Post Oophorectomy Blues

I had a complete HX on Sept 29th.  The hot flashes hit me around day 4 also.  They really affected my sleep. So I finally started on Prozac two weeks ago.  I think the HF's are getting less, but I need to give it 4-6 weeks for a good trial.  There is a thread called the Hot Flash Forum.  You might look there for some tips. Other non-hormonal meds are Effexor, Paxil, Neurontin.

As far as swelly belly,,, I didn't have that issue. The gas should have been absorbed by now and I would check with your doctor about that. Likewise with the pain. How are your bowels?  Pardon me for being so personal, but they move them around to access the female organs and moving them back can sometimes cause issues.  Adhesions and such. There are PT's who are trained to treat that, if that is your issue. Any pain when you poop? Definitely check with your doctor about your symptoms.

I also had a lap ooph and although the right incision was more sore than I expected for longer than I expected it resolved within a week or two. Very little swelling. Your swelling is a concern and I agree you should call the doc unless you are constipated in which case you can treat that yourself. Hope this helps! Let us know how your doing.

Wambles, I went through chemo-induced menopause and what you described - the hot flashes every 10 minutes, no sleeping, etc are exactly what I went through. I had no idea how to dress! We live in MN. It was -7 here and I was too hot to wear a coat to the car. The hot flashes are finally starting to slow down, just in time for me to get my ovaries out on Feb 5th. My Onco-gyno doctor says I may or may not start the hot flash business all over again. Its up to my body to decide what to do. UGH! Not looking forward to do thing that all over again. Not to mention the mood swings. My poor family!

Hi everyone,

I am BRCA+ and had a prophylactic oophorectomy at the beginning of November. At first I felt just like you did - my stomach was swollen for much longer than the 1-2 weeks than they said, so much that I couldn't wear proper trousers and even my yoga pants were uncomfortable. Fortunately that disappeared after a month or so and now my stomach is back to normal and the bloating is gone. If you still have this more than a month after the surgery I do think a call to the doctor is in order.

As for the hot flashes, I've been on tamoxifen for the last 3 years so I thought I'd been through the worst of it. Hah! They were so much worse after the surgery. I couldn't sleep, kept waking up because I was hot, then cold, then hot, then cold... horrible. Happily, just as I was starting to despair, most of that has now passed and they are much much better. But not gone entirely. It's different with every person, I hear, some people have an easy time of it and some really struggle. I guess you don't know which one you are until the time comes...

My issue now is the OTHER stuff that comes along with this. I'm only 48. Am I ever going to have sex again? It is really really painful and that is just depressing.

If anyone has any advice on that I'd love to hear it!

Thanks and I hope you are better already. Good luck.

Oh and by the way, I started taking melatonin 5mg before I go to bed and now sleep about 95% better. Fall asleep and only wake up a couple of times a night to have a sip of ice water and throw the covers off )or back on...)