Pain After a Hysterectomy and its Treatment
“While hysterectomies are a very common procedure & limited pain is normal, women should not have to suffer chronic & debilitating pain. Unfortunately, all types of hysterectomy: radical, total and partial, can result in abnormal amounts of pain. To that end, if the latter applies to you, it is essential to contact an experienced Medical Pain Specialist who can give you a Holistic Personalised Pain Plan”
So How Long is the Normal Timespan For Post-Hysterectomy Pain?
As a hysterectomy is an invasive procedure, it is quite normal to expect some downtime, discomfort, and residual pain a few weeks after your operation. And whilst everyone is different, in general, you should visit a Pain Specialist if your pain has been prevalent for three months or more.
Chronic pain can significantly impact a woman’s physical, social and psychological well-being, yet unfortunately, many leave it for far longer than three months to discuss it, thinking that this is normal, and that they will just have to tolerate it. In some cases, they wait several years before contacting a Pain Specialist, only to find out that their suffering and disruption to their lives could have been ameliorated with conventional and cutting-edge treatments.
Where & When Will I Feel Pain After a Hysterectomy?
• Pain in the back
• Pain During Sexual Intercourse
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• Pain in the Ovary/Cramps
• Pain in the Legs
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• Pain in the Bowel
• Constipation
• Stomach Pain
• Bladder Frequency/Urgency/Burning Pain
What Type of Pain Treatment Is Available After My Hysterectomy?
“About 2-3% of women who have had hysterectomy develop a new pain problem after surgery. Sometimes, the pain comes from scar tissue that has formed during the healing process of the original hysterectomy surgery. When this scar involves one or both ovaries, the pain may occur in monthly cycles, in a pattern similar to menstrual discomforts a person may have had before hysterectomy. Pain during sexual intercourse is common as well. In other instances, the pain can come from the healed tissue at the very top end of the vagina, where sutures were placed [2]
Pain relief and rehabilitation are essential to get your life back on track, and there are a number of different conventional and cutting-edge treatments and exercise protocols which may be used simultaneously to ameliorate your condition. Your Pain Specialist will discuss the ones which are the most suitable for your personal needs. Your progress will be monitored, and to that end, it is a good idea to keep a ‘Pain Dairy’ listing the times that your symptoms occur, and what you are doing at the time. This can then be presented to your Pain Specialist on your video calls or visits to the Pain Clinic.
References
[2]. UNC School of Medicine (2021). “UNC Department of Obstetrics & Gynecology .”