9 Safe Routines to Get You Move Again After a Hysterectomy

Hysterectomy is a surgical procedure involving the removal of a woman’s uterus. Hysterectomy is the second most common surgery among women of reproductive age with about 600,000 procedures being performed each year. The primary reason for hysterectomy include endometriosis, pelvic pain, shifting of the uterus and cancer of the uterus, ovaries or cervix and uterine fibroids.

There are three different degrees of hysterectomy; total, partial and radical. Your doctor will make a recommendation based on the patient’s medical condition and history. Recovery time will vary depending on the type of surgery performed.

Types of Hysterectomy:

1. Abdominal Hysterectomy
2. Vaginal or Laparoscopic-Assisted Vaginal Hysterectomy (LAVH)
3. Laparoscopic Supracervical Hysterectomy (LSH)

As per the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, the patients undergoing this procedure should get lots of rests, take short walks and refrain from lifting the heavy objects.

Exercising After Undergoing a Hysterecomy:

Post-hysterectomy exercise is one of the key factors in the healing process by promoting healthy sleep, assisting in weight loss, relieving muscle tension and preventing a range of diseases, from various types of cancer to diabetes and Alzheimer’s. Women who were physically fit before undergoing this procedure are more likely to have an easier recovery and will be able to quickly return back to their routine physical activities.

The safe routines to get you moving again posy hysterectomy include the following:

1. Walking: You can start walking on your doctor’s approval. Take short, frequent walks; this will help to speed up the healing and recovery process and will reduce the risk of blood clots.
2. Breathing Exercises: It is quite common to experience difficulty breathing in the hours and days following a hysterectomy. Take long, slow breaths, completely filling the lungs, belly and rib cage before slowly exhaling. Targeted breathing exercises will help you return to a normal, comfortable respiratory pattern.
3. Stretching: Gentle stretches will help relieve muscle tension and promote healthy blood circulation. Stretch your upper back and shoulders while lying on the bed or on the floor. Bend your knees and reach your arms up over the head, lightly press them against the floor or the bed and then release. Repeat this procedure. As you get stronger and more mobile, you can add more advanced stretches to this routine.
4. Pelvic Tilts: It helps to strengthen the pelvic floor. Lie on your back with your knees bent and support your head with a pillow. Lift your bottom up into a bridge position while contracting your stomach muscles. Keep your middle back flush against the floor. Maintain this position for a few seconds, release and repeat this procedure.
5. Kegels: Post hysterectomy, your pelvic floor may be weakened and this can cause loss of the bladder control, shifting of pelvic organs and other problems. They can be performed in any position and at any time. Simply, squeeze the muscle you would normally use to stop the flow of urine, release and repeat. Aim for high repetitions of varying lengths.
6. Head Sit-Ups: If you are not ready for full-crunches, then start with a head sit-up. Lie on your back, bend your knees and cross your arms over the belly. Cinch the stomach muscles with your hands, slowly raise your head off the floor and bring your chin to your chest. After a few seconds, release and repeat.
7. Stomach “Vacuums”: This move helps strengthen the stomach muscles safely. Start from your hands and knees, inhale and then tighten your tummy as you slowly exhale. After a few seconds, release and repeat it.
8. Lower Back Exercises: They help to strengthen the core while improving the posture and stability, thereby aid in healing and recovery. It also helps to alleviate and prevent the back pain post hysterectomy.
9. Other Abdominal Exercises: It’s normal to experience bloating or loss of abdominal strength after a hysterectomy. Although diet and cardio help in slimming down the midsection, targeted core exercises helps to strengthen those muscles. Ensure to give special attention to the transverses abdominis (TA) muscles by performing, planks, Pilates moves, bridges and forward ball rolls.

Wrap-up:

Always check with your doctor before starting or resuming an exercise routine after undergoing a hysterectomy surgery. Walk and stretch as soon as your doctor gives you the green signal. Do not lift anything heavier than five pounds for the complete recovery period. Engage yourself in abdominal exercises only after the full recovery period. Even if you feel good, do not overdo it since you can strain the incision or cause an internal injury.

Read More:

Types of Hysterectomy Surgery in India

Ladies, you can break the vicious cycle of uterine growths - Need to know!

One out of every four women on this planet is diagnosed with fibroids. Fibroids are very much common, 25% women in this world are seen getting affected by the same, however, a good news is that most of these women are seen showing the symptoms for the same. Considering its rampant presence among women, it is vital to understand the types of uterine growths and the complications it entails. Let’s check them out as under: 

Types of uterine growths:

Uterine growths are tissue enlargements found in the uterus, which can be caused due to various reasons. The benign growth includes the uterine fibroids, malignant polyps, etc, which include the cancerous tumors. 

Uterine Fibroids

These are common noncancerous tumors found among middle age women of age group 35 t0 49 years without a known cause. Some fibroids can even cause issues like infertility, heavy bleeding during the menstruation or while having intercourse. These can be diagnosed with pelvic examination, while can be treated with a surgery like hysterectomy or embolization.

Adenomyosis

It is an unusual growth of uterine tissue over any specific layer over the uterus. In most of the cases, it can occur with pelvic endometriosis wherein the tissues are found over the growth is seen outside. Women experience heavy bleeding with it, while it is diagnosed with MRI or ultrasound and can be treated with the procedures like hysterectomy.

Uterine Polyps

It grows with the normal tissue lining over the uterus and can be even found over the uterine cervix. These comprises of the 

cancerous cells hampering the women of forties. They may not cause any problem like irregular vaginal bleeding and heavy menstrual bleeding. It is fixed with a procedure called curettage. 

Endometrial Cancers

These can be seen growing over the uterus lining and forms with malignant growth and can cause the gynecologic cancer. It is often linked with obesity and excessive amount of estrogen exposure. The diagnosis of these cancers can be carried out with transvaginal ultrasound and MRI and endometrial biopsy. It can be treated with a surgery apart from the options like Radiotherapy or chemotherapy. 

PCOD--A Vicious Cycle

PCOD can be called as a stress and lifestyle related problems, which hampers your metabolism and fertility issue. As per fertility expert, this issue can even reduce your weight and can make you look like a deprived person.  As per experts, the PCOD can even hamper your insulin resistant power in your body thus making it a vicious cycle in it. 

Ovarian cysts

The cysts can be called as fluid filled sacs, which form the ovaries, which really makes the childbearing years difficult. There are many types of ovarian cysts, which are formed during the ovulation process. 

Types of ovarian cysts: 

When it comes to  the types of ovarian cysts, there are a couple, let’s check them as under:

·         Large: These cysts are found with fluid filled in it along with having hard substances in the same making it different from the simple ones, which are only filled with fluids.

·         Complex: As the terms suggest, these cysts are complex in nature and are generally placed over a complicated positions somewhere close to the ovaries. This makes the task of the medical surgeons difficult to treat them.

·         Poly and multiple cysts: As the term indicates, these cysts are multiple in number and often seen growing close to the ovaries with more than one number. 

Treatment

When it comes to treatment of these uterine cysts, it would depend upon their types and the way it has grown. The simple ones are treated with medications, while the bigger one would need a surgical procedure using laparoscopic method that helps in removing the cysts without much pain in it.  

Bottom Line

Improper lifestyle, stress and fatigue have become the part and parcel of our daily life. All these have contributed to a number of health issues, which certainly include even the uterine growth among women.