I AM 38 YEARS OLD . I AM A WIFE , A MOTHER AND A 2 TIME CANCER SURVIVOR. I WOULD LIKE TO SHARE A CONDENSED VERSION OF MY ESSURE NIGHTMARE WITH YOU. I HAD INITIALLY REQUESTED HAVING MY TUBES TIED IN 2005 AFTER MY DAUGHTER WAS BORN. I KNEW I WOULD NOT BE ABLE TO CARRY ANOTHER CHILD BECAUSE OF THE COMPLICATIONS I ENDURED DURING MINE AND I DIDNT WANT TO RISK GETTING PREGNANT. I WAS TOLD THAT THE HOSPITAL REFUSED TO ALLOW IT BECAUSE I WAS ONLY 28 AND THEY REQUIRE THAT YOU HAVE TO EITHER BE A MOTHER OF 2 CHILDREN OR 35 YEARS OLD. I WAS NOT EITHER OF THOSE SO I WENT ON WITH MY LIFE AND ENJOYED BEING A NEW MOM.
AROUND DECEMBER 2011 I DECIDED TO HAVE MY TUBES AGAIN. I WAS SO EXCITED WHEN I RECIEVED THE REFERRAL TO PLANNED PARENTHOOD OF LOS ANGELES IN MARCH 2012. I MADE AN APPOINTMENT IN MID-APRIL 2012 TO COME IN AND BE COUNSELED ABOUT MY CHOICE BEFORE THEY WOULD DO THE PROCEDURE. I WAS TOLD I WAS A CANDIDATE FOR STERILIZATION BUT MY INSURANCE WOULD NOT COVER A TYPICAL TUBAL LIGATION . HOWEVER THEY WOULD PAY FOR A NEW DEVICE THAT WAS SO GREAT BECAUSE THERE WAS NO DOWNTIME AFTER AND IT ONLY TOOK 30 MINUTES. THEY ALSO SEEMED VERY COMFORTABLE PROCEEDING WITH KNOWING THAT I HAVE A VERY EXTENSIVE OB/GYN CANCER HISORY SPANNING 5 YEARS OF MY LIFE. I WAS A LITTLE HESITANT KNOWING THAT I WAS GOING TO BE IMPLANTED WITH ANYTHING BECAUSE I HAD THE NORPLANT PUT IN WHEN I WAS 16 AND GETTING IT OUT WHEN I WAS 21 WAS SUPPOSED TO GO OFF WITHOUT A HITCH. THAT WAS A LOAD OF CRAP , MY ARM LOOKED LIKE SWISS CHEESE AND IT TOOK A TOTAL OF 7 HOURS TO REMOVE . AGAINST MY BETTER JUDGEMENT I SCHEDULED MY SURGERY DATE.
MY ESSURE NIGHTMARE BEGAN AT 8:15 AM ON APRIL 29, 2012. MYSELF AND 8 OTHER WOMEN GATHERED IN A CHANGING ROOM AT PLANNED PARENTHOOD AND WERE HANDED A 3 FOLD PAMPHLET AND A CONSENT FORM. FROM THERE WE WENT AND GOT THE REQUIRED DEPO SHOT AND ONE BY ONE HAD THE PROCEDURE DONE INFRONT OF AN AUDIENCE OF ABOUT 7 PEOPLE INCLUDING THE PHARMACY REP OBSERVING THE PROCEDURE. I WAS HANDED A CARD WITH 2 BARCODED SERIAL NUMBERS ON IN AND WAS TOLD NOT TO LOOSE IT AND THEY WOULD SEE ME IN 3 MONTHS FOR THE HSG TEST.
HERE IS A VERY BRIEF SNAPSHOT OF MY COMPLICATIONS REPORTED TO THE FDA…..
I STARTED HAVING HEAVY BLEEDING 2 DAYS AFTER INSERTION OF COILS WITH SEVERE ABDOMINAL PAIN AND BACK PAIN, ALSO HAD METAL LIKE TASTE IN MY MOUTH. CALLED PLANNED PARENTHOOD AND WAS ASSURED THAT THIS WAS TOTALLY NORMAL AND TO TAKE MOTRIN AND NOT USE TAMPONS FOR BLEEDING. AFTER MONTHS OF BLEEDING AND VARIOUS COMBINATIONS OF PRESCRIPTION MEDICATIONS TO TRY AND STOP BLEEDING MY OBGYN ORDERED A D & C FOR 07/26/12. HAD SURGERY AND WAS HOSPITALIZED FOR 4 DAYS ON 07/30/12 DUE TO COMPLICATIONS POST-OP CONSISTING OF CHEST PAIN,PNEUMONIA, URINARY TRACT INFECTION AND ACUTE RENAL FAILURE. STILL BLEEDING AFTER D & C. WENT BACK TO ER ON 9/9/12 FOR SEVERE ABDOMINAL / BACK PAIN AND AND WAS MEDICATED AND RELEASED. HOSPITALIZED ON 09/13/12 AFTER ULTRASOUND SHOWED LARGE CYST ON OVARY RELEASED 2 DAYS LATER AND SCHEDULED FOR HYSTEROSCOPY AND ENDOMETRIAL ABLATION SURGERY ON 09/27/12. BEGAN HAVING SEVERE CLUSTER & MIGRAINE HEADACHES AT THIS TIME ALSO. ABLATION STOPPED THE BLEEDING FOR A SHORT PERIOD OF TIME. HAVE HAD SEVERAL HOSPITALIZATIONS FOR MALIGNANT HYPERTENSION AND CLUSTER/MIGRAINE HEADACHES THAT LAST DAYS AT A TIME AND SEEM TO PEAK DURING MY CYCLE EVEN THOUGH I DON’T ACTUALLY BLEED LIKE A NORMAL PERIOD ANYMORE DUE TO THE ABLATION . HAD MRI OF HEAD DONE ON 03/06/14 SHOWING WHITE MATTER DISEASE GREATEST WITHIN THE LEFT FRONTAL LOBE FINDINGS MAY BE RELATED TO MIGRAINES GIVEN PATIENTS CLINICAL HISTORY.OTHER ETIOLOGIES MAY INCLUDE A DEMYELINATING DISORDER OR LESS LIKELY CHRONIC MICROVESSEL ISCHEMIA. NOW I AM WAITING FOR A REFERRAL AUTHORIZATION TO HAVE ESSURE REMOVED TO SEE IF THE HEADACHES AND HYPERTENSION ISSUES RESOLVE AFTERWARDS….
SINCE I REPORTED THAT I HAVE RECIEVED A SURGERY DATE TO HAVE A HYSTERECTOMY TO GET THE ESSURE COILS OUT SCHEDULED FOR NOV 4, 2014. I ALSO FORGOT TO MENTION THE 50 LBS OF WEIGHT GAIN BECAUSE I FIGURED WITH ALL OF THE OTHER MEDICAL ISSUES I AM HAVING THIS WAS SUCH A TRIVIAL SIDE EFFECT. I CAN REMEMBER WHEN I WAS GOING THROUGH CHEMOTHERAPY AND INTERFERON TREATMENTS FEELING SO CRAPPY BUT I KNEW THAT AT THE CONCLUSION I WAS EITHER GOING TO SURVIVE OR I WAS GOING TO DIE. I CAN HONESTLY SAY THAT I AM MORE AFRAID NOT KNOWING WHAT THE OUTCOME IS GOING TO BE AFTER I GET THESE THINGS OUT AND THE FACT THAT NOBOBY HAS ANY DATA ON IT IS PATHETIC. I CAN ONLY HOPE THIS SOON WILL PASS AND TOMORROW WILL BE A BETTER DAY.
THANK YOU FOR LISTENING TO MY STORY
AMY