Donna
-----Original Message----- From: adhesions@adhesions.org [mailto:adhesions@adhesions.org] On Behalf Of Katie Sent: Wednesday, February 18, 2009 3:56 PM To: Multiple recipients of list ADHESIONS Subject: Re: DITTO THAT - Doctor advises no more surgery
Kelly,
I just read your story on the adhesion quilt and I am so sad for you. Sad for all of us actually.
I'm facing surgery in March. This will be my first surgery for removal of adhesions and I am, quite frankly, terrified. I don't know whether to risk it and hope that I am that 1% that will do well and get better or if I should just deal with the pain and obstruction that I currently have and hope that if the bowel ruptures, that I just never wake up at all.
Thank you for your honesty.
Katie
At Wed, 18 Feb 2009, KRJ wrote:
>
>I think we can all attest that all Docs are not created equal.
The plain fact is that there is always a risk to a bowel perf or
need for a bowel resection if you choose to do a lysis of
adhesions. Most of us have to make the decision as to whether or
not our quality of life is worth that risk.
>
>I have personally taken that risk eight times. I have required a
bowel
>resection during one surgery because of the adhesions on the
bowel, I have had a bowel perforation found several days after
having a laparoscopic surgery done, and I have had the surgery
without either. I am about to have another surgery due to a major
hernia problem and continued extreme pain which has multiplied due
to the bowel perforation that basically made a bad situation worse
and in essence reversed everything that was done in the surgery
that caused it. FYI, I went to see a doctor in Atlanta (I am in
St. Louis, MO) who is supposed to be an expert in endometriosis
and adhesions and with doing all his surgeries laparoscopically.
His name is Dr. Ken Sinervo. I found him on the internet after
searching for so-called experts. He is very nice and very thorough
and probably a fantastic surgeon. Unfortunately I just happened to
be one of those rare cases of a bowel perf after a lysis of
adhesions especially on the bowel.
>
>My point is, regardless of it coming back or not...I believe it
does
>and with all of the latest barriers, you have to make the
decision on whether or not it's worth it. Unless you just can't
stand it any longer and you basically have no life left...do the
surgery. Otherwise, the risk of making thing worse is very
great. I have been there. Sometimes trying to fix this just
makes things worse down the road. One example is that my abdmen
wall is now very weak from all of the surgeries. Now I am very
prone to hernias. This requires me to have do surgery. And because
the intestines are all stuck up under the wall (which we know from
a gall bladder surgery in Oct), this is going to be nasty and I am
told I could require my THIRD bowel resection. I will require a
colostomy if this happens. I hope what I am saying is helpful to
those of you who haven't been down this road yet. I know you want
relief and I pray it comes. But, I have to agree with most
doctors...it just gets worse in the long run.
>
>I don't want to depress this bunch and I want to be brutally
honest so you can make better decisions.
>
>My best to all,
>
>Kelly