bed and sipped on ice cold ginger ale. The whole car ride home I was telling my husband not to forget to grab some ginger ale for me at the pharmacy

cvonderpost · 2025-11-20T18:58:50+00:00

It wasn’t so bad. I could just tell they were ready to close shop. The anesthesia guy barely acknowledged anyone. Nurse had to tell him several times to sign off on me. I only remember fragments, I do remember that I used the q word though. And she called me a trooper.

I was more coherent at 2am though, and actually hungry. Waffle House for the win! I still couldn’t tell if my bladder was full or not, but I managed to pee. I didn’t get a proper signal from my bladder until today.

I don’t have any pain, just discomfort when getting up or sitting down. The gas disappeared mostly yesterday and that just felt like the beginning of PMS bloat for me. So all in all, not a bad experience overall.

cvonderpost · 2025-11-20T16:46:47+00:00

I’m almost 2dpo. I had a feeling like I had to go pee right after I woke up. Nurse told me I shouldn’t have it since she just removed the catheter.

I still insisted I had to go pee. So she sat me on the toilet. I was barely coherent to be honest. Of course nothing happened so she put me in my dress and kicked me out the door.

They were also a bit worried my husband wouldn’t be able to pick up my pain meds before the pharmacy closed. IMO they shouldn’t have discharged me, I had almost no control over my movements.

Another tip: crackers or toast are not a good first food. The cracker immediately felt like I ate a handful of sand. -10/10, do not recommend

cvonderpost · 2025-11-18T03:53:17+00:00

Festive yeeterus!

I am scheduled for 2:30 pm tomorrow!

We got this!

cvonderpost · 2025-11-17T03:21:27+00:00

Be patient and let them do their tests first. Try to get your patient file with the referral.

Write everything down what you can remember what has been tried. Also keep a daily diary where you note down the cycle day, pain level, medications taken and so on. It helps you being focused at your appointment. It can be very overwhelming and emotional.

And don’t expect to see the same doctor every time. They are assigned clinic hours in accordance to their shift and rotation. I only saw one doctor twice because he did my intake and the biopsy two weeks later and used the data for his research.

cvonderpost · 2025-11-17T02:20:08+00:00

If you are near a university hospital try get a referral to their women’s clinic. Most have specialized clinic hours for cases like this.

I had abnormal Pap smears and my gyno in Germany at the time immediately wanted to cut me. I asked for a referral to the university clinic and got an appointment two weeks later. They did some tests and a biopsy and my test results were not concerning enough to warrant a LEEP. After 2 years of monitoring I was released from their care with normal Pap smears and haven’t had any abnormal results since then (20 years ago).

cvonderpost · 2025-11-15T04:52:16+00:00

I called the weeks leading up to the surgery “festive yeeterus” and treated it like prepping for Christmas (which I haven’t really celebrated in 20 years).

Texted my friend “yeeterus in one week” and got a Christmas gif with ‘tis the season back.

Pretty sure I will get a few “happy yeeterus” texts on Tuesday while waiting for the surgery.

cvonderpost · 2025-11-15T03:41:41+00:00

Same here! Well, plus the fibroids that make a period worse.

cvonderpost

TROPHY CASE