Yesterday I went to my OB to have a follow up ultrasound on the fibroids and cyst I have. The cyst on my ovary has not grown, and at the moment is not of concern. The fibroids, however, did grow a bit and at this point I have 2 that are about the size of a grapefruit each! I don't feel them and they don't hurt (my doctor was fairly surprised at that). So we talked about my options... leave them there or remove them surgically.
If I leave them, my doctor says they won't ever get smaller (until menopause), and since they are hormonally stimulated, they can get bigger, especially with another pregnancy. They shouldn't be an issue in getting pregnant, but because of their size and the fact that they can get bigger in pregnancy, they could become painful for me, and once I'm pregnant there is nothing I can do about them.
If I have then removed, it's basically like having a c-section. It's 2-3 days in the hospital, no driving for a week, and no heavy lifting for 6 weeks. It also can mean c-sections for all future pregnancies. She mentioned that fibroids can be a contributor to pre-term labor, which I had with Olivia. She can't say for sure that they cause that, but it's possible.
So Matt and I talked about it... and I think I'm going to have the surgery. The doctor suggested that I give myself a year between the surgery and the next pregnancy so since we plan on trying to get pregnant again in Aug/Sept 2012, this summer would be the time for the surgery. Amazing that I went my whole life without a hospital stay and now within 8 months I'll have 2! So much for avoiding a c-section when delivering Olivia!!
If I leave them, my doctor says they won't ever get smaller (until menopause), and since they are hormonally stimulated, they can get bigger, especially with another pregnancy. They shouldn't be an issue in getting pregnant, but because of their size and the fact that they can get bigger in pregnancy, they could become painful for me, and once I'm pregnant there is nothing I can do about them.
If I have then removed, it's basically like having a c-section. It's 2-3 days in the hospital, no driving for a week, and no heavy lifting for 6 weeks. It also can mean c-sections for all future pregnancies. She mentioned that fibroids can be a contributor to pre-term labor, which I had with Olivia. She can't say for sure that they cause that, but it's possible.
So Matt and I talked about it... and I think I'm going to have the surgery. The doctor suggested that I give myself a year between the surgery and the next pregnancy so since we plan on trying to get pregnant again in Aug/Sept 2012, this summer would be the time for the surgery. Amazing that I went my whole life without a hospital stay and now within 8 months I'll have 2! So much for avoiding a c-section when delivering Olivia!!
