Post lap; couldn't remove it all

[Bee_22]

Hi ladies! I hope you all had a lovely Christmas!

I had my lap on the 1st of this month. It showed that I had moderate endo, which after eight years of 'this is just what women go through' was a relief to say the least! The surgeon (who was absolutely incredible) burnt the majority of the endo away, but there was some that was too close to my bowel which he had to leave.

The first two weeks I was in a lot of pain, and then I had a week where there was absolutely no pain! I couldn't believe it! However, now my stomach is looking like I'm 3 months pregnant again, and sore to touch; also my left hip is hurting again.

Just wanted your thoughts. I'm inclined to believe that it's just the surgery has aggravated what is left of the endo, and shortly I'll be pain free again. I just really don't want this small patch of endo to cause just as much pain as the load that was burnt off.

If anyone's been in the same situation, or just has any advice; I'd love to hear your thoughts!

Thanks in advance, Bee xx

[FairFacedFairy]

Hi Bee,

When I had my first lap in August I was told that I had severe Endometriosis and that he could not remove any of it as the worst of it was over part of my bowels so I would need a second lap to attempt this. After my surgery I had a month or two of feeling okay ( this may have been because I was back to back on my pill) but since then I feel like the surgery has aggravated it and it's acting up far worse!

You probably won't want to hear this but I think maybe your Endo on your bowel is causing the pain because it is one of the most common places for obvious symptoms especially what you are describing is very similar to me! Was your surgeon an Endo specialist? If not, I would consider being refereed to one because they should be able to work on that area. If you are really suffering, please consider it in the future. Also diet is so important with that area too. Also may I ask what medication or treatment you are on if any?

Hope this helped.

Faye xx

[Bee_22 in reply to FairFacedFairy]

Hi Faye,

Thank you so much for replying!

It's a tough one isn't it? Yeah, I'm very lucky with the surgeon I had, he was an endo specialist. My bowel is quite swollen, and he said it would cause even more harm were he to attempt it at that present time. Especially when I had already been under two hours. The thing is, I went privately, so I can't really afford that again. He does do things on the nhs, but it'd take months.

It's just been getting worse and worse the last few days. My stomach has been constantly bloated for four days now, the pain in my stomach, back and hip is bad too. I'm so thankful that after eight years he found something, but I just wish that because he got rid of most of it, I'd be left pain free!

My boyfriend and I have been looking into endo diet books, so we're going to start seeing if any of them help. I already avoid dairy and citrus fruits because they aggravate my endo/ibs symptoms. I only have the coil really. I've been on mefanamic acids, tranxamic acid, codeine etc, but they don't really help. I'm not good with medication! Any suggestions would be gravely appreciated!

Thank you xx

[FairFacedFairy in reply to Bee_22]

Oh bless you, It's really tough isn't it. Maybe consider using him on the NHS, it would give you some time to recover if it takes awhile, try natural ways to help the pain and swelling and then last resort would be to have another Lap?

The things I do to help my pain particularly with my bowel is:

Take probiotic tablets are my big must. I get them from Holland and Barrett. I also take slippery Elm - but sometimes it's hit and miss.

I try not to take many painkillers - they just cause too much havoc with my bowel movements - Codeine especially. I find Naproxin will take the edge of my period pain, back pain and general pain but nothing touches my pain with my bladder, bowels or leg pain so I don't bother taking anything extra because it does nothing. And I can't take anything stronger than Naproxen as my body can't handle it and I wouldn't be able to work.

i couldn't live without my hot water bottle. I have a mini one that I take to work. Because it's small it rarely burns and doesn't get too hot either.

My biggest help but most expensive is my ultralieve.

boots.com/en/Ultralieve-Ult...

It does work wonders for me but it is costly so I would think about it before purchasing. My boyfriend hated seeing me in so much pain so he did some research and bought this - I had only heard of general tens machines as help for Endo but this I love. You can get it a bit cheaper on amazon I think. I get a lot of joint pain too so it's fab for that but It works best on my back and legs.

Diet wise I avoid Alcohol, dairy, gluten, anything high in sugar like fruit drinks etc, red meat.

I try and consume a lot of ginger really helps me. I have fresh ginger tea that calms my stomach like nothing else. I also try and take in as much protein as my body is allowed. A diet high in protein seems to help me. I also take protein shakes for that reason but also because it gives my body a bit of rest as it doesn't have to digest as much.

I hope some of these work for you too

Faye