I've only just joined the mailing list and wanted to introduce myself. I have suffered with adhesions since I was 19. I was to have an appendectomy, and since my mother had a sever history of endo, and I had severe periods, she asked the surgeon to do an exploratory to see if I had endo...I didn't, but thus it began. When I was 20 and newly married, I began to have pain on my right side, had a laproscopy and the Dr. found my bowel grown fast to my right ovary. I was okay for the next 4 years, when after the birth of my son, I had a tubal ligation. My OBGYN told me that I would have easier periods...not. The were 3x as bad. I went in after a year and told them that since I had no intention of ever having children again, that if they got in there and found adhesions, to just take it all. They started out laproscopically, but ended up doing a laporatomy and total hysterectomy. Everything...my ovaries, uterus, bladder...had all grown into a clump. I was 25 years old. I had about two years, then I started having that familiar pain and knew they were back. I went back to my OBGYN, who scheduled me for a lararatomy...we didn't have medical insurance at the time, so when he opened me up, he only removed the adhesions on my left side. He told my husband I had adhesions on my right side, but he left them there.
I went home, healed and within less than a year, the pain was back. I went to my family doctor, and she gave me a perscription for Vicodin. My husband had gotten another job and was now in a union, and we finally had health insurance, but it wouldn't go into effect until January 2000. I was so desperate...I was online one night and found the Adhesions Awareness Society, and sat and read all of the stories of women who were just like me...I sent an email asking if anyone could help me? I got a reply from David Wiseman, who referred me to Dr. Harry Reich. I contacted Dr. Reich and he performed a laproscopic lysis of adhesions in June 2000. I had 4 years of pain-free existence, and then in August, 2004, the pain came back. Dr. Reich once again did a laproscopy in December 2004. I went home thinking I'd have another 4 years, at least. In May 2005, the pain came back...but this time it was with a vengence. It was all over...sharp stabbing pains up under my side, straight up through my crotch, down my legs...at this point I felt completely hopeless, because our insurance won't pay for Dr. Reich because he's not in our network, so I couldn't go back to him. A friend of mine recommended Hershey Medical Center, and I got an appointment with the Chief of Oncology and Gynocology. He performed a laproscopy on me on October 24...I had adhesions covering me from up under my ribs all the way down. Here's the thing...I never had any surgery up under my ribs...and I have a picture from my December 2004 surgery that shows my liver and gall bladder...looking healthy and adhesion free...I'm terrified, because they grew that fast in only 5 months. It's been 4 weeks today since my surgery at Hershey and the pain has already returned. I've spent the past week in withdrawl from percocet and oxycotin...it was hell, and I flatly refused to take narcotic pain meds again...I was in so much pain on Friday (was taking 3 Advil Liqui-Gels)and it wasn't even touching it, so I called Dr. Olt and he gave me a perscription for Ultracet, which helped at first, but now doesn't. I'm supposed to go back to work on December 5, and have a check up on December 8th...the doctor wants to see how aggressive the adhesions are growing back. He says he can use Seprafilm, but the area he would have to cover is so vast it would take quite a bit. So, I'm taking it one day at a time, and have prayed more over the past month than I have for a long time. I'm scared...but I have hope that sooner or later they will find something that will get rid of these things. God Bless all of you who are suffering and also your families, who watch from the sidelines, but can't truly understand.
-- Sincerely,Shelva