The “Best of” Our Blogs: On Having a Hysterectomy Parts 3 & 4
In celebration of our two years of blogging and updating our book, we’ve chosen a few of our past blogs to “replay.” Below, Robin concludes the story of her own hysterectomy.
Sunday 30 Aug 2009
Hysterectomy, The Saga – Part III: Physical and Emotional Preparation for Surgery
Have you ever had a procedure done or gone to the doctor and had them tell you that whatever they were going to do was going to hurt? Of course, when they tell you that, it almost always does hurt! This is what we call “Medical Hexing”. From the outset, I was told that I would be in a lot of pain after the hysterectomy; I was going to feel really tired and wiped out, and that I was not going to be healed for at least six weeks. In a way, I felt set up. I realized that there were things I could do that might help me avoid or cope with pain and improve my healing in ways that conventional medicine couldn’t or wouldn’t.
In my clinic where I work, we have a wonderful psychologist who is a guided imagery specialist. I knew that he could help me. Guided imagery is a method of treatment that uses your mind to take you to a calm, relaxing wonderful place. It induces a state of relaxation and helps your mind to direct pain control and expedite healing. I had a session with him at which time he had me relax and took me on a journey in my mind to a beautiful beach. While on the beach he had me see myself relaxed, healing quickly and experiencing very little pain. The tape was about 30 minutes long. I listened to it every day for a week before the surgery and I listened to it during the surgery. There are many medical studies that have shown this to be a very effective method to reduce surgical complications, reduce the need for pain medication, and improve the speed of healing.
In addition to the guided imagery, I went to our clinic acupuncturist. She treated me for a two-hour session the day before my surgery in which she worked on the acupuncture points to help prevent nausea, boost my immune system, charge up my adrenal glands and help with pain control. I walked out of her session feeling great. The session had the added benefit of stopping the bleeding that had been going on for almost two months! Between the two therapies, I felt really good and I wasn’t upset or scared anymore.
I was able to do one other thing that helped. I insisted upon being able to choose my anesthesiologist. Once I asserted myself, guess what happened? They let me choose! When you have surgery the anesthesiologist is just as important as the surgeon. I chose the anesthesiologist who was recommended by other doctors and one who understood my need to listen to the guided imagery tape during surgery. He was also trained in acupuncture just in case!
The day of the surgery I felt calm, and I told my doctor all the things I had done to prepare. I predicted to her that I would need very little pain medication, I would have very little bleeding and that I would be out of the hospital in two days. She looked at me as if I was nuts. That was the last thing I saw before the preoperative anesthetic went into my arm and I was in la la land.
Tuesday 01 Sep 2009
Hysterectomy, The Saga – Part IV: The Process of Recovery
I was so happy to be home. However, although I knew that I had changed in a big way, it was hard for others to see that I wasn’t up to snuff and couldn’t do my usual activities. My dogs were totally confused. They angrily barked for me to take them out for a walk. My husband, who had the best of intentions and a touch of ADHD, would forget that I was up in my bed for hours at a time. My teenage sons were off with their friends. It was time to call for reinforcements. My mother came in to help me recover. She helped to keep me from overdoing it and to keep me company.We watched a lot of really horrible movies and laughed, reminisced and rested. No matter how old I get, my mom can always make me feel better. Now, two weeks post op, I am up and around, walking daily, and have about 80% of my energy back.
I was so distressed when I found out that I needed the hysterectomy. I was upset that I was going to miss work and that I couldn’t continue to do all my multi-tasking. I was upset that my body “failed” me. I felt powerless. The funny thing is that in losing my uterus, I found my power. I learned so much about “the patient” experience. I understood the frustration that my patients express with the way the whole medical system is set up. I learned how to work with the system to get what I needed. I experienced the therapies that I regularly recommend to patients first hand and realized their potency. I was able to reconnect with my mother in a way that we never could have done if I weren’t confined to my bed. Most importantly, I learned to ask for and accept help. How amazing that in losing an organ that has meant so much to me throughout my life that I would gain power, knowledge, wisdom and grace. Robin Miller
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