I am officially 16 weeks post-op from my radical hysterectomy. Yay!! Hooray!! It has been a difficult road for sure! I knew going in that my endometriosis wouldn’t be cured, but it’s still managed to throw me for more than a few loops during recovery. Each tomorrow really does make a huge difference in my healing overall. There have been many exciting changes recently in my healing progress though!
I was allowed to vacuum for the first time since March 13th!!!! And holy shit, the floors REALLY needed it! Hahaha. I still haven’t mopped yet, but I’m able to do things like washing the dishes at least once a week, folding the laundry once a week, and I’m able to bend over now. It’s so easy to overlook the fact that at the start of this year, I was unable to bathe myself, eat solid foods, or masturbate. To think that I’m now able to do one chore around the house per day, eat three solid meals per day, attend some grocery trips, bend, squat, lift my laptop, and even hug my child now!!!! It’s exhausting, honestly. I’d like to say I’m handling it all well, but parenting with caffeine is absolutely the hardest part.
We tried a few caffeine options, but none of it was worth the severe bladder pains it caused. After drinking one green tea that was diluted and had no more than 10mg of caffeine, I was left with pain for 3 days after. Not worth it! I’m fairly certain the endometriosis has grown on my ovaries where the incisions from the hysterectomy were, but I think it’s ok. I’m dealing with those daily pains anyways. My vaginal cuff doesn’t have any nerve twitching, tingling, electrical jolt feelings, or aches anymore. Mostly it feels ok all the time unless it’s touched directly in the wrong way. Some days are better pain wise, and some days my bladder stitches and ovaries get angry at the same time. It’s all manageable as long as I have a steady supply of tokes though, so I try to stay regular as often as financially possible to keep the flare ups from beginning. I have noticed a massive positive change in pain management and daily abilities when I’m able to rely on a regular weekly delivery. I hope with my larger endometriosis problems controlled now, that my overall pain levels daily can be managed as well.
As amazing as it is that I’m feeling better, however, there is someone else in my house that isn’t. July 29th, my little miracle is scheduled for ear surgery. Throughout the months leading up to my hysterectomy and after, his ear infections just wouldn’t clear up. We’re hoping this tube procedure will be routine and have no complications, but that’s how we got here so….we’re all keeping our fingers crossed. Currently his hearing hasn’t been damaged, so we’re hoping this helps fix any current and prevent future problems. Scary, because it is surgery, but for the best and hopefully no big deal.
Aside from that, we’ve been spending our days adjusting through the recovery process, learning to read, and just managing living with endometriosis after hysterectomy. Each new week is a bit easier in lots of ways, and I really hope that by 2020 we have a reliable way to handle my daily pain levels. However, the trade off of all this has been that sex is NOT painful anymore. It is frustrating, but it makes coping with everything far easier.