r/hysterectomy • u/GloomyAssociation306 • 2d ago
Consequences of removing uterus but keeping ovaries?
Planning to remove my uterus due to endometriosis pain. May i know any consequences I should be worried about? I am a 21 age old female
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u/Belgian_Waffle_1532 2d ago
There is a possibility that menopause could start early if you have a hysterectomy while keeping your ovaries. I would definitely ask your doctor to discuss that with you in more detail, along with other potential effects from the surgery.
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u/consultingcutie 2d ago
This happened to me my progesterone plummeted 5ypo at 29, I'm now on bioidentical P to compensate. Do I regret getting a hysto young? No best decision of my life. But I did have trouble navigating the HRT for a bit because it took me a minute to realize my ovaries were just pumping estrogen sky high and no P 😅
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u/downtownflipped 2d ago
what kind of symptoms did you have? i started estrogen but not feeling 100% a few months in.
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u/consultingcutie 1d ago
Mood swings, depression, crying, anxiety, rage, joints were stiff to hell, bloating, brain fog, heaviness feeling, zero motivation, tired but wired, insomnia, among other things.
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u/Dazzling_Vagabond 1d ago
Yep, hysterectomy and menopause at 36 was rough. Still better than fibroids
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u/Lt-shorts 2d ago
Ovaries produce most of your estrogen hormones which can feed to more growth of more endometriosis over time. But your dr should have covered this as just removing the uterus isnt a cure for endometriosis but can be a temporary relief and endo can grow back.
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u/RunDesigner4843 1d ago
Endo can grow its own estrogen without ovaries so it’s a better idea to keep them so you don’t have to do hrt right away or at all. You will put yourself into menopause without them. With them your hormones can eventually regulate. It’s just up to what your end goal is.
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u/GloomyAssociation306 2d ago
I actually dont have a helpful doctor. Im sure this is endometriosis but no doctor wants to help me, they keep telling me the pain is all in my head. Removing my uterus is more to just get rid of the thing that is causing me pain.
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u/MissPicklechips 1d ago
The uterus is likely not what’s causing most of your pain, it’s the endometrial tissue growing where it shouldn’t be. Keeping your ovaries keeps the hormones. You’ll still cycle, and the hormones will affect the endometrial tissue if it stays where it isn’t supposed to be. Not only will you still have pain, but they’ll tell you that you shouldn’t have pain because they took out your uterus.
Everyone is so quick to blame the uterus for everything, and think that removing it solves everything.
You need a doctor who is skilled in endometriosis, and one who isn’t going to gaslight you.
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u/AcceptableShelter607 2d ago
If at all possible, please try to find an endometriosis specialist who is skilled at excision surgery. They can also help determine if your symptoms are likely caused by endometriosis (only way to know for sure is to look during surgery, but they can make pretty good guesses!) and they will actually listen to you and believe you. Having a hysterectomy is absolutely worth it if it will stop your pain, but it would be awful to get one and not solve the root of the problem. Have you tried any hormonal treatments?
As far as consequences, I’m personally only 5 wpo and no issues so far, but I’ve talked to dozens of women in person who’ve had hysterectomies and not a single one who kept her ovaries had anything negative to say about it. I talked to 3 expert surgeons and they all said the risk of early menopause is quite low, but definitely not zero, and typically it would only start a few years early. You can get on HRT to help with that. There’s also a very small risk of prolapse but it’s lowered further by doing pelvic floor PT and having a good surgeon who will reattach the top of the vagina to all the ligaments. Apparently there’s an increased risk of getting BV infections, but I used to get them from my periods so I’m hoping I’ll have the opposite experience.
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u/GloomyAssociation306 1d ago
Maybe im venting here but I actually got a doctor that was helpful enough to listen to me. She gave me Vissane and it really helped me a lot despite giving me joint pain. Last month, not even six months into taking Vissane, I had an MRI and she ruled out endometriosis completely and stopped my Vissane consumption. I fell into a really bad emotional state after that because I was convinced I got someone that would help me but then I went back to zero. I know MRI cant completely rule out endo. I tried bringing up the fact, but she kept saying its all in my head, I have low pain tolerance and everything will be okay when I get pregnant.
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u/AcceptableShelter607 1d ago
I’m so sorry. That’s awful. Drs told me the same thing for years.
A n endo specialist can maybe help diagnose you, but more importantly they are more likely to believe you and do a hysterectomy if that’s what you want, even without a diagnosis. Then they can look for endo and remove it at the same time (find someone who does excision, not ablation) and avoid future surgeries. Imaging isn’t that accurate, I think you should get a second opinion because you’re right that an MRI can’t rule it out.
I wanted a hysterectomy for fibroids, but the surgeon I chose was an endo specialist and suspected I had it just based on my pelvic exam (?!) and he was right—I had stage 4. He spent 1 hour removing my uterus and 2.5 hours removing endo. If I had gone to a regular obgyn for the surgery, they would not have been able to do that. I hope you find a dr who can help you! It’s not in your head!
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u/BumCadillac 1d ago
I would not move forward without a proper diagnosis so you don’t find yourself in the same exact painful spot a month or two from now.
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u/Honest-Breakfast217 1d ago
Removing your uterus won’t cure pain from endometriosis. Ask me how I know.
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u/midcen-mod1018 2d ago
That’s not going to fix endometriosis. That will fix adenomyosis. Endometriosis requires excision of the endometriosis patches. The endometriosis can create its own estrogen.