Hysteroscopy - what to expect? Worried!!!

[PAPanda]

Hi I hope some of you can advise!It seems crazy if some one has pelvic pain to put them through something like this without anaesthetic but.....

I'm seeing a gynecologist next week after a year long wait. When I got the appointment letter it said that I would be having a hysteroscopy at the appointment.

When I went to A&E last year because of awful pain and was referred to gynae, they mentioned hysteroscopy and said I could request a general anaesthetic if i needed it.

I'm nervous about going to the appointment as although I did ring in advance and say that I wanted to request general anaesthetic, the receptionist couldnt organise that.

She advised if I didn't attend then I be put to the back of the waiting list again, and to just prepare myself by taking paracetamol an hour beforehand just in case I have it done.

I have symptoms that could be either endo or adeno, including bladder and bowel symptoms, painful sex, and period pains for half my cycle. I've had them for decades but now I am perimenopausal they got lots worse.

Ultrasound just showed 3 small (2-4cm) fibroids and a polyp, plus a 'bulky womb'.

I would prefer to have an MRI first and then if needed a laparoscopy and fibroid removal under general.

Has anyone been able to ask for this? I want to but if you get an unsympathetic gynae it can be incredibly hard to stand your ground.

Scared of mirena too as they may want me to have one, but don't want my pain to increase, and hormonal contraception has always made my moods very low.

I'm trying to stay calm but getting pretty stressed so any advice welcome. Gotta say I don't know what I'd have done without this forum during the last year! Everyone is so knowledgeable, honest and brave ❤️ Thankyou x

[Joeyb247]

Hi sorry you are feeling stressed about your procedure.I had a hysteroscopy with insertion of a merina coil in June, I was very resistant to having the coil and only made the decision minutes before my procedure.

The coil has been fine although I have some bleeding I have not had the usual heavy periods and I have not had much discomfort from it, the only downside is that I have had some hormonal acne on my chin and neck.

I did have a general anesthetic, although I did think it was not really necessary, my consultant suggested it as I had a bad experience following my last smear.

I would say that not having a general has benefits as you won't have the horrible after effects, and you can resume normal activities quicker, they should make sure you are comfortable maybe check if you can have some sedation - I had thIs with my last colonoscopy and it makes it a lot more bearable.

Good luck I hope all goes well and you can start to feel better soon.

[PAPanda in reply to Joeyb247]

Thanks so much, that's all really helpful info, good to hear your experience with mirena was more positive than you thought it would be - if I do have a general then it would be a good time to have one fitted.

[megiiva]

Hi,you're so brave .Ask for diagnostic laproscopy, on first instance, as this is the only way I'm perimenopausal, and after a fibroid and endometrioma burst, they have done laproscopy and found endometriosis. Bur never showed on MRI,ultrasound, or CT scan. So my pain is more than 3 weeks of the month stil,but againthis could be from the hormonesbeingunbalanced. Its a decision you need to make, ush them for diagnostic and execution laproscopy or hysterectomy. But either of this will give you some relief from the symptoms, hopefully forever, as you are in perimenopause. Keep it strong. You are amazing. Xx

[PAPanda in reply to megiiva]

Thankyou! Perimenopause is so confusing when there's so much going on already with hormones and pain, it's good to hear how you navigated getting a diagnosis at long last and that it is OK to say what ypu need at these appointments! I hope you find ways to manage your pain levels now you know what's causing this - I'm going to try giving the anti inflammatory diet a slightly better shot and see if it helps at all( not getting derailed by almond croissants and coffee is my challenge!)

[HT267]

Hi PAPanda,

I've never had a hysteroscopy so can't help with that bit but I had the same pressure put on to have the coil and I said no and instead opted to try the progesterone only pill which is the sane hormones in the coil to see if I tolerated it first and that worked really well for me plus I liked that if it didn't agree with me I coukd just stop. I never tolerated any of the other hormonal products so the thought of the coil really put me off so glad I tried the pop instead

I wishe you all the best x

[PAPanda in reply to HT267]

Glad you found the right pill that helped and appreciate the advice 🙏

[A2909]

Hi, I had a hysteroscopy and found it to be OK, but everyone is different. I'm on codeine for pain anyway so took some of that before (very low level dose) and it was fine. Could you take something a bit stronger than paracetamol before? I was pressured to have the mirena inserted at the same time. Made to feel like it I didn't want to try that I clearly wasn't interested in solving (masking) the issue. Mirena reduced the sheer volume of bleeding, but made me bleed a lot longer and bought other issues (debilitating headaches, low mood, etc)

I've managed to get them to agree to an MRI before my next appointment (having to wait about 5 months for it) after emailing my consultants service lead and detailing my history and issues.

[lanka76]

I am 47, slowly going into menapause.

I had my first lap surgery in 2012 and several years of relative peace. Then I had endo removal surgery in March 2022, and Mirena coil inserted at the time of surgery to protect me from endo growing back.

Initially everything was going well with Mirena, less blood, cramps, but gradually pain returned, bleeding/spotting for 2 weeks at the time, no libido, weakness, constipation, lower back pain... what the way to live ones life, right?

Well, I just had MRI two weeks ago for my lower spine and they found ovarian cyst of 4.5 cm size on my left ovary (no description what type of cyst). So I would question how effective Mirena is for controlling endometriosis. I have an appointment with GP in a week and most likely will get referral to specialist to investigate further.

I am starting to consider hysterectomy and removal of ovaries and fallopian tubes altogether to stop endometriosis, go through menopause and be done with it, and also as preventive measure, because my mother died of ovarian cancer at age of 65.