Questions/Information for my Surgeon

· If this all goes wrong, or the Mirena doesn’t suit or help me, is there any going back to the Zoladex regime? I am obviously happy to give this a go, but want a get out clause if it doesn’t work.
· I am very scared about this – not so much the surgery, but it is just that I have been so physically well over the past year, I am very frightened that this is all going to be taken away from me. Discuss!
· As well as sorting out my bladder and bowel and any other endometriosis found in my pelvis, will you be able to remove my fibroids and sort out the cysts on my ovaries?
· Can you remove any adhesions if there are any?
· If part of my reproductive anatomy was too damaged, would you remove it in this particularly operation?
· Are you going to be able to see the endometriosis given that I have been on a GnRH analogue based treatment for over 12 months?
· Given that I have ongoing problems with my back, which have been far more minimal over the past year, is it possible I have endometriosis in that area, or is just that the nerve supply is irritated there? I have a known disc prolapse at L4/5 and degeneration there.

Problems that I had, whilst menstruating:
· Bleeding from bowels, deep pain in the area when going to the toilet
· Unable to pass urine – often taking ten minutes, even on a full bladder, pain and irritation from this.
· SAExtreme pain, often needing very strong medication and hospitalisation
· Fatigue and sleeping problems
· Pain (in varying degrees) for most of the month)
· Severe depression, in addition to mood swings
· Back pain significantly worse (presently very well managed)
· Last scan in July 2006 showed small uterine fibroids and cysts on ovaries. My cervix and uterus are also retroverted which has often meant that my smear tests have had to be repeated. Smear taken in July 2007 was normal.

I am obviously hoping that following a return to having periods, in whatever form they present with the Mirena Coil in situ, that the above symptoms are very minimal!

I am so scared about it all because things have been so out of control for me most of the time, and I have only been well whilst on Zoladex, which is why I don’t really want to come off it. I think that if all this comes back I will not be able to handle it and will not want to live through more of this hell.

Isobel Knight
August 2007