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Medical Uterine Biopsy Left Me With Ptsd And Alone...

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I have been reading stories of women who have gone through what I have. On one hand it makes me feel less alone. On the other it makes me think dying of cancer would be a blessing.

Two years ago I had a uterine biopsy. I had gone in for what I thought was a routine appointment and to find out about the slight abdominal discomfort I had. They told me I needed a biopsy and wanted to do it right then. The doctor was a woman. She lied about how much it would hurt. "It's not any worse than a pap smear" she said "You'll be fine. You can drive yourself home and go to work." she said. I was scared but cancer scared me more. I had uterine polyps. She prepped me by giving me two Motrin (which I am highly tolerant to and I told her that) 10 minutes before she started. (No numbing, no shots, - just Motrin.)

As I expressed to her that I could feel pain radiating down into my legs and up into my chest she said "Oh that hurts? I just grabbed your cervix with a clamp." I immediately told her I wanted her to stop. She told the nurse to pull down hard on the clamp. I again told he to stop that I didn't want to do this as the pain made my head swim. She said "No, It will be fine, just breathe and hold still." I started to say "NO!" But the pain! I saw stars! I was screaming and begging god to make it stop! I was sure the waiting room could hear me. When she got done she told me I didn't have a high pain tolerance. (BItch! I have suffered from very heavy bleeding and debilitating menstrual cramps since I was 11. I've gotten to the point where I don't even bother with pain meds because they dont' work for the cramps! Don't tell me I have a low tolerance!) At least that's what I was thinking. I was shaking and the nurse said I didn't look good. They made me drink a nasty juice box and eat some stale crackers. I wanted to throw up. They told me to get dressed. I was bleeding and didn't have a pad. When the nurse came back she wanted to know why I wasn't dressed. I asked her for a pad. She threw one on the counter and walked out.

It was with sheer force of will I walked out of the tourture chamber and got into my car. I was in so much pain! I almost passed out driving home. I could bearely walk into my house. I collapsed onto the floor and called a friends mom. She was a retired OB nurse. She hit the roof. She treated me for shock over the phone and told me that what had happened to me was cruel and wrong. I ended up immediately finding a male doctor at another clinic. He immediately scheduled a DNC. After he told me that I had a super thick uterine lining and that normally he would have recommended a hysterectomy for a woman in my condition but that I was of childbearing age. (Not that my age should have anything to do with it! I thought) He put me on progesterone. My body was in constant pain. Everything hurt and my breasts hurt so much it hurt to breathe! I couldn't live like that. He put me on birth control. I cried so much I went to a psychologist! When I stopped taking the BC, I stopped crying. I was fine. I have also been living with the other thing my surgeon said. "If you don't take progesterone, it's not a question of if, but on when, you will get uterine cancer. You will have it by menopause."

Even the fear of cancer doesn't override my panic attacks every time i try to make a doctor's appointment. I am going to therapy but it's a slow process. My biggest regret is not having pressed charges, reported or done something about the bitch who medically raped me! I cannot and will not put myself through that again. I'd rather die! But I prefer to live. I am hoping to get the courage to go back to a doctor soon so I can convince him (I will never let a woman touch me again!) to do a complete hysterectomy and take out the ovaries and cervix too! Just be gone and done with it all! No more biopsies, no more vaginals, just one surgery and it's over! I could go on with my life!
 
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I already had PTSD but didn't know it at the time I had to go out of town and get "endometrial biopsies". I was told pretty much the same thing you were... no motrin for me... and it rattled me to my core. I was in a town 45 minutes away from my home and after it was over had to sit in the lobby of the facility shaking like a leaf til I had the presence of mind to attempt to return home.

I was pulled over speeding and crying my eyeballs out. When the trooper asked me how fast I thought I was going, all I could say was "They told me it wouldn't hurt, they told me it would be fine, I need to go home, I just want to go home..." (Poor guy.) He escorted me to the county line and reminded me to use caution all the way back home. (I felt like shit though for what I put that poor man through).

I though had traumas before the procedure. But... I understand in a very personal way what you went through and how you feel about this.
 
Irrespective of your answer to Tony, I do have medical trauma... when I had a botched tonsillectomy when I was 6. But, there was already a plethora of dysfunction and abuse going on as well... so I can not with certainty point to it as a "trauma"... more maybe a "reinjury" for me... however I empathize and understand how it affected me personally.

Others here do have medical trauma.
 
I do not have anything in mind with my question I try to learn more about PTSD when I get the chance, So if you have been diagnosed with PTSD because of your medical trauma perhaps I could have gotten it when I passed a 6mm kidney stone,
 
@ Tony, you could have? But in this particular case, the OP was treated with utter, sadistic callousness by a physician who put her in extreme pain with no warning, and ignored being told to stop.
Betrayal by an authority figure tends to dramatically increase the chances of getting PTSD.
I have nearly died from asthma, but that doesn't feel as awful as having been sexually abused.
 
Ok I have to ask, are you saying that a medical procedure caused PTSD

Yes. Actually, it has been diagnosed by a psychologist. After the biopsy, I have had nightmares, flashbacks, and other symptoms.
 
I do not have anything in mind with my question I try to learn more about PTSD when I get the chance, So i...


It's possible. It's important to see a counselor who can recognize the symptoms of PTSD. I am a counselor in training, and suffer from PTSD, I have found it helpful to have a counselor who understands and can help me work through it.
 
Welcome @celticangel38

I understand the disappointment of not reporting things. Maybe it's too late legally, but there will likely be other options if you would like to pursue them, only if you want to.

Betrayal by an authority figure tends to dramatically increase the chances of getting PTSD.
I have nearly died from asthma, but that doesn't feel as awful as having been sexually abused.

This sentence summarizes something important I was trying to understand/explain. Thanks so much.
 
Oh my. This one does not come to me often in flash backs. Yeah, a biopsy. In London. Similar with no meds and big clippers cold clippers and a snip. Then oh not enough, as she dropped the piece of me into a tray and went in again. I passed out.
 
I had a uterine biopsy...probably helped that I was warned it would be painful. No way to explain how painful without probably chasing me out of the room before the procedure, but it helped that a nurse let me squeeze her hand. And both the doctor and nurse picked up on my near-fainting and pulled me back. So the response was empathetic. I numbed out and nearly fainted at my next therapy session, but was okay beyond that (had PTSD prior and separate to this, but go limp and pass out easily in situations like this, maybe due to the prior traumas). Anyway, glad I didn't have cancer. That's the pain that does not quit.

I've gone through a load of treatments for the situation in there, too...no picnic for sure (sometimes more pain, more bleeding, etc)...not a fun experiment but I wanted to avoid surgery, so that's how it was. Sorry your doctor was such a jerk. Hope you find a doctor you can slowly feel more comfortable with.
 
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