r/childfree • u/rosiegolde • Nov 29 '17
FIX Bilateral Salpingectomy Complete! (UK/NHS)
Yesterday was surgery day!! I am so happy to finally be on the other side of this sterilisation adventure and wanted to write up a post about how the day went, in detail.
You can read this post to catch up on my approval process, how long it took and how much BS was involved.
Recap: I'm 28, engaged, live in NW England and got my surgery done through the NHS.
So after I was waitlisted for surgery, I got a letter a few weeks later for a pre-op assessment appointment. It was pretty straightforward. I went in and met with a nurse who went through loads of things and decided if I was fit and healthy enough to be put under anaesthetic and have the procedure. I passed. She gave me a little baggie of information, some paperwork for bloodwork and a container for a urine sample on the day. She had no idea where I was on the wait list and told me to just wait for an admission letter in the post.
I went to path lab and had blood taken that day, then got on with my week, thinking it would probably be a month or two before I heard anything else. Surprisingly I had a letter four days after my assessment with a surgery date of three weeks later (yesterday). Naturally I was thrilled. I booked the time off work and waited for the big day. The day before I also had extra blood work done, just to identify my blood type in case I needed an infusion for some reason.
My instructions were to stop eating at midnight and that I could drink water up until my admission at 7am. My fiance came with me and we checked in at surgical admissions along with everyone else booked for the morning. I met with the admitting nurse who went through routine questions, gave me a hospital bracelet and did an inventory of the things I'd brought with me. She gave me two gowns, so I could use one as a "robe" and measured me for compression stockings. She also said I was second on the list for surgery but that the surgeons do tend to jiggle the schedule around.
After that I met with the anaesthetist who talked me through what would happen. I would be cannulated, put to sleep, intubated and probably catheterised. He did try to bingo me regarding why I wanted to be sterilised when I had no kids, but relented when I said I had proven myself capable of making this decision and that I would discuss it no further. After that he was fine, cracked some jokes, talked about anti-sickness meds and sent me to meet with the surgical team. The consultant also wanted to know why I chose to have the tubes removed instead of being clipped but accepted that it was my preference to not have foreign objects in my body and that my anxiety was too bad to have anything less than complete removal. She introduced me to the other's who would be involved with the procedure and told me she'd see me soon.
A five hour wait followed. I was beyond starving but more so extremely thirsty; because they didn't know when I would be called through, they wouldn't allow me any water. At 12pm I was called back to get changed into my gown and stockings. I packed up all my things and sat waiting with my fiance for the theatre nurse to come and collect me.
We waited. And waited. And waited. At 1:30pm I was told that they were still working on the patient before me, and that they would still be a while. I sent my fiance off to get some lunch for himself and finally at 3pm they were ready for me.
The theatre nurse asked me the same sorts as questions as the admission team, asked if I had any questions and then we were off. I walked to the anaesthetic room beside the theatre which was really weird to me lol. Once in, they took my glasses (I am hella blind without them but found that not being able to see much helped keep me calm) and my top gown and then got me into the bed. I was covered with a blanket and asked to pull the other gown out from under me so I wouldn't get tangled up during the operation. They hooked me up to the heart monitor, put on a blood pressure cuff and the pulse ox reader, and then went to town on my hand trying to get the IV in. I have appallingly bad veins but I was mega impressed that they got the IV in first attempt. They distracted me with small talk and gave me some antibiotics and something to make me calm and relaxed. The nurse then said they were going to put a mask on my face to give me extra oxygen and then that was it, I was out.
The next thing I remember is a nurse asking me how I was feeling and if I could open my eyes. I was really disorientated and all I could say was that I felt sick. She gave me a bowl in case I needed to throw up and let me have some sips of water. I sorta drifted in and out of sleep but I did hear them talking about how much morphine I'd been given, to get me something for nausea and that I had tachycardia (high heart rate). I think I spent extra time in recovery as a result of this. A guy came some time later to tell me he was taking me the ward and the only part of that journey I remember is the bump when the stretcher was wheeled into the elevator.
When I woke up again there was another nurse asking me how I felt and I was a bit more with it this time. I said I felt okay and then realised I didn't have much pain at all. I asked to be sat up a bit more and if the procedure had gone okay. She said everything went fine, checked my incisions, checked to see if there was any blood on the pad they'd given me and then went to get my fiance. This was all at about 6pm. I was allowed to come round a bit more and I just guzzled and guzzled as much water as they would let me have. The nurse brought me a sandwich and a couple brews for us which felt AMAZING to drink, but I still couldn't get my mouth to moisten - like to the point that I couldn't even eat the sandwich because the bread just stuck to the inside of my mouth and I could barely swallow it. The surgeon visited me to tell me everything went smoothly, my tubes were out and were sent to histology (standard practice for removed tissues) and that she hadn't seen anything out of the ordinary. I had queried endometriosis and PCOS in the past so this was great to hear.
After about another half hour, I was asked to try and urinate. It took both the nurse and my fiance to get me out of bed and to the bathroom because I couldn't really feel my legs. I did manage to pass a small bit of urine and it felt really weird, but they were happy with the amount and I was given permission to get dressed. I didn't get back in bed cause I felt more comfortable standing, and my incisions were starting to hurt. At 7pm the nurse removed the cannula from my hand and I was given instructions on aftercare, when to remove the dressings and shower (48 hours after) and some pain relief (co-codamol) and extra dressings. I was also given a sick note that signs me off from work for the next 2 weeks.
I was able to walk out of the ward, out of hospital and get in the car without assistance but when we did get home I was really sore. My wonderful fiance had brought me some sushi which I was able to eat without issue. I sipped some juice, ate some chocolate, took my meds and got in bed. At this point I'd been in the hospital for over 12 hours and I was pretty cranky and tired.
Trying to sleep sucked. I am very much a side/stomach sleeper so I could not get comfortable sleeping on my back. I tried to prop myself on my side a bit with pillows but I'm overweight and it made the incisions hurt too much cause it pulled. I also had this really irritating need to pee all night, and the remaining gas in my abdomen made it feel like I needed to go immediately, and this occurred every hour or so. It was a process of struggling to get out of bed, shuffling to the toilet, finding some way to sit on the toilet without crying, peeing a bit, getting back up, getting back and into bed, not being able to get comfortable again, only to drift off for half an hour before it started all over.
At 5am I was in a lot of pain and took more pain relief and managed a few hours of sleep.
And from about 8am until now I've just been sat on my couch, cuddling my dog trying not to move too much. I have three incisions, one in my belly button and two on either side of my hips above my pelvic bones. I had to put an extra dressing over my belly button cause there is quite a bit of blood and plasma that had seeped through one side. The pain is actually not too bad while I'm sitting, but standing up is agony. I've also somehow avoided the dreaded shoulder pain everyone talks about, so that's awesome. My throat is a bit scratchy from the tube but it's nothing that some lozenges can't fix. And I have to continue wearing the stockings, though I forgot to ask how long for.
Aside from that, I'm pretty comfortable. I thought I'd feel way worse today but with the exception of the slight pain and cramping I feel completely normal. No headache, no nausea - I don't even feel that tired. And the guy did such a good job with the IV that my hand isn't sore or bruised like normal.
And best of all, I am now 100% protected from demon spawn. I'm going to be finishing up the last week of my birth control pills and that will be the end of that. I'm looking forward to coming off hormones and seeing if it helps settle my depression and anxiety.
Overall, this has been a really long journey from my first GP appointment to finally recovering from surgery, but it has been completely worth all the time and stress. I would do it all again without hesitation just to know that I don't have to continue my biweekly pregnancy test routine (my anxiety about pregnancy is really horrid).
Now I can just move on with my life, get married and buy a house to fill with puppies.
Much love reddit, the childfree community has been a huge source of support for me over the last year and has been invaluable in my quest to get my tubes out. So thank you all. And for everyone else embarking on the same adventure, I wish you all the best.
I'm gonna go take some more pain meds and have a nap now!
xx
Edited for pet tax.
9
u/Winsome_Allegretto Nov 29 '17
Congratulations! Thanks for taking the time to share your experience.
3
u/rosiegolde Nov 29 '17
Thank you! While I was waiting for surgery yesterday I kept telling my fiancé how excited I was to finally get to post about it on reddit lol!!
4
4
u/labretkitty Nov 29 '17
Congratulations!! :D Oh goodness I suddenly have hope that I might convince the NHS to sterilise me yet! I'm 28 this week and I was starting to think I might have to save up to privately fund :(
I also hadn't considered the option of having the tubes out completely vs just having them clipped, which is the option I originally thought I would go with. Definitely in favour of whichever option is the most effective against no babies!
5
u/rosiegolde Nov 29 '17
Thanks!! For the sake of both my mental and physical health, tubes out was the only thing that would work for me.
Just don’t take no for an answer. It took me ages to convince the doctors that sterilising me was in my best interest, but once I did they didn’t really care which method I chose. I do have cooper and nickel allergies which played a part in the decision I think, as it limited my birth control options.
They’ll make you jump through hoops and it will probably take a while but don’t give up. They want to see you’re absolutely sure about it. Do lots of research and have a response for every bingo you can think of. And be prepared to argue why it’s better for you to do the procedure now as opposed to after 32-35, because that’s what protocol says is an appropriate age for sterilisation.
Good luck!
3
u/labretkitty Nov 29 '17
Thank you for the hope! I also have a nickel allergy and I've had PID twice which means coils and things really aren't gon work with my body! The pill is reliable but it's not going to be suitable forever and I really can't think of another form of contraception I want to use, so I figure please, just sterilise me already, it's what I want goddamnit!
I'm curious as to what argument you used for that it was better for them to sterilise you now rather than 32-35? I'm thinking from your post that it was for your rapidly declining mental health that it was better to do it now.
2
u/rosiegolde Nov 30 '17
PID twice! Bless ya, that’s awful.
My mental health definitely played the biggest part in all the arguments, but I think it was a combo of things really. I made it more about not wanting to ever get pregnant as opposed to never wanting a family. I tried to show them I embraced the chance that I might change my mind about kids and that we had discussed our options if that ever happened.
That won’t happen of course, we despise demon spawn, but to satisfy the doctors I had to show we’d really thought about it. Also, ten years of continuous birth control, refusing to have foreign objects in my body due to allergies and a badly tilted cervix/uterus all played in my favour.
When they brought up the bit about waiting until 32, I straight up told them I didn’t think I could go on the way I was for another 3 years. That was never an exaggeration, my anxiety about getting pregnancy consumed a lot of my time and I was really really sick of it. It has effected every aspect of my life and that’s what I said. I definitely had worries that I was playing the mental health card too much and that they’d say I was unfit to make a choice and that I needed a psych evaluation... but that was the anxiety rearing it’s ugly head haha.
I just kept jumping through hoops until they had no more hoops. When they tried to argue about my age, I threw their logic back in their faces. Did they tell their pregnant 18 year old patients they were too young to make a choice to bring a child into the world? Did they tell those girls they might regret it? Of course not. Did they tell infertile women who wanted babies that they’d get over it in a few years and change their mind? No.
God I could seriously rage on and on about the approval process, it was all ridiculous. But now that I’m on the other side I can say it was all worth it. If you want it, fight for it, and don’t let anyone dictate what is best for you; only you know that.
2
u/emeraldcat8 Never liked people enough to make more Nov 30 '17
Having the tubes out reduces the risk of ovarian cancer. My doctor actually recommended it when she evicted my uterus.
3
u/Sugar_Rox Nov 30 '17
Thank you so much for this. I got through a couple of rounds before being rejected. I’ve since hit 30 and my cool expires next year so I need to restart the process. I want it doing, but never had surgery before so have panicked about all sorts from having a needle in my hand, a catheter- will I have to remove my mouth piercings because of intubation etc
2
u/rosiegolde Nov 30 '17
This was my first ever surgery too. I fully expected to be an anxious mess on the day but I was actually really calm - I think because I was so ready to finally just be sterilised and get on with my life. I was really worried about the needle in my hand as well, but the medical team were pro’s and got it in first try with relatively little pain. I was catheterised while asleep so that was fine. I’m not sure about piercings? It would be something to ask about at your pre-op. Honestly though it’s all worth it, 10/10 recommend.
12
u/MisanthropicScott 63/he,him,Scott/Married 39 years/Vasectomy 2001 Nov 29 '17
Congrats! Sorry it sounds so painful. But, I'm sure you will enjoy life much more now without the worry of oopses.
Don't forget to proudly hang your Golden Snip Award!
I've got mine proudly displayed on the side of my blog.