First Gynae Appointment

[Lofty1589]

Hi guys. So, tomorrow afternoon I am finally having my first appointment with gynae. Despite two letters being sent to expedite my referral, supposedly it remained a routine referral but my nagging seemed to finally work - I was called up on Friday and told I managed to get a cancellation appointment.

However, I am scared shitless about it. I don’t want to end up messing something up. I know that I want to be booked in for a laparoscopy but I can only really have it done at the end of April because I have a lot going on in March etc. I’m worried the consultant won’t want to do that and I’ll get messed around like I have with my referral and just not get anywhere.

I’m in so much pain still - which has been solid for about 5 weeks now. I’ve been having terrible stabbing pains in my hip bones making me feel like I’m waddling half the time and nothing seems to be helping.

Ugh, this turned into a rant - sorry! But if you have any advice, I will literally take anything. My anxiety apparently can not deal with the appointment suddenly being tomorrow 💜

[Faith27]

Hi! I was in a similar position in the sense that the Doc tried to expedite my gaeny referral due to pain increasing terribly and in the end I think I was seem pretty much the same time as I would have been if the expedite hadn't gone in lol.

I had my gaeny appointment last week and I was paranoid that they wouldn't refer me for a laparoscopy. This certainly wasn't the case and the gaeny was lovely. That being said, I went in very prepared so had a list of things I wanted to discuss - I wrote down my consistent symptoms, how much pain they cause, the effect my pain has on day to day life (Such as having to take time off work or cancelling social things due to pain etc) - I felt that having this info on black and white kept me on track during the appointment to ensure I talked about everything I need to, and more importantly it kept me calm and held my anxiousness at bay!

I know it's late now this evening, but if you haven't already done some notes, I would just take 20 mins to get some stuff jotted down.. trust me, you will sleep better knowing you don't have to remember anything!

When it comes to timeframes, unless it's a private appointment, I don't think you're going to be able to suggest an operation date .. I guess you could mention what suits you best however my gaeny just filled out a card which said I needed a lap and to book me in with the next available gaeny in the health board (I was happy to do this as want it done sooner rather than later). I anticipate that the pre op appointment won't be for a few months and then a few weeks for the op to come around so I'm not expecting my lap until atleast 3 to 4 months time. My sister has a lap booked in and is an urgent referral because they are querying a cyst and unusual blood test yet hers won't be until March or April so I'm expecting non urgent ones to be more May or June. I guess each area is different depending on the demand though.

Just wanted to also wish you the best for your appointment tomorrow xxx

[Faith27 in reply to Faith27]

Also don't forget to ask about pain management during your appointment! 5 weeks of pain must be horrendous.. perhaps the gaeny can suggest stronger tablets to keep this pain at bay until you get things investigated. I'm on Codeine which seems to manage my pain well but there are other tablets such as mefenamic acid (worked for a few years when I was younger) and much stronger tablets that you may need prescribed xx

[Lofty1589 in reply to Faith27]

Thank you so much for your reply. I’m definitely going to write a list as I think that will help me out. I’ve been prescribed codeine and cocodamol the past few weeks but it hasn’t helped me greatly so I’ll certainly ask about that today as well xx

[Jad537]

Don’t worry , my gynae was lovely and I had a diagnostic lap that showed stage 3/4 endo. I’m now waiting to hear from the specialist surgeon in Poole for the next steps. The waiting list can be long so I doubt you will have surgery next month x

[Lofty1589 in reply to Jad537]

Thank you so much for your reply. I hope you hear from your specialist soon! X

[Aphra]

Hi, I do think you need to ask how long you will be waiting before surgery as I only waited 3 weeks and I didn't have any expediting factors. I was shocked as I assumed I would be waiting months until the appointment letter arrived!

[Lofty1589 in reply to Aphra]

Thank you for your reply! That is something I have written down to discuss - mainly because I’ve got a couple of shows booked to see March-April and I don’t want to lose all that money x

[fay144]

My wait was about 8 months - hopefully yours won't be that long. I was given a pre-op assessment within a month though, and at that I was asked if I had any holiday dates etc.

[Lofty1589 in reply to fay144]

Thank you for your reply! That’s certainly a long time, but I suppose it depends upon areas etc. Fingers crossed!

[Faith27]

Let us know how you get on! Xx

[Lofty1589 in reply to Faith27]

I will do! Xx