One woman documents her journey with Endometriosis. Written by a patient on August 10, 2018 (Read the full article by clicking here)
On July 18, 2018, I underwent my third robotic-assisted laparoscopic excision of Endometriosis by Dr. Mel Kurtulus ( of San Diego Womens Health). As always, I love to share my experiences with you – not only to create awareness of this illness, but in the hopes that the process of my surgery (and later recovery) may help you, or others.
Before I go on, I just want to take a moment to express my joy in the above-photograph. I am a detached head, floating beneath a fluffy warm-air blanket in the pre-op area, enjoying a wonderful moment with an incredible surgeon and man. Thank you, Brandy, for capturing this. And thank you, Dr. Kurtulus, for being so marvelous!
Okay, on with the nitty-gritty!
My mom, husband, and I were awake at 6am and in the hospital by 8am to check-in. If you’ve never been to the Scripps Hospital La Jolla, it’s glorious. Every attention to detail and the efforts of the staff are meant to soothe and calm: beautiful artwork, a live piano player in the lobby, and compassionate staff. It’s wonderful. We were joined by a wonderful friend and fellow EndoSister, Brandy, to document the experience (these photographs will be shared at a later date…I’m so excited about what she is doing!) I was rolled back for pre-op somewhere around 11:30 and wheeled back to the OR by noon. My surgery took approximately four hours. And here I was worried he wouldn’t find any Endometriosis…(I should know better…) We arrived home around 7:00pm. A very, very long day for my friends and loved ones.
procedures
The plan was to open me up and peek under the hood, so to speak. If any Endometriosis was discovered, Dr. Kurtulus would excise it; any adhesions would be freed; the ovarian cysts that were seen in ultrasounds would be removed; my ureters would be examined and freed of any adhesions; he’d look inside my bladder for any Endo or evidence of Interstitial Cystitis; and he would (with my willing and educated permission) remove both of my Fallopian tubes.
What did he find? Following is a page of my op report, in case you enjoy reading all of the medical terminology (like I do). I’ll also further explain what I understand and share photographs below!