I just found out I have a fibroid tumor.

[Ladyhawk]

There is only one OB/GYN in my county that takes Medi-Cal and he sucks. I wouldn't let him touch me.

I've had this problem before with other specialists and it has left me without decent health care.

I'm sofa king bummed. :(

[Liberal_in_LA]

1. sorry u are going thru this. There are some hormone treatments that shrink fibroids.

[snowbear]

2. Is there anyone in a neighboring county you can see?

.
.

Big hugs.. (( ))


-

[BlooInBloo]

3. :( I hope you find an acceptable solution.

[Captain Hilts]

4. Ouch!

Best thoughts to your girl parts.

[LoveMyCali]

5. Are there any

Planned Parenthoods around you?

[aquart]

6. Only one?

Do you spend three or four hours a night curled up in a ball, clutching your side?

[iamjoy]

7. That's Rough

I can understand that you don't want to go to a doctor you won't trust. It would be bad enough for a cold, horrible for our intimate parts.



:grouphug:

[LisaL]

8. It doesn't necessarily mean something needs to be done.

Depends on where it is.

[.... callchet ....]

9. Read your thread and thinking about your problem. I know

that everybody that read it is wishing the best for you.

[MiniMe]

10. Fibroids are a common problem

And generally non-cancerous. Do some research on them, they usually don't do anything about them unless they cause other problems.

[prolesunited]

11. Try not to worry to much

You can live with them for years without causing any problems. You probably should have an endometrial biopsy as a precaution, but unless you are trying to get pregnant or have excessive bleeding that makes you anemic, just hold tight. There's lots of good info online.

You'll be fine.

[NancyG]

12. Just to relieve your worries a bit,

I had fibroid tumors too. They shrunk as I approached menopause, and after menopause gone completely. Still, stay on top of it, and the best to you.

[Tumbulu]

13. I have a whole bunch of them and they are the size of oranges, my doctor says.

My sister had a huge one the size of a watermelon. They shrink or go away with full onset of menopause and so my doctor just says to not worry about them. I have this huge $5000 deductible health insurance that pays for nothing anyway, so I could not do anything about them even if I wanted to.

I hope that yours goes away soon enough for your comfort, and as the other poster above mentioned there is a lot of info online about them.

[GreenPartyVoter]

14. *hugs* I don't have any advice, just lotsa love and healing vibes to send your way.

[calimary]

32. Same here.

Hugs! Read up on it. Knowledge can be peace of mind, or inspiration for what to do. The Planned Parenthood suggestion is good. If it were me I'd start researching online - with that webmd or webtv or whatever it is. Shit. Wish I could be more helpful.

[silverojo]

15. You're in my thoughts and prayers, Ladyhawk

I wish I had some advice to offer, but it sounds as if a lot of other people here know far more about this than I do.

All the best for you! :hug:

[lonestarnot]

16. I'm sorry ms. Ladyhawk.

Whachu going to do? :hug:

[Pithy]

18. uterine ablation?

had a good friend who suffered horribly with the pain and discomfort of fibroids. she had a one-time uterine ablation and has not had a fibroid since. it's been a few years so i'm a little fuzzy on details but will ask her tomorrow for clarification.

here's a really good link discussing fibroids:

http://www.gynalternatives.com/fibroids.htm

sending you thoughts of recovery and healing!

[tabatha]

17. I had them too. I was told they are not unusual.

I had no treatment.

However, this book would have been helpful.

http://www.amazon.com/Fibroid-Tumor-Endometriosis-Self-Help/dp/0890877734

[BirminghamExaminer]

19. I had one and it went away

After ehrm, the change of life. Well at least it shrunk. I never had any trouble with mine other than knowing it was there. I was bummed out about it at first too, just like you but it's really not that big a deal unless it keeps growing to some unmanageable size or something.

Good luck.

[Raine]

20. I've had a couple of them

they went away on their own. All the best to you, I hope you get some relief. :hug:

[RebelOne]

21. I had them at one time. All it took was a simple D&C. n/t

[Coexist]

22. I have them too

had them through all three pregnancies... did they MD say they had to be removed? Mine are still there. Even w/my IUD.

[riona]

23. Had my first when I was a teen.

Still putting up with them in my 60's. Usually I don't have anything done unless and when I have, it was simply to verify. If they are in the breast, cut down on caffeine. That will make things a bit more comfortable. Wear a bra when you sleep.

[mcar]

24. Natural progesterone cream

Check into it. I had uterine ablation for one large fibroid and six months later, it was gone, but several more had come up in its place. At that point I started using natural progesterone cream. It has kept the tumors from growing more - and helps with pre-menopause symptoms.

Good luck.

[KittyWampus]

28. natural progesterone cream is still progesterone. I just tried it and felt like I'd been doped

so anyone going down this route- start with EXTREMELY small applications once a day to test your tolerance.

[mcar]

29. That's good advice

I followed Dr. Lee's treatment recommendations and have had no side effects at all. Starting small and building up is always a good strategy when starting something new.

[Vinca]

25. Call the nearest newspaper and let people know what's going on.

Providers should be forced to accept government-sponsored programs.

[Ms. Toad]

26. Good luck.

If you want to pick my brain about procedures, PM me - I did all the research a few years ago when was hemorrhaging to death from one - Literally - even though it took quite a while to convince the doctor of it. (It took them thinking that I had leukemia because I was losing certain blood cells faster than I could create them to convince them I was not exaggerating how severe the problem was.)

Fortunately, it was the location that made it hemorrhage - which also made it easy to get rid of.

As others have said - generally there is no rush, and virtually no risk the tumor is cancerous. Many people don't get any treatment - you only need treatment if the symptoms make your life too miserable (or are dangerous in and of themselves - like mine were).

[firehorse]

27. I have two fibroids

Found out about them 4 years ago. I was having a lot of "gushing" and pain. Doc put me on low dose birth control, and the symptoms went away. Our approach is just to watch them and see if they grow, and ride them out through menopause when they will most likely shrink and go away.

It sucks when you first find out. I was devastated.

[Hell Hath No Fury]

30. Unless the fibroid is causing you significant symptoms...

that you find are too much for you, there is no reason for surgery.

I have been weighing/researching fibroid surgery for 6 months now, and surgery is NOT the preferred, first choice way to go.

The most common sympton of a fibroid, heavy bleeding, can be addressed using other methods (BC pill, cauterizing the uterine wall).

My largest fibroid is the size of a baby's head and pressing on my back nerves, causing a good deal of back/leg pain and constipation, and another is the size of a baseball and pressing on my bladder.

I have been vasilating between getting the surgery and trying to ride it out a few years longer until meno hits and the tumores reduce on their own.

Once upon a time it was common for women to have surgery for fibroids, but not anymore.

Until symptoms make it necessary, I would stay away from the surgical option.

[Ladyhawk]

31. Thanks to everyone who replied.

I had a CT scan done last week because I've been having abdominal pain, so it is causing problems. Or at least, it was the only thing on the CT scan that could be causing problems. I can feel it while I sit here typing.

The biggest problem is I have a phobia that has interfered with reproductive medical care. That's the only way I know how to phrase it. The last doctor I saw said I'd need general anesthesia to simply get a pap smear. (Yeah there are reasons for the phobia...don't wanna go into them.) I feel nauseous just thinking about getting an exam. Nothing else regarding health care causes this kind of panic.

I will probably try to get hormone therapy to shrink the tumor, but my primary care practitioner thinks the tumor itself needs to be checked out and I don't know how that's going to happen with no decent doctor in the area and my phobia compounding things.

I have also been needing psychiatric medicine and there are no decent psychiatrists in the county. When it comes to psychiatrists, Medi-Cal will NOT let you seek help anywhere but where you live. The meds I'm on now make me sleep all the time. The local clinic can't keep a psychiatrist employed for longer than three months, so every three months I have to start over again.

At least with this problem, I can seek help elsewhere. Unfortunately, I'm tired all the time. So, in a way, the lack of decent psychiatric care is affecting everything.

[Hell Hath No Fury]

33. Unfortunately, the hormones to shrink the tumors....

is a short term thing -- doctors usually don't want you to be on them for more than 6 months. :(

Can your primary refer you to a med center outside your area, preferable to one in the UC system? That might get around any Medi-Cal issues.

[Ladyhawk]

34. Maybe. I've already asked him about UC Davis.

I had neck surgery there. I WISH I could go out of state for my psychiatric needs, but Medi-Cal won't allow it. Why that particular group of illnesses, I wonder?

There is SO MUCH wrong with the health care system.

[Stephanie]

36. Fibroids themselves cause hormonal changes

At least that's what my doc told me. He also said they're not really studied because there are no funds for a problem that only disrupts women's lives. The fibroid could be adding to your depression.

[Ladyhawk]

35. I can't find my other thread about psychiatric care...

the one that sank so quickly. I'm curious...did anyone respond to it and if so, with what level of snark, if any?

[Stephanie]

37. I found this book extremely helpful

http://books.google.com/books?id=pJ3w7NhiXbwC&pg=PA127&lpg=PA127&dq=fibroids+reyniak&source=bl&ots=jXYuQua3ZR&sig=C5A4A8VxZLBazPwvypRSfBxT58U&hl=en&ei=x1mXSezgAZiq8gSVt4DYAw&sa=X&oi=book_result&resnum=2&ct=result#PPP1,M1