I am in Australia and saw this website on the T.V. Show "The Doctors". At 12 years old I started bleeding. As each month went by the bleeding, bloating and pain got worse. It got to a point that I was bleeding so much by the time I was 13, I was on the contraceptive pill to help control the amount of blood loss and pain. It didn't really work and over the years til I was 21, I had changed the types of contraceptive Pill numerous times. It was when I was 16 that it was discovered that I had polycystic ovaries. My doctor told me I may be infertile. At 21 I developed a cyst the size of a grapefruit on my left ovary. The cyst burst and I was in excruciating pain and had it drained under emergency surgery. I then developed endometreosis, and more cysts on my left ovary over the years. At 25 I did have a child naturally (which no doctor thought would happen), and then went on to have another 3 children over the next 8 years. I did however, suffer 3 miscarriages in between pregnancies. At 38 after 8 surgeries for ovarian cysts, I still suffered heavy bleeding. Generally I bled 3 weeks out of 4, and I always had sore breasts. My OBGYN and I agreed on a hystorectomy. Everything was removed except for my right ovary as I had never had a cyst removed from it and I didn't want to take HRT at such a young age. The next 8 years were wonderful not having any bleeding, but my breast tenderness was so bad that I kept putting off having sex because I couldn't stand to be touched there. Luckliy I have had a very supportive husband since my first cyst appeared at 21 years of age. Now at 46, I have just had my right ovary removed due to it not performing functionally and having 2 large cysts develop and burst this year. I decided the tenth surgery would be my last. So in August 2011, I had the operation, and immediately the next morning I woke up in hospital in tears. I started crying and couldn't stop for the next 6 weeks. I felt like the world was ganging up on me and I wanted to run away . My family didn't understand my mood swings and I couldn't function properly with lack of sleep due to night sweats and hot flashes. I felt extremely alone and got to the point where I felt suicidal. I still don't understand why I felt so low and why I thought no - one loved me. But, let me tell you, if your hormones are out of balance, it messes with your head emotionally as well as physically. So my doctor increased my HRT to double what he had initially prescribed, and since then, I am back to my old self and very happy. I never want to go to that dark place again. Even tho it was only for a short time, it was too much to bare. There is help if you need it. Talk to other women, and definitely talk to your doctor. But don't let them walk all over you. Make sure you tell them what you need. You may not need drugs, you may just need extra support for a while. This was my case...... I needed extra HRT, but my family also needed a good talking to, so they could understand my changed life. It is great now, just 3 months after my surgery. Best of luck to everyone looking for some help! Keep trying til you get what you want.
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Lisa,
Wow! What a story! I am so sorry that you had to go through 10 surgeries just to feel "Normal" again. I am so glad that your story and years of struggle finally had a happy ending.
Best Wishes to you! Enjoy life!
Rosa
November 22, 2011 - 6:36amThis Comment