Miscarriage/Pregnancy Loss
littlebean37
member
Options
Pain after laparoscopic salpingectomy
littlebean37
member
New-ish to the boards. Posted once before about my experience. Really need some advice. Not sure if this is the right place to post. Apologies in advance for the length. Maybe a little TMI? Background info: 36 yrs, trying for over a yr. This was my first pregnancy.
My dh and I did a round of Clomid and IUI in Jan. Got a bfp. Miscarried at almost 6 weeks. Over 2 weeks later, went to the ER because was still bleeding a lot and was having a lot of pain from my right pelvis to thigh. I found out there was a twin and it was a leaking ectopic. I had an emergency laparoscopic salpingectomy where they removed my right fallopian tube.
Most people say it takes them about 1-2 weeks of healing and then they are up and about & fine. I had 3 weeks off of work (I'm a preschool teacher so I have to be up and around and very very active in my job). During that time, I saw my fertility specialist in the 2nd week of healing. My HCG was back down to 0. He asked how soon I wanted to try again and I said right away but without anything like an iui. I asked about taking some Clomid and then just trying naturally. I had my period in week 3 after surgery (5 weeks after first miscarriage).
When I went back to work on the 4th week, I was still having some pain around the incision areas (3-left side, belly button, and right side). My boss sent me home early on Tues because I was still having some pain.
I went back to my fertility specialist on Wed for a check up. He did an u/s and did not see anything that would be causing pain. He saw that there were 2 follicles on the left side where I still have a good fallopian tube. He said he was baffled about the pain since he wasn't the one who performed the surgery. We thought maybe it was scar tissue. I was also having pain on my right flank which is far away from where I had surgery and also some aching (same type of pain that sent me to the ER for ectopic but not nearly as severe. Very slight) in my leg Since I have a little more pain when I have gas or when I'm trying to poop, he thought maybe this was a gastrointestinal issue. We agreed we didn't want to do anything too invasive at this time like another laparoscopy to look around. He thought maybe a CT scan would be the best course of action at first. Then because my pain level wasn't very high (was tolerable) and there were the 2 mature follicles on the left/good side, he asked what if I did a HCG trigger shot and time my ovulation (since I had taken the Clomid and was probably going to ovulate in the next day or 2), see if I get pregnant and then get follow-up treatment for the pain. I said ok. The thought after weeks of feeling miserable that I could be getting pregnant felt so good and hopeful.
Later that night, my leg pain intensified and when I was trying to go to sleep, I was in so much pain, I couldn't fall asleep til after 5 am. The pain felt like a very deep heavy ache... Like more than a topical muscular thing. I called my specialist in the morning and he said I should go to the ER. Went to the ER at around 9. They couldn't find anything wrong in my blood or urine tests. They decided to do a CT scan. They called my specialist to ask about the scan but he said at this point, if I'm in a lot of pain, my health is more important than trying to get pregnant. The CT scan showed nothing wrong. They couldn't figure it out. Decided that I'm just a slow healer and that the leg pain is probably unrelated. I asked multiple times if it could be scar tissue or nerves but they just said maybe and didn't think a laparoscopy to look around was a good idea. They released me from the ER with some pain meds and told me to follow up with my PCP.
By now it's Friday and my PCP can't get me in til Thurs morning of the next week. I called my endocrinologist (I have slight hypothyroidism) and he said basically my ER Drs were idiots. It's obviously all connected and it's definitely from the surgery. Even though there's no infection and outwardly I'm healing well, I most likely have inflammation that is pushing on some nerves in my pelvis that extends down my leg. Possibly meralgia paresthetica. He started me on a short course of steroids to reduce the inflammation and said if the pain stops, then we'll know this is what it was.
Has anyone else gone through anything like this? Has anyone had extended pain after a laparoscopic salpingectomy? Specifically leg pain? Is it too soon to try again? I feel like I just want to go ahead and get pregnant because if I wait to be ready, I'll never be ready. Was it bad advice from my specialist? I really like him a lot. He's never been dismissive of my concerns like other Drs have. I keep reading that most people wait 3 months after an ectopic before they try again... Is it because they use methotrexate or just in general? Any answers would be great. I feel so lost and alone even though my family has been so supportive. I just need to hear from people who have gone through the same thing. Thanks ❤️
My dh and I did a round of Clomid and IUI in Jan. Got a bfp. Miscarried at almost 6 weeks. Over 2 weeks later, went to the ER because was still bleeding a lot and was having a lot of pain from my right pelvis to thigh. I found out there was a twin and it was a leaking ectopic. I had an emergency laparoscopic salpingectomy where they removed my right fallopian tube.
Most people say it takes them about 1-2 weeks of healing and then they are up and about & fine. I had 3 weeks off of work (I'm a preschool teacher so I have to be up and around and very very active in my job). During that time, I saw my fertility specialist in the 2nd week of healing. My HCG was back down to 0. He asked how soon I wanted to try again and I said right away but without anything like an iui. I asked about taking some Clomid and then just trying naturally. I had my period in week 3 after surgery (5 weeks after first miscarriage).
When I went back to work on the 4th week, I was still having some pain around the incision areas (3-left side, belly button, and right side). My boss sent me home early on Tues because I was still having some pain.
I went back to my fertility specialist on Wed for a check up. He did an u/s and did not see anything that would be causing pain. He saw that there were 2 follicles on the left side where I still have a good fallopian tube. He said he was baffled about the pain since he wasn't the one who performed the surgery. We thought maybe it was scar tissue. I was also having pain on my right flank which is far away from where I had surgery and also some aching (same type of pain that sent me to the ER for ectopic but not nearly as severe. Very slight) in my leg Since I have a little more pain when I have gas or when I'm trying to poop, he thought maybe this was a gastrointestinal issue. We agreed we didn't want to do anything too invasive at this time like another laparoscopy to look around. He thought maybe a CT scan would be the best course of action at first. Then because my pain level wasn't very high (was tolerable) and there were the 2 mature follicles on the left/good side, he asked what if I did a HCG trigger shot and time my ovulation (since I had taken the Clomid and was probably going to ovulate in the next day or 2), see if I get pregnant and then get follow-up treatment for the pain. I said ok. The thought after weeks of feeling miserable that I could be getting pregnant felt so good and hopeful.
Later that night, my leg pain intensified and when I was trying to go to sleep, I was in so much pain, I couldn't fall asleep til after 5 am. The pain felt like a very deep heavy ache... Like more than a topical muscular thing. I called my specialist in the morning and he said I should go to the ER. Went to the ER at around 9. They couldn't find anything wrong in my blood or urine tests. They decided to do a CT scan. They called my specialist to ask about the scan but he said at this point, if I'm in a lot of pain, my health is more important than trying to get pregnant. The CT scan showed nothing wrong. They couldn't figure it out. Decided that I'm just a slow healer and that the leg pain is probably unrelated. I asked multiple times if it could be scar tissue or nerves but they just said maybe and didn't think a laparoscopy to look around was a good idea. They released me from the ER with some pain meds and told me to follow up with my PCP.
By now it's Friday and my PCP can't get me in til Thurs morning of the next week. I called my endocrinologist (I have slight hypothyroidism) and he said basically my ER Drs were idiots. It's obviously all connected and it's definitely from the surgery. Even though there's no infection and outwardly I'm healing well, I most likely have inflammation that is pushing on some nerves in my pelvis that extends down my leg. Possibly meralgia paresthetica. He started me on a short course of steroids to reduce the inflammation and said if the pain stops, then we'll know this is what it was.
Has anyone else gone through anything like this? Has anyone had extended pain after a laparoscopic salpingectomy? Specifically leg pain? Is it too soon to try again? I feel like I just want to go ahead and get pregnant because if I wait to be ready, I'll never be ready. Was it bad advice from my specialist? I really like him a lot. He's never been dismissive of my concerns like other Drs have. I keep reading that most people wait 3 months after an ectopic before they try again... Is it because they use methotrexate or just in general? Any answers would be great. I feel so lost and alone even though my family has been so supportive. I just need to hear from people who have gone through the same thing. Thanks ❤️
Re: Pain after laparoscopic salpingectomy
In terms of how long to wait, generally, unless I have had methatrexate, I go again as soon as I feel ready too. Just take it day by day, and it won't hurt to wait a cycle if you feel like it, but generally, the earlier the previous loss, the shorter my body took to recover, and the earlier I'd start again. Obviously, with methatrexate between how long it stays in your system and how it affects your liver, it's a different situation.
What I would say, however, is whatever you decide, it should be based on the Fallopian tube surgery and not so much the presence of the ectopic. One of the reasons I had several ectopics is specifically because of a botched tubal surgery because my left tube didn't properly seal, so semen was getting into my pelvis and causing pregnancies specifically on my left ovary. To be more sure on that not happening, I'd wait however long it takes to make sure the internal tube cuts have scarred and sealed. When in doubt, get an hsg to makes sure there's no flow of free fluid. That said, it is also a very uncommon outcome. It's just also an outcome that sucks to deal with.
I just didn't think the pain I was feeling was normal for what was done. From all the different websites and message boards, it sounded like people were up and about by the 2nd week.
It looks like the steroids are working. I'm not feeling nearly as much pain as before. Looks like it was inflammation hitting some nerves. Now that it's finally dying down, I'm starting to feel like I'm getting back to normal.
I hope things are getting better for you too. Getting answers and understanding why this is happening always makes things better. At least there's a path forward.
Rainbows for all of us