i will explain in detail below...with important points underlined. feel free to scan the underlined font, as there is a lot of information. also, i will NOT censor my explanation, so if the words period, ovary, uterus, or blood get your panties in a twist, do not read on :)
i presented on sunday with severe cramp-like pain on the right side of my abdomen. i thought it was just cramps, so i took some ibuprofen and went to bed. monday, it was worse. i went to school all day and went to UTC that afternoon.
they suspected a pulled muscle or appendicitis, so they ordered a CT. good sam hospital's radiology dept was closed, so they told me to go to the ER. being stubborn, i went to my parents' instead. (in case i birthed alien babies or something in the middle of the night).
tuesday morning, it was a little worse, so i decided to go down to good sam. (little did i know i could've just gone to st joe east...but that is beside the point). after waiting forever, they took a ton of blood and did a CT scan. blood was normal, it was not my appendix, but they found a 2.2 cm adnexal mass on my ovary.
i was ordered to my ob/gyn the following day for an immediate ultrasound. i went to dr. jean's office on wednesday where she attempted a pelvic exam. it was too painful, so she ordered the ultrasound for thursday.
thursday, i went to st joe for my ultrasound. it hurt quite a bit. i took the results back to dr. jean where she informed me:
- i have a ruptured ovarian cyst with fluid in the cul-de-sac (ovarian area)
- probable endometriosis (reason for the mass)
- my ovaries and uterus are normal size. i have a slightly tilted uterus, but that will not affect future child-bearing.
(read more about these things here and here)
every woman has (functional) ovarian cysts at all times, but they are normally dispelled during ovulation. cysts can grow if there is a problem with the release of the egg or other things spelled out in the website above.
the tissue mass is never anything that would be benign OR cancerous...it's just tissue (it is what it is). the fact that my pain has gotten worse over my last few periods leads her to believe it is more than just a ruptured cyst. also, my bowels are VERY jacked up during my periods.
the course of action is being put on hormones for the next 3 months.
if the pain gets better, then i will remain on hormones until menopause. if the pain stays the same, i will switch to a stronger hormone. if the pain gets worse, she will have to go in laproscopically to remove said tissue.
so, there you have it. it was a stressful week and i'm still in quite a lot of pain. i hope this course of action works out. i'm greatful for everyone's thoughts. now, on to the holidays....
