https://boards.hellobee.com/ Pregnancy, Baby and Parenting blog, by Hellobee en Tue, 19 May 2026 08:02:16 +0000 https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/laparoscopy#post-1341642 Mon, 13 Jan 2014 11:16:15 +0000 Jenn23 1341642@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Sorry to hear you have a hydrosalpinx. That stinks and I know you must be so upset, but at least as you said, now you know the problem! Hopefully surgery fixes it so you can get back to ttc again soon!!! :) </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/laparoscopy#post-1337854 Sat, 11 Jan 2014 13:29:20 +0000 mopeybuthopey 1337854@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Thanks everyone for your feedback. Turns out I do have a hydrosalpinx :( so laparoscopy is pretty much unavoidable. I'm going through with it hopefully sometime this month, then no ttc for two additional cycles, then RE wants me to try on my own for 6 more months. </p> <p>Honestly it feels like I am never going to get pregnant. He is going to attempt a salpingostomy but if the hydro is in bad shape, he'll do a salpingectomy. He thought from the X-ray that it can be repaired. </p> <p>Disappointing but I suppose a reason why may be better than the limbo land of "unexplained." :/ </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/laparoscopy#post-1331425 Thu, 09 Jan 2014 14:18:04 +0000 mrswin 1331425@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@Happygal: My doctor was the one that brought it up after discussing my family history and symptoms. He said he would prefer to see what the test indicated before recommending a lap. I will have to look at my paperwork once I am home. I had it done over a year ago and I don't remember the cost off the top of my head, I think it was around $150....but I am in Canada so not sure if that will make a difference. I will wall you tonight with the cost </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/laparoscopy#post-1331343 Thu, 09 Jan 2014 14:00:33 +0000 septca 1331343@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@Happygal: I think @raintreebee: brings up an excellent point. My doctor could have cleared my tube with an HSG alone (although it likely would have been excruciatingly painful), which would have "solved" my fertility issue. But I am still glad I had the surgery because (1) it lessened my pain considerably, and (2) it gave me answers rather than just a solution. I think this is a difficult decision and depends so much on your individual situation and how much money/time you have to devote to intervention. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/laparoscopy#post-1331307 Thu, 09 Jan 2014 13:51:17 +0000 Happygal 1331307@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@raintreebee: my RE doesn't seem to take a strong stand on things, but I think she would if I pushed her. I think the practice is wanting to match what the patient wants, conservative or aggressive. They also are sensitive to the costs of everything. When I spoke about next treatment steps, I got the feeling he thought moving to IVF was the best choice, but he didn't come right out and say it. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/laparoscopy#post-1331208 Thu, 09 Jan 2014 13:29:38 +0000 raintreebee 1331208@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Hi, I was diagnosed with "likely endometriosis" from an ultrasound, which showed a stuck ovary. Every once in awhile, I had a very painful period when I was younger, but, it was only occasionally and in recent years, my periods were pain-free. They say that often endometriosis is asymptomatic. I am now pregnant at the age of 35 after 3 rounds of IVF. I have a fairly serious job (I am an academic and was up for tenure shortly after the treatments) but my schedule is flexible, so that helped. Most of the IVF appointments occur in the early morning before work. The retrieval and transfer are typically all day affairs for which you only get a couple days' warning, so that can be tough. Also, FWIW, my RE was strongly against laps for endo since you can just work around the endo with IVF, there is little evidence that laps improve fertility or IVF success rates, and there is a risk that surgery can cause further damage. That being said, we were willing to pony up for IVF and surgery would have been a lot cheaper. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/laparoscopy#post-1331165 Thu, 09 Jan 2014 13:18:28 +0000 Happygal 1331165@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@mrswin: Interesting about that test! Was your doctor the one who mentioned it, or did you request it on your own? Do you mind sharing how much it cost? (You can wall me if you don't want to discuss cost here.) </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/laparoscopy#post-1326560 Tue, 07 Jan 2014 18:22:22 +0000 mrs. 64 1326560@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I'm not sure if any of this will help but this is my experience:</p> <p>A few months after I went off bcp I started having a lot of pain. They ruled out cysts etc and thought I had endometriosis. My mom also had endometriosis and required a lap to conceive. I hadn't been ttc for too long at that point (about 3 months) but I was in a lot of pain and I was a teacher and wanted to have the surgery before school started so I went ahead with it. </p> <p>I was really scared to have the surgery, but it wasn't that bad. I definitely needed help the first few days and then felt better by the 3rd or 4th day and was at Disney world the following week. I was extremely swollen though and had to buy some loose fitting shorts so that nothing was tight over my incisions. </p> <p>I was frustrated with the results of my surgery. They did not discover endometriosis. They did find an adhesion that they snipped. My pain decreased, but is still bothersome. I don't think the surgery had any positive or negative effect on my fertility, but I did conceive about 5 months later. </p> <p>I don't know if any of that will be helpful to you, but if you have any questions feel free. Good luck! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/laparoscopy#post-1325978 Tue, 07 Jan 2014 15:13:27 +0000 Jenn23 1325978@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@mopeybuthopey: I hope you don't have to have your tubes removed. We just left mine alone, so I still have it, but it is still filled with fluid. Yep, I'm glad to help by answering your questions. I did IVF at 34 (had my son just after turning 35) and it worked the first and only time. I had to miss work quite a few mornings (came in late by a few hours) but luckily my boss was very understanding and knew all about it. At my RE's office, they would schedule the appt's first thing in the morning, so that way it didn't interfere too much with work days. I also highly suggest acupuncture if you can afford it or are interested in it. Many suggest it helps with embryo implantation. I have no idea if it does work, but I did do it leading up to my IVF cycle and the day before and after embryo transfer and I did get pregnant, so it can't hurt to try! Let me know if you have any other questions. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/laparoscopy#post-1325230 Tue, 07 Jan 2014 12:52:51 +0000 mopeybuthopey 1325230@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@mrswin -- thanks for letting me know about the CA125 blood test! I am going to ask about that -- I haven't had that done. </p> <p>@happygal -- I completely relate to being nervous about the procedure, but you are not a wimp!!! Even if they do not find anything at all. I actually read in a textbook I was looking at last night that 62% of diagnostic laparoscopies do not find anything. So you would actually be in the majority if nothing were to be found. </p> <p>@septca -- thanks so much for sharing your story! I agree our situations do sound similar! I do not really have any pain during my periods (other than just some cramping in the first couple days, but nothing too bad) or at other times during my cycle, so that is the only thing that makes me think maybe I do not have endo. It is hard to say though for certain!! I am so glad your story has a happy outcome, and I hope you get your BFP with the second very soon! Based on your experience, I think I may go for the lap -- I guess I will have to wait and see what the doc says when we meet. Thanks again. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/laparoscopy#post-1325074 Tue, 07 Jan 2014 12:02:14 +0000 mrswin 1325074@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@Happygal: @mopeybuthopey: I have many of the same "symptoms" or lack of symptoms that @Happygal: mentions, I am not a textbook case by any means. The other deciding factor that lead me to go forward with the lap was that I had the CA125 blood test done which showed elevated levels. The test is new and I had to pay for it out of pocket but there have been links drawn between elevated level and endometriosis. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/laparoscopy#post-1325028 Tue, 07 Jan 2014 11:52:13 +0000 Happygal 1325028@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@mopeybuthopey: I don't think I have a lot of clear symptoms, but I can share what I do know.</p> <p>FAMILY HISTORY: I have a strong family history of it. It took my mom three years to conceive, and she later had a hysterectomy due to endo. Both of my mom's sisters had extensive endo and required surgeries as well. When I asked my mom if she had pain, she said she sometimes felt a sensation like tugging when she would bend to lift something heavy, but nothing else. When I told the doctor about my mom and my two aunts, he said I had about 60% chance of having it simply due to family history. (I've discovered there are a lot of different percentages/stats given by REs, so others may disagree with that figure.)</p> <p>PERIODS: When I was younger, I had heavy periods with painful cramps, but birth control took care of that. My periods are now very light and short. </p> <p>PAIN: I have a pretty constant pain in my pelvic area, but it's normally not so bad that it knocks me out of work. I went in a year or so ago for it, and my midwife said she thought it was round ligament pain. They can't see a cyst or anything like that, so it does make me wonder if it's endo. Sometimes I have pain during sex, but I thought that was more due to certain positions--my doctor said he thinks it's probably b/c of endo. If the pain I'm having is stronger than usual, bowel movements can be uncomfortable, mainly b/c it feels like an abnormal pressure. </p> <p>So not having extreme pain or intense periods makes me think I don't have it, but I've read you can have little to no symptoms and still have advanced endo. Since everything else checked out okay with our fertility tests and we've been trying for well over a year, the RE now thinks it's likely more like an 80% chance we're dealing with endo. </p> <p>I do feel angry with my (now former) midwife. I asked about endo awhile ago, and she said I don't have it. "You'll have painful, heavy periods," she said, "and the pain you're describing wouldn't go away just because you change positions." She is wrong, wrong, wrong. I luckily knew she was wrong when she told me these things, but it upsets me to think she is spreading misinformation to so many other women. </p> <p>It's so silly, but one concern I have about surgery is that they look inside, see nothing, and think I'm just a hypochondriac/wimp. And I've gone through all that surgery prep for nothing? I would feel embarrassed. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/laparoscopy#post-1324919 Tue, 07 Jan 2014 11:25:16 +0000 mopeybuthopey 1324919@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@blackbird -- I am so sorry to hear about your miscarriages but so glad your story has a happy ending!!! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/laparoscopy#post-1324910 Tue, 07 Jan 2014 11:22:03 +0000 blackbird 1324910@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@mopeybuthopey, Oh yeah. I got pregnant 3 times within a year (i had two miscarriages but they were unrelated to endometriosis, and due to a blood clotting disorder). I now have a 9 month old, but i got pregnant within 2 months all three times. My uterus was a clean slate, I suppose! I had the surgeries done when I was 19 and 22, and had been on birth control (to freeze my cycles) since. I'm 27 now </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/laparoscopy#post-1324761 Tue, 07 Jan 2014 10:49:30 +0000 septca 1324761@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>My story is long, but it may be just what you are looking for, so bear with me. I promise - there is a happy ending. :grin: Also, please, PLEASE feel free to wall me if you have any additional questions or just want someone to chat with/a shoulder to cry on. Your post really resonated with me because it is so similar to what I experienced. :heart: </p> <p>I got my first AF early - at 10. My cycles were always regular, but excruciating. Very heavy flow and horrible cramps. All of the women in my family (mom, sister, grandmother, and my grandmother's sisters) all had the similar issues, so I was told that this was normal. My mom had gone of BCP at 15 to deal with the issues and offered that to me, but for some reason I didn't want to do that (stupid!!!). I started BCP at 18 and, although I still had fairly heavy flow and cramps, my cycles were very normal for what people experience on the pill. I stayed on BCP for 11 years. About 2 years before I went off BCP, I started noticing some weird sensations on the right side of my abdomen in the middle of my cycle. For a couple of days each cycle, I would have dull, shooting pains. They weren't particularly painful, just odd. I chalked it up to ovulation pain and went about my life.</p> <p>(Note: This was obviously an incredibly stupid assumption, since you don't O on the pill... but it turns out that your body still goes through some of the same motions even though no egg is released - so your ovaries still expand and contract a bit around O just like your ute expands and contracts around AF...)</p> <p>I went off BCP in April 2011 when my husband and I started to TTC. I am fairly Type A, so I charted (temps, CM, and OPKs) from cycle 1. My cycles immediately returned to the length and regularity that they were pre-BCP, so I was no longer experiencing heavy flow or cramps. My AFs were very light and were preceded by spotting (starting at 12 DPO). I didn't think much of this because I knew BCP could cause my cycles to be wonky for a bit. I assumed (ha ha) that I would get KU right away because both my mother and grandmother had (my mom got KU first try with both my sister and I, and my grandmother had 4 kids in 4 years). I didn't, and the mid-cycle shooting sensation continued.</p> <p>About 4 months into TTC, the mid-cycle pain started to get worse. It became painful and sharp, and I started having it all day for 3-4 days. I saw my OB to get things checked out and she sent me for some testing - an u/s, CD3 and 21 bloodwork, etc. All my tests were clear, so she sent me to a pelvic pain specialist. The specialist said that my symptoms and family history indicated that I *could* have endometriosis, but that it was far from a clear cut case. She thought it was odd that I was having such light AFs and no cramping, and told me that spotting before AF is NOT normal. Based on all of this, she recommended a laparscopy to see what was what, but I didn't want to do it. I was *sure* that my BFP was just around the corner and I really didn't want to be sidelined from TTC by an invasive surgery.</p> <p>Meanwhile, my pain was worsening and occurring most days during my cycle. I was in a bad place mentally as well, because my husband I were so ready to have a baby and it just wasn't happening. By cycle 9, I was in so much pain around O that I could not stand up straight. My husband put his foot down and said I had to have the surgery. My doctor said she would do an HSG during the surgery.</p> <p>I had my lap on a Tuesday. The surgery revealed that I do have endometriosis, but there was not much there. The pathology report revealed that the type of endo I have is genetic and is a "turn and burn" variety that grows very quickly, causing a lot of pain, and then turns to scar tissue. Most of the endo my doctor found was concentrated around my right ovary, which explained my pain. The HSG revealed that BOTH of my tubes were blocked - the left with old endo scar tissue and the right with new endo growth. By exerting quite a bit of pressure with the HSG dye, my doctor was able to flush out my right tube. The left tube was hopeless, I was told.</p> <p>After the surgery, my doctor gave us 6 months (so, 3 cycles as only one of my tubes worked) to conceive naturally before she strongly recommended that we go to IVF. The timeline was based on her fear that my endo would grow back quickly, re-fill the right tube, and ruin my future fertility. She thought that going to IVF would preserve the chance to conceive a second child naturally. (FWIW, my doctor does NOT recommend removing tubes prior to IVF unless there is a very clear reason to do so - she mentioned several times to me that she thinks it is an irresponsible practice to remove tubes just as SOP for IVF.)</p> <p>My first cycle after my surgery, I O'ed from the left side. My AF was more normal - no spotting beforehand and heavy enough to make me feel comfortable about my lining. My second cycle, when I O'ed from the right side, I got a BFP. After more a year of TTC, we were successful the first possible cycle. :grin: Although I was not ready to have surgery before I did, I kick myself for waiting so long.</p> <p>My AF returned pretty quickly after my daughter's birth despite exclusively BFing, so I went back on BCP. It only worked for so long to keep my endo pain at bay (I am *much* more sensitive to the pain and my body now), so we decided to TTC #2 a little earlier than originally planned (I am in the TWW of cycle 1 now). The interesting thing is this - I had an HSG at the beginning of this cycle to make sure my right tube is still open. It is, but we discovered that my left tube is also technically open (???). Because I have a lot of scar tissue between my left tube and left ovary (the dye "pooled" considerably there), my doctor is not hopeful about my chances of conceiving on that side, but my point in telling this part of the story is that things can change and shift around with time, childbirth, surgery, etc.</p> <p>My lap recovery was okay (surgery Tuesday, went to a wedding Saturday night), but it's still major surgery. I waited longer than I should have to have the procedure and I am angry at myself for making that decision. There are, of course, risks to every surgery, especially those that prod at your lady parts... but in hindsight, I would have listened to my doctor earlier. If you don't trust your RE, I would get a second opinion. But if you have been TTC for 9+ months and your doctor recommends a lap, I - personally - would go for it.</p> <p>ETA: I chose surgery over IVF for two reasons: (1) my surgery was covered under insurance with a $150 copay, and IVF would have cost us $10,000+ out of pocket; and (2) I was not yet at a place where I could wrap my head around so much intervention. If we had not conceived within the 6-month window given to me by my doctor, we would have absolutely gone the IVF route, but I am really glad we didn't have to.</p> <p>Also, my doctor is a GYN only (not an OB) who specializes in pelvic pain and does a zillion laps a year, so I really trusted her. She is not an RE. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/laparoscopy#post-1324757 Tue, 07 Jan 2014 10:47:56 +0000 mopeybuthopey 1324757@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@blackbird -- thanks so much for sharing your experience. Did you feel the laps ultimately helped you on your fertility journey? I am hopeful that you are a preggo or have been a preggo :) though I don't know how long ago you had these done. </p> <p>@happygal -- do you have any symptoms of endo? Anything that makes you think you could have it? :| I guess it can be asymptomatic. I think the doc is going to tell me he suspects I may have endo as well. How do you reach your decision to go with the lap instead of the IVF? (I wonder if I will soon be facing the same question). I'm glad he gave you more than one option. Sounds like you have a good doc. I wish you all the best and hope you get your BFP soon!!!</p> <p>@jenn23 -- your story is encouraging to me. I don't really want to get my tubes removed, even if they are all screwed up, but I also recognize that if I am ever going to get pregnant, that may be my only option. I'm so glad IVF worked for you. Do you mind me asking you at what age your did it? Did you have to do more than one cycle? Were you able to handle work commitments and the stress of just general life in addition to the IVF? I don't want to quit my job, but I worry about all the stress and how it will factor into my chances.</p> <p>Thanks so much again guys. You lift my spirits and I think I spent most of yesterday and part of today in a pile of weepy self-pity already. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/laparoscopy#post-1324668 Tue, 07 Jan 2014 10:18:05 +0000 Jenn23 1324668@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I'm so sorry to hear the news. Well, my story is very different but similar in that I found out my remaining tube (1st one removed during fibroid surgery in 2010) was blocked during a lap procedure for a cyst after using clomid. The RE broke the news right after the surgery that the remaining tube was filled with fluid and I had no choice but IVF. It's not a hydrosalpinx, though, which gave me a good chance of success and it did work for us. Can you have the RE do another hysteroscopy to check the tubes? I'd want to do that before doing a lap procedure. If both tubes are filled, then you are most likely looking at IVF. I'm so sorry and know how painful this whole process is. Took almost two years for us with multiple surgeries, disappointments, then having to go through IVF. I had depression during those painful years so I know how hard it is and if you want to chat, please contact me!! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/laparoscopy#post-1324647 Tue, 07 Jan 2014 10:14:23 +0000 Happygal 1324647@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@mopeybuthopey: oh man. I'm so sorry you're in this situation right now. You ask a lot of questions I really don't know the answers to, but I can share where I am right now with my RE.</p> <p>He highly suspects I have endometriosis. He said that we can do the surgery, and that a study showed that 50% of women who have this operation get pregnant afterwards (not sure if that is in the first month, second month, etc., and I'm sure that number includes continuing fertility treatments). He also put IVF on the table. He said if I lived where it was mandatory for IVF to be covered by insurance, he would likely encourage us to skip the surgery and move right to IVF. </p> <p>He said he does the surgery every single week. I know it's common, but I'm still nervous about it. I think I could feel better about it if I knew that was definitely the problem, and that it would definitely be the thing that would let us get pregnant. I also know the benefits don't last forever. </p> <p>It's a bit like gambling, this TTC/IF stuff--trying to figure out the best odds and which direction to take. I'm sorry it's all so confusing sometimes! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/laparoscopy#post-1324599 Tue, 07 Jan 2014 10:08:10 +0000 blackbird 1324599@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I've had to laparoscopies. The first one was done by a much older doctor and recovery was brutal--I was told it should never have been that bad. Apparently i was a wreck inside (i have endometriosis). The second time, it was done by an RE with a laser (faster recovery) and i was feeling great by 3 days later! Huge difference. I've known a few people who got pregnant right after their laps, too. I would only proceed with the lap if it might clear up my tubes--your dr may suspect something else going on in there, and you won't know until you meet with him. It seems pointless to suggest the lap to clear the tubes if it's unlikely to even work. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/laparoscopy#post-1324562 Tue, 07 Jan 2014 09:59:29 +0000 mopeybuthopey 1324562@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>thanks @mrswin. I'm glad the recovery wasn't bad. That makes me feel better. Taking time off from work isn't really an option for me :| So like you, I would get the surgery Friday and return on Monday. </p> <p>There was a doctor in the room but it was my usual OB/GYN. I took a risk using her instead of the RE, but her nurse told me she did these procedures. I really like my OB/GYN and felt a little slighted by my RE from the last visit, so I preferred to have her do it; however, that was a mistake -- the x-ray tech didn't even know who she was, which shows she didn't do them very often. She also didn't seem very confident with the instruments. And finally, when the x-ray was on the screen she got all excited about... which is great of course, but also may show that she doesn't do these that often... oh well.</p> <p>Thanks again for your input. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/laparoscopy#post-1324535 Tue, 07 Jan 2014 09:53:14 +0000 mrswin 1324535@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@mopeybuthopey: Hi, I'm sorry you are feeling this way. I had a lap to diagnose endometriosis a year ago and the surgery and recovery were a breeze. I had the surgery on a Friday and I was back at work on the Monday. </p> <p>I would be curious why the RE thinks the radiologist was wrong. Was there not a doctor in the room when you HSG was done to watch the dye "spill" from both tubes?</p> <p>I don't have any experience with tube issues so hopefully someone else can comment on that. I would want a substantial explanation from the RE before moving to the lap if the condition is likely not treatable, may be better to just proceed to IVF.... </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/laparoscopy#post-1324499 Tue, 07 Jan 2014 09:42:13 +0000 mopeybuthopey 1324499@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Hi ladies,</p> <p>So my RE thinks the radiologist got my diagnosis of clear tubes wrong. Sounds like he thinks I have some kind of congenital defect in the left tube and a distal blockage in the right tube (closer to the ovary). I have never had PID, any STDs, any infections, any (diagnosed or symptomatic) endometriosis, or other surgery in my abdomen, and since those are generally the causes, I have no idea how I have ended up with blocked tubes. It is possible the HSG was wrong, I suppose, but I hear it is only "wrong" when the blockage is closer to the uterus.</p> <p>Anyways, this is really disappointing because it means that I wasted more than 12 months without any HOPE of conceiving, even though I went to the doc at 8 months and swore something wasn't right. No one believed me. Very frustrating. </p> <p>Now the doc is proposing laparoscopy based on what his nurse has told me -- I don't meet with him until later in the week. I don't know why but this makes me feel sick to my stomach. I am so worked up about this -- can anyone share stories of their experience? Did you have any complications? Were you afraid the doc could make things worse by poking around in there? Is it even worth doing if the blockage is distal? The statistics show that distal blockages are rarely correct-able.</p> <p>Would they consider doing IVF at this phase if I dont have a hydrosalpinx? Or do I pretty much have to get my tubes taken out before proceeding with IVF? Should I even proceed with IVF at this point? :| Is there no other option? They've already told me I'm not eligible for IUI.</p> <p>Anyways ladies this is all very disappointing which is the understatement of the century. I am beginning to consider going on anti-depressants because I dont know how much longer I can take this.</p> <p>thanks for your input. </p>