One of my visitors here is having a problem with extreme pain from her fibroids during her pregnancy.
Anna: Are there any women out there who can tell me how to endure pregnancy fibroid pain?
I’m 7.5+ months pregnant with at least 8 fibroids, 3 of which are just over 5.7 cm each and growing. They were all discovered when I became pregnant. Most of them don’t bother me but two are crammed down at the bottom of my uterus just over the birth canal. The pain from those two is so bad I haven’t slept more than 3.5 hours in weeks.
The Dr. says I am experiencing ‘degridation’ as the fibroids grow which sends a chemical into the body causing this unbelievable, constant pain. For the pain, I take frequent warmish baths, stay in bed and take Tylenol which does very little (if anything) but I’m told that Tylenol is the only pain killer that’s safe for the baby.
First – Have any of you experienced this kind of extreme pain during pregnancy?
Second – What can I do about it ?I’m sure I’ll survive this … women are tough. But, I’d like to be able to get out of bed and enjoy a little bit of sunshine in the next two months. Heck, just having a short break from the horrible pain would be a blessing. Frankly … at this moment 8 hours of labor sounds like a cakewalk compared to months of this. =)
Your input is quite welcome.
If you have an experience or thoughts to share about uterine fibroid pain and pregnancy, please leave a comment.
May 19, 2010 at 12:56 pm
Hello Everyone.
I just wanted to tell that after a near week of such anxiety, I had my scan yesterday. Happy to report that the big moaning fibroid seems to have become smaller now its 8.5 by 7.9 by 7.5 as oposed to the original 12.3, 8.5, 7.3. I don’t know how but am pleased after being told that they so don’t shrink.
I’m also told that the baby is high due to the unwanted guest but has enough room at present. What a relief at this stage and last night I had the best nights sleep for weeks. The sonographer suggested that it may have been degenerating without me knowing, laugh out loud. Without me knowing where did she get that from I wonder.
“Ouch” you’ve got to laugh or else you’d cry.
We are strong aren’t we as women thatnk God for that.
I’m expecting a boy.
I’ve told him to try to lay on the intruder or feel free to practice his kicking techniques on it.
Come on baby!
I pray all of you are well and not in too much discomfort.
Peckers up all the way girls
warm vibes
May 20, 2010 at 5:25 pm
Two weeks back found out that i have 15 cm fibroid just close to my cervix blocking the vaginal area completely.I am right now 21 week pregnant without any complication so far.I had a c-section delivery with my previous baby ,because my labor did not progress.However at that time ultrasound tech or my OB/GYN no one showed any concern over the presence of fibroid and failure of progressing labor because of this fibroid.In my first pregnancy too I had this fibroid at the same location and grew quite big which again never gave me any problem.I had a full term baby.
This time doctors have scared the hell out of me about the concept of degenerating fibroid.They had the u/S done in 19th week and since then as if I have been waiting for the fibroid to degenerate.
Has anyone gone through this experience.On one hand I have this issue of fibroid and on the other hand my OB/GYN is continue-sly pressing me for a repeat C-Section.She is a big time advocate of C-section for no evident reason.(My case may be different).
I would love to read some from you experienced ladies who have gone through this and do you all think there is still a chance of having a vaginal birth.Is it a rule of thum that fibroid will degenerate?I am hoping that if the fibroid will degenerate and shrink then it will give some space for my baby to pass vaginally.
I do not know what to expect.
Thanks in advance for the responses.
Vanity.
May 22, 2010 at 9:51 pm
Hello All,
I happened upon this site and was so relieved to know that I am not alone in this struggle! I am 17 weeks pregnant and have degenerating uterine fibroids. The largest is 5.7 cm and my debilitating pain started around 10 weeks. I have been out of work for the last 6 weeks and on “house arrest” and can’t seem to find reprieve. I am in a lot of pain all the time and have very, very few moments of relief. I have lost weight and suffer from bad constipation. I have seen my obgyn on many occasions and have been to the ER 3 times. I don’t think enough is known about my situation and I am beyond frustrated. I also don’t feel like I am getting the attention I need from my obgyn and feel like I am being overlooked and not being taken seriously.
I recently had my short term disability denied. Now, I have to get my obgyn to give more detailed info about my situation to file an appeal. I am hoping that my visit to the high risk doctor in a few weeks will help to give me more info in order to get my short term disability approved.
Has anyone else been in pain for as long as I have?
Have you been working or have you ever filed for disability? Was it approved?
I really look forward to some feedback. I wish everyone well! I love to hear the positive outcomes from such a negative situation.
May 31, 2010 at 7:10 am
Hi,
I too have a couple of fibroids and am now 24 weeks pregnant with my first. My large one is 8.7cm and I have a small one on my uterus which is one 1.8cm. The small one is fine and doesn’t cause me any trouble but I have had two bouts of serious pain with the big one. The first time it flared up at 15wks my OBGYN put me in hospital to help me cope with the pain and they gave me a few drugs like Endone, Oxynorm and Pethadine which helped greatly with the pain. I was in hospital for 2 and a half weeks and by that time I was so ready to go home that I didn’t care and they gave me Endone 5mm tablets to go home with. Lucky for me about 4 days after I got home the pain pretty much settled and I came off all the drugs easily and I had a few weeks of normal pregnancy. The only worry the doctors have with these drugs is that either you or baby may become addicted but they will cause no harm to the baby. (Trust me I wouldn’t have taken them if there was a slight chance of them harming the baby.) At about 21 wks the fibroid flared up again and started causing me huge pain again. This time I just called my doctor and she gave me the scripts for the endone and I managed to struggle thru until it went away again at the end of last week. I even managed to stay at work this time tho some of the days I probably should have been home in bed. As for your constipation ask your doctor to prescribe you some colloxill (not sure on spelling) tablets as this is what they gave me in hospital to help combat all the drugs and again it is gentle on bub. I am so glad that I have gotton another reprieve for the time being but I am pretty sure that it will flare up for me again too.
Sorry I can’t help about the disability thing as I don’t know anything about it.
Hope that this info can help.
Catriona
July 12, 2010 at 4:41 pm
Hello Cah and others,
I am currently 18 weeks with the same issues, ER, ob/gyn and risk specialist have done nothing for me. My ob/gyn says with fibroids pain will come and go. So, I took matters into my own hands and started seening an acupuncture physician. In truth, this is my first pregancy but based on all the complaints other pregnant woman has shared, I am during great. Yes, I had the same issues with what might be degenerating fibroid but no medical doctor has made that claim. What I find that worked was along with the acupuncture was an ice pack not for long 1o minutes at time.
May 24, 2010 at 7:30 am
hi all,
just could not make it to work cos of the fibroid pains i had all through the night till this morning. i called on my doctor and he said that i will be fine but should go on bed rest for today. well my baby is doing well with the multiple fibroid. baby is always playing with it and using it as a pillow.
Lets ve the strength to carry on till its time. am 32weeks and looking foward to starting the new phase.
August 21, 2010 at 3:51 pm
I am starting 31 wks, i have been experiencing the same pain, last night i barely slept, the best the doc says is to be on bed rest. But this pain sometimes almost gets me worried , I have to try and distinguish it with the preterm labor. At least I dont have any back aches and I don’ t feel any contractions, so I know my little gal is definetely kicking on the fibroids thats on my left side hence the excrutiating pain. I’m praying she gets here on her due date and I really did not want to go thru c-section but who knows, i leave all this to God and say a prayer for both of us. I think i’ll try and go back to bed even though sleeping on my sides also cause my hip born to hurt like crazy. So good luck to you and I hope you and your baby boy are healthy.
May 31, 2010 at 12:23 pm
Hello Gals
I Finally got to see a Obstetrician a few days ago who has deemed me high risk due to my fibroids, am now going to have a growth scan at 28 weeks with a further 2 scheduled for 32 and 36 weeks. I feel a little better knowing that, although I’m now just under 23 weeks so have what feels like forever to wait. I don’t feel much at all in the way of movement apparently due the fibroid sitting in the front on top of the baby so all my anxieties are a daily battle for me having had much in previous pregnancies. I have a history of delivering really quickly. I mean just over an hour for my last baby and also of going into labour around 38 weeks, because of this and where the large fibroid is situated (obsrtucting the birth canal) I requested the c-section be done at 37 weeks to avoid any dire outcome. The doctor just refused to commit at all telling me we’d have to wait and see if the fibroid moves when pinned about the likelihood of it moving she told me it was unlikely but still would not be discuss a 37 week option as a safety measure. especially as I’m led to believe that early labour is possible with fibroids.
I’m just a tad fed up with all the stress of worrying and feeling as if I’m not being understood regarding my fears.
Can anyone advise at all. It seems logical to me to get the baby out slightly earlier to avoid problems. also allying further worry for me.
Am I being ridiculous Please let me know.
Cecilia
May 31, 2010 at 12:39 pm
Cecelia, in the US they routinely used to perform c/s at 38 weeks, but there was just a major study advising there is a huge developmental difference in the baby and long-term positives for doing them at 39 weeks instead, and you are no longer permitted to schedule a routine c/s earlier than 37. So, I’m sure that’s what your doctor is weighing, and wants to see just how much risk there is of pre-term labor.
I was also high-risk, with fibroids and some other complications, and was told to expect to deliver any time after 32 weeks. I made it to my scheduled c/s around 38 weeks. Try to focus your thoughts on making it week by week, as each week is a huge advantage for your baby.
May 31, 2010 at 2:00 pm
Thanks for reply.
Yes your right.
I know that 37 is not great for baby,
I just worry about the baby not being able to get out thats all.
I suppose the other option would be to stay in hospital from 37 weeks at least I’d be in the right place.
I seem to be whacked out on anxiety at the moment.
I’ll need to get strong and stop getting into a state because it just won’t help either way for baby or me.
Time to get braver I guess
June 2, 2010 at 12:15 am
It might be possible that the fibroid will move out of the way during the remainder of the pregnancy as the lower segment of the uterus grows so much during the last trimester. This is what I experienced – I was originally told I would need a vertical incision c-section but at a late scan the babywas posterior but had head & shoulders below the fibroid so in a good position for giving birth naturally as I did, 10 days overdue too. So although it would be reassuring to know what was going to happen with the delivery keep an open mind for various options. If you are very anxious maybe you could try some relaxation techniques, have massage etc to give you a boost. I had a very stressful pregnancy with the fibroids & moving to another country whilst pregnant – I listened to a relaxation cd for a little bit of a break from everything even though I wouldn’t normally do such a thing!
June 2, 2010 at 12:58 pm
Thanks Nic
Wow it moved out of the way. I’m glad you told me that at least I now know it is actually possible. Yeah relaxation is the key, something I obviously have to re-=learn after a few years of serious rushing around jobs kids and caring for a fairly ill partner. Would be great to arrange things in order for us control freaks to chill laugh out loud. I guess its all just due lots of life changes recently all coming at the same time. I may start yoga or something similar. Music is a cool idea.
Sounds like you had a lot to deal with.
Thanks much for the encouraging post.
June 11, 2010 at 3:59 pm
Just wanted to say Thank You to all the ladies who have posted on here. At 15 weeks ( with 4 fibroids) I went through 6 days of constant pain. I went to ER at about the third day and all the test came out just fine. I was told I’m just gonna have to deal with but they were never clear on what was causing the pain. So I tried my best not to worry and got past it. I’m 18 weeks now and last night started feeling the pain again. Not once has any of the doctors or nurses told me about possible fibroid pain. But after reading a lot of these post I’m so relieved. I’m going through the same stuff and no longer feel alone in the pain. Thank you Ladies!
June 13, 2010 at 11:37 am
Hi Clarissa,
Glad you are feeling better. I have multiple fibroids – the troublemaker is about 9 cm. My degeneration took place about 18 weeks and lasted a few weeks – included a hospitalization for close to a week. I understand that often times the degeneration occurs at the 1/2 point in the pregnancy, when the fibroids reach their maximum growth from the hormones and then degenerate.
I am just over 31 weeks and things are going well, close monitoring, but it appears (for now) that the worst is over. I received a lot of support here and am happy to help others by sharing my story as well.
Susie
June 14, 2010 at 9:51 pm
I have a question (I haven’t followed up the thread recently, but I’m not sure it’s been discussed before):
Have you had pain only when the fibroid started to degenerate? What about pain when you bend forward, or kneel down, or lift your legs? I’m in week 17, with some pain exactly when I do those things, sometimes when I urinate. Drs mentioned it might be due to the fibroids (mine are small, most of them were already removed by hysteroscopy) but I’ll have an U/S to check everything is OK. I was planning to start prenatal yoga, but I don’t what to expect with the different yoga positions, if they’ll cause me pain.
June 14, 2010 at 10:25 pm
I felt a lot of discomfort from the very beginning. I have about 5 “measureable” fibroids and countless small ones. I had a lot of sensation in my lower ab from about 5 weeks on. My personal theory is that the fibroids are not as elastic as your organs, and they add extra mass in the abdomen. So you end up feeling things a lot.
But I wouldn’t characterize it as pain. I would get this checked out.
June 15, 2010 at 10:45 pm
Hi ladies,
I was a poster on this board last year. I experienced uterine fibroid degeneration around 27 weeks gestation. My fibroid was initially diagnosed on an ultrasound a couple of years previous but it grew over 5 cm during the course of the pregnancy. Most notably over 3 cm in a matter of two months. Initially I started experiencing what my provider told me was probably just round ligament pain — sharp groin pain. Eventually one morning I woke up and could hardly sit down because my butt was so sore. It hurt to urinate. Honestly it felt like a million needles were stabbing my vag just to get out a drop of urine. I’d start crying everytime I felt the urge to urinate because of the pain. I thought for sure that either I had a UTI or that my husband had given me some awful STD. When I contacted my OB’s office they directed me to the downstairs hospital triage. I know they thought I was a hypochrondriac initially as my urine was negative. But I could hardly walk, my abdomen was tender to touch and oh boy the rectal pain. When the ultrasound was performed they discovered that the fibroid was constricting my bladder; hence the urinary discomfort. The ultrasound showed normal fetal growth. In fact the estimated fetal weight went from the 23rd percentile to the 62nd percentile. I was admitted to the hospital as a 23-hour OBS and started on a course of Demerol with a PCA Pump and 48 hours of oral Indocin and Antibiotics. I went home the next day and had to take Vicodin every 4 hours around the clock initially for about a week and then mercifully the fibroid moved off of my bladder. I had my third child delivered via Cesarean section at 37 weeks gestation on May 20, 2009. The Cesarean was initially planned at 36 weeks gestation, but the FLM Amnio was immature. This was my third Cesarean section. He weighed 7 lbs 1 ounce. There were some complications during delivery I’m not going to lie. I had a blood loss of almost 1000 cc. Had I signed a consent for it, I probably would’ve been transfused. There were two Obstetricians in the OR for my delivery. Recovery was tough and the baby had some respiratory issues due to his early birth. He stayed in the hospital an extra day after I went home. That was tough. I’d never left a baby in the hospital before. But all is well with him now. I managed to pump breastmilk for him for almost a year. He never managed to latch on. It helped to shrink my uterus size down to about 10 weeks gestation currently. My fibroid is still there and makes itself known during my period. I think I started having periods earlier this time around because of the fibroid; 7 months post-delivery instead of the norm for me, 11 – 12 months post-delivery.
I was very grateful to have this message board last year. It was a relief to know that there were other women out there that understood what I was experiencing. Ladies hang in there. In the end it will all be worth it. Make sure that you have a provider that takes your fibroids seriously and teaches you the warning signs before you end up in severe pain that requires hospitalization.
Best wishes to you all,
Alyson
June 16, 2010 at 1:23 pm
Hi Everyone I have not been on in a little while. My myo surgery was a success! I would like to also share my website with those mothers who are TTC after age 35 and 40.
Please feel free to sign up http://newagemotherhood.ning.com/
I hope all is well with everyone!
Take care!
June 18, 2010 at 10:39 am
Hi everyone,
I am so relieved to have found this site. I am at 16 weeks and have 6 fibroids, the largest measuring 7cm, the others close behind that. I knew about the fibroids before, but they have been growing in size since becoming pregnant. I feel like my entire abdomen is taken up by these stupid things and am scared that baby doesn’t have room! (Also, my bladder doesn’t have room, my lungs don’t have room…) I experience mild pain/discomfort almost all the time and had one brief episode of severe pain for only an hour. (I wanted to know how long the pain of degenerating fibroids last, found this message board, and realize there is no way my fibroid was degenerating if it only lasted an hour! Was hoping one of them was going away!) Does anyone feel like their fibroids are constantly moving around and shifting? Does anyone feel like they have aliens inside of them? These things just creep me out and scare me – I am scared of preterm labor, scared of the degeneration pain, scared that they are going to cramp my baby’s room to grow.
This is my first pregnancy and I am bed ridden due to intense morning sickness (vomiting repeatedly, daily for the last 2 and a half months). It scares me that all my vomiting, all the fibroids are messing with my baby and I just want this all to be over so bad! How am I going to make it through the next four months?
June 21, 2010 at 9:03 pm
The baby will find the room he/she needs. You will just pop out more like I did. We could actually see the outline of the fibroid for a while there, and I could feel it. I could also feel the baby kicking it.
The vast number of women with fibroids, even degenerating fibroids, go on to have perfectly normal labors and perfectly healthy babies.
I was a candidate for pre-term labor, and I made it to my scheduled c/s date, which was something of a miracle as far as my doctor was concerned. Just keep taking care of yourself, and try as hard as you can to stop worrying about things you can’t control. I realize that is easier said than done.
June 20, 2010 at 2:53 pm
Hi Ladies,
I am 20 weeks pregnant today, with 3 fibroids. I began experiencing pain at 14 weeks. I had trouble urinating, lower abdomen pain and painful constipation. I was hospitalized for several days to treat the pain and given Indomethacin. Like many expecting mothers, I am terrified of taking any drugs that could potentially cause harm to the baby. My doctor reassures me that this pain reliever is safe to take at this time, yet I still don’t feel comfortable.
I am wondering if anyone has tried natural cures or perhaps observed their diet to determine if there may be certain foods to avoid?
Since 14 weeks, I have had some level of discomfort daily and most days it’s debilitating. But miraculously in weeks 18-19, I was almost completely pain free. I can’t figure out what the difference was. Any ideas???
Thanks to all of you for sharing your experiences on this page, I feel less alone.
=)
August 19, 2010 at 2:20 am
Hi, I was also prescribed Indomethacin this last week, do you have any further input??
June 20, 2010 at 8:08 pm
Pilar,
First, sorry about your pain. the pain is the fibroids not getting enough blood and degenerating, which is the fancy medical term for dying. It is quite painful. It stops when the fibroid gets back to an equal state with its blood supply. You may be done for the pregnancy or you may have another round. I had three rounds, the last one around 28 weeks.
Some people have had success with frequent, smaller meals. I’ve heard to avoid dairy from an acupuncturist, and I’ve heard green tea helps shrink the fibroids.\
Also, ice helped me a great deal, and heat or both have helped other ladies.
Please don’t be too stubborn to take medication if you need it. The fibroid pain can cause uterine irritability, which makes you have contractions. I was hospitalized and given turbuteline to stop the contractions because I was too stubborn to admit how bad it hurt about this time last year.
I ended up on some pretty serious painkillers for several months, and have a perfectly healthy baby boy.
June 21, 2010 at 7:35 pm
Hi Donna,
Thank you so much for your reply and the sound suggestions. It’s helpful to hear from other mothers that have dealt with the same issues.
Congratulations on a healthy baby boy! =)
July 1, 2010 at 4:24 pm
I have a degenerating fibroid. My doctor said that there is no official way to tell other than measuring it and seeing it (like cutting a person open). I dont care what he says, I can feel the thing pulse. It hurts. Im only 7 weeks pregnant and experienced horrible pain this weekend…and then a gush of blood. I thought I lost the baby, but after an u/s the baby is doing fine. My stomach does tighten alot…like mini contractions so Im definitely freaked out.
I dont want to lose this baby because of my stupid degenerating fibroid. I have red that we should stay away from soy products because they contain estrogen or produce more estrogen..which makes the fibroids grow. Anyone out there have a degenerating fibroid early in their pregnancy?
July 1, 2010 at 8:52 pm
They can see the degeneration on ultra-sound. They are solid before, and have holes like swiss cheese after. I’m sorry you’re having so much pain. Try to rest and drink water. Start with tyleonol, and if it continues to hurt, you may need prescription pain meds. If you doctor is not helpful or sympathetic, find one who is. You should not have to go through pain like this.
July 3, 2010 at 7:42 am
its to quiet encouraging to read about all these comments. i have multiple fibroid too, the largest being about 18cm. it was it that made m know that i’m pregnant. Not easy at all, now in 20th week but i have to battle with the pain.taking pain relieve and mostly, believing God for a miracle.
July 3, 2010 at 10:35 pm
Hi, Im 14 weeks pregnant. I am soo relieved that everyone is blogging about their experience, I feel a since a relief. Im not sure if my fibroid is degenerating however, I have been in unbearable pain. Constant stabbing pains in the vagina, not able to walk, pain urinatinating, and painful bowel movements. I have 5 fibroids, 4 above the baby and one behind which is causing me awful pain. I have changed my obgyn to a specialist because my current doctor is not taking this situation seriously. I feel like he’s waiting on something bad to happen without any alternate solutions. The Er has prescribed Tylenol 3 and Toradol in order to relieve the pain but as a mother, I don’t want to harm my baby. I am cocerned about his growth and also addiction. How long should I expect to be in pain? Also will the fibroids above the baby degenerate also?
July 8, 2010 at 11:19 am
Hello Ladies,
I am so glad to have this site. I am 26 weeks pregnant and have had severe pain since my 10th weeks of pregnancy. The pain usually comes and goes. Sometimes it lasts for a day sometimes it lasts for 3 or 4 days. However, in the last couple of weeks the pain has been so severe to the point where I have to stay in bed and literally not move. The pain is paralyzing. I am prescribed vicodan and hate to take it but sometimes it is impossible to function.
I guess what mostly bothers me is that there doesn’t seem to be any great concern about the agonizing pain. I am not talking about discomfort, I am talking about extreme pain. I understand that the fibroid is degenerating but is the only real solution is to prescribe opiates? I have heard from different doctors that it takes a week or 2 t degenerate and then others say it could last for many weeks. Okay so it has been 3 months for me – does anyone really think it is okay to take that much vicodan? Sometimes when I have this pain I wonder if the doctors realize the severity of the situations.
July 8, 2010 at 9:24 pm
I am sorry you are experiencing such pain. I had several different fibroids degenerate, and it was excruitiating. It’s the most pain I’ve ever felt in my life.
Have you tried ice/heat? I pretty much lived on an ice bag for months, slept with it and everything. I took Percoset for many weeks, about 8, or I could not get out of bed. I have a perfectly healthy, and EXTREMELY active little boy now, who’s 9m old.
I hated to the the drugs, too, but the pain was giving me contractions at 22 weeks, and I was already at risk for premature labor because of the number, size and placement of my fibroids. I really trusted my doctors, and felt very blessed that they took me seriously. Talk to your doctor and see if they will let you take ibuprofin (Advil or Motrin). I had such swelling from the pain, my belly was noticeably lopsided. Although ibuprofin is not usually recommended to pregnant ladies, I was told to take it in fairly high doses for a few days to bring down the swelling. It helped. There is a cut-off around 26 or 27 weeks — can’t remember exactly, after which you cannot take it at all.
I hope it eases for you soon. also,try to stay hydrated. I had a lot of problems with that, too.
July 10, 2010 at 5:45 am
Hi Ladies,
I am so relieved to know I am not alone in this struggle. I too have fibroids. When I started pregnancy the largest was 5cm but since pregnancy I have multiple, with the largest being 9cm.
I have had three excruciating bouts of degeneration-at 17, 24 and now at 32 weeks. I have had to go to the ER each time and be given percocet once and morphine twice. At 24 weeks I had to be admitted for pain control and because I was contracting 1 in 4 minutes.
I am now going through another bout of degeneration at 32 weeks and I am literally taking percocet and tylenol 3 around the clock. I feel so terribly guilty to be taking such strong drugs with the baby. I am reassured that others here have had perfectly healthy babies even with the drug exposure. The sad thing for me is the only thing that really works is morphine- but then I have to be hospitalized and it makes me vomit like crazy.
The T3 and percocet only take the edge off the pain. I hope I can get through the next few days and get some relief. For me thses bouts tend to last about a week and are completely debilitating. I too have urinary symptoms-each time doctors were concerned about UTIs or kidney stones.
Anyway, just wanted to share my story. Sorry for the length but I could write a book on this subject. Thanks to all of you who have shared your own experiences. I pray we all get through this painful time.
July 12, 2010 at 8:14 am
Great to hear so many success stories with the fibroids. I was diagnosed with 7-8cm fibroid when I was 6 weeks pregnant. It came as a shock to me, as I hadnt heard anything about them before. It grew to 10cm, and stayed there for a while.
At 19 weeks, I was hospitalised with severe cramping. I was told that the fibroid was possibly undergoing degeneration. But later that day, my waters also broke, followed by heavy bleeding and clotting. I thought I was losing my baby…..
However, the u/s regularly showed that his heartbeat was strong, and everything was fine. Except I continued to leak amniotic fluid, and it refused to build up again. I was forced to terminate the pregnancy at 21 weeks. He was still alive.
I underwent a C-Sec, and was cut from the belly button down, due to the fibroid lying right at the bottom. At teh time of the surgery, fibroid was 12cm. While the caeser wound is healing nicely, I am in excrutiating pain from the fibroid. It has been 2 weeks now.
Has anyone gone thru a similar experience?
July 12, 2010 at 12:10 pm
I am so thankful I found this site. My OB Dr. tells me I am a high risk for miss carry. She never meantioned the pain and degenerating. I am waiting for high risk Dr. office to contact me for an appointment. On top of my fibroids. I have a 3cm pocket of blood above my uterus too.
Since yesterday I have been in continues pain. I did take some Tyenol. It only took the edge off. I am going to put a call in to my OB this morning.
July 13, 2010 at 4:57 pm
I am in my 30th week today.My fibroid is just above the cervix and measures 14.5cm.so it is a quite big one.I am leaving this comment just to assure those ladies who have fibroid with pregnancy that there is no rule of thumb that fibroid has to degenerate.On this website I have not seen a single comment writing that they had 15cm fibroid which did not degenerate.So I am the living example that it is not certain that it will degenerate.(At least so far for me).
However this fibroid sitting on my cervix has made almost impossible to have a natural birth.Other than that so far I have not experienced any discomfort so far because of this fibroid.I am leading a very active ,normal life,taking care of a 3 year old daughter.I just have my fingers crossed for 10 more weeks to go this way.
So I wish every one with fibroid have a wonderful pregnancy,and keep your positive thinking always high,that really helps.
July 15, 2010 at 6:36 am
Hi just wished to share my experience.
After the first pregnancy with multiple fibroids, the biggest being 11 cm I had fibroid degeneration in the period of 17 to 26 weeks. I had my daughter premature at 31 weeks and did not even think about getting pregnant again. However, after 6 months of having my first baby, my fibroids reduced in size by half, I went to see the doctor to see where to go ahead. I was advised that if I wanted another child I should do it as soon as possible, before the fibroids have started to grow again. I got pregnant in no time and for the surprise this time no pain, no fibroid degeneration, they did not grow as much and a perfect 40 week baby.
I wanted to mention that there is hope for another pregnancy and don’t be afraid to get pregnant again after degeneration pain as you might have totally different experience.
July 20, 2010 at 6:08 am
hi everyone,
thanks for sharing your experiences… I’m now 14weeks pregnant and this morning I was up all night because of the unbearable pain I just never experienced before. at the beginning, i couldn’t think what is causing this type of pain, but now, I am sure it is coming from my 10cm fibroid… I am now sure if I should go to work today or to see my doctor. I still don’t wanna take pain killers and I am so afraid of preterm labor.
July 20, 2010 at 10:02 am
Hi Roni,
I am now 37 weeks pregnant and experienced intense dengeneration of my 10 cm fibroid at week 18. I was hospitalized for a week and in bed for a few weeks thereafter.
I learned it was super important to manage the pain. Intense pain causes stress and increases uterine irritability, which can trigger contractions and pre-term labor.
I was utterly opposed to the pain meds, but once I started to feel as badly as I did, managing the pain was no longer an option. It was also key to stay hydated.
Take care of yourself, make sure your MD listens, it does get better!
Susie
July 22, 2010 at 7:09 pm
Hi everyone,
I wrote a few weeks back and just wanted to share what I have learned since then. I am now 20 weeks pregnant with 6 relatively large fibroids. They are located below and above my uterus and my stomach looks visibly lumpy in certain positions (plus I look about 2 months more preganant than I am). The biggest one is on a very long stalk and it continually moves around my abdomen, reaching as far up as my rib cage. The specialist also thinks it may be a double/joined fibroid. He also thinks one of my other fibroids may not even be attached to my uterus at all – apparently they can form on their own (or detach??) – its pretty rare for this to occur, but it may explain why several of my fibroids seem to move and shift around so much. My doctors are pretty sure one of them did start to degenerate because of what they saw on the u/s – They explained that oftentimes a different kind of tissue appears (more white than black) once a fibroid has started to degenerate (although no real reduction in size was measured). I was in pretty bad pain for about 24 hours so thats probably when it happened (I didn’t take drugs but had it continued, i would have). Then it stopped and haven’t had anything other than major discomfort for several weeks.
My OB said that premature delivery is nearly guaranteed and that she has never seen anyone with my kind of fibroids go full term. C-section may not be necessary since most of them are not near cervix. Only one is, and she thinks it may move out of the way. Luckily, my baby is doing fine so far (a boy!!).
She told me that those of us with this condition need to behave as if we are carrying multiples – ie take it easy in general – and she said the most important thing to do to avoid early delivery is to ‘keep your uterus hydrated’ (it has become an inside joke for my husband and I because of how funny that sounds). Basically, she said, we all need to drink water, feel like we are going to explode, then drink some more, and drink some more after that. I hate it, because my bladder is so tiny due to the fibroids and pregnancy!
I feel the way many of you feel – like our doctors don’t take fibroids very seriously at all, and it really frustrates me. I have made it a point to ask questions, complain, explain, discuss, then ask more questions. If I wasn’t relatively pushy, I swear, they wouldn’t even explain or talk about any of these issues at all!! Someone needs to write a book on this, or do a major study!!
My love to all of you who are struggling with pain and frustration. Hang in there girls! We will get through this together!
Polly
September 2, 2010 at 4:44 pm
Hi Polly-
I wanted to give you some hope. I have 7 fibroids – the largest ended up about 20 cms by the end of my pregnancy. My doctor told me she didn’t expect me to make it past 20 weeks. Well I made it to full term with a lot of pain, but no complications with the baby. I delivered via scheduled c-section and had a completely healthy baby girl. Keep believing!!
July 22, 2010 at 10:02 pm
I wrote 2 days ago that I was having some pain from the fibroid. Yesterday, I finally saw my doctor and he said that my fibroid is now 13-15cm( it was 10 cm ,2 weeks ago). I was pretty upset that my fibroid is still growing. I’m only 5’1″ and 110 lbs… I already have constipation and frequent urination. my abdomen looks like 5 month pregnant and I’m only 14+ weeks now. I’m counting everyday and I hope the next 6 months will go fast and I will have a healthy baby by then… My doctor also told me to drink a lot of water… guess it will really help.
August 16, 2010 at 3:24 pm
I completely understand your frustration. Two of my fibroids grew rapidly in the first two trimesters, and I underwent a 3 night hospital stay and then a second hospital visit followed by bed rest. I looked to be 5 months pregnant when I was only about 12 weeks and suffered through the constipation and frequent urination as well. Just keep remembering that none of it will last, and like your doctor said, drink plenty of water and keep on top of your fibre intake. I’ve found that cherries were helping keep me quite regular and free of constipation (apparently cherry juice works well too) – that is until I had to start taking iron supplements (iron results in increased constipation). Ah, what a journey!
Good luck!
July 25, 2010 at 7:49 am
my wife has pains due to fibroid . now she is in 15th week of pregnancy. can any one tell me how long this pain exists.
August 16, 2010 at 3:18 pm
My first bout of pain last for a month – but only because I initially thought it was just regular pregnancy back pain and I chose to try to fight through it. Once I finally gave in and went to the hospital for pain management, the pain was gone after about a week or two. With my second bout of degeneration pain I knew what it was and went to the hospital right away. With pain management and bed rest the pain was gone by two weeks. I hope this helps and that you’re wife’s pain has digressed by this time. Good luck!
July 29, 2010 at 10:53 pm
Is there anyone who also suffered from hemorrhoid pain?
I’m now 15+weeks and started having really bad hemorrhoid pain from two days ago. I have 13cm fibroid and I’m sure I’ve developed hemorrhoid because of the fibroid. My doctor said there are not that many treatment options for pregnant women. I’m using sitz bath, preparation H, and colace. I haven’t noticed any improvement. Believe it or not, this pain is much worse than fibroid pain. I’m worried about how I’m going to survive this long journey….. I wanna think about good things and be positive about this pregnancy… Will this hemorrhoid go away soon? can anyone tell me?
July 30, 2010 at 6:21 am
I found the sitz bath to be the most helpful. You might also try some witch hazel on a cotton ball or pad. I know how uncomfortable that is.Also, if you have a boppy billow for nursing, you can sit on that now.
August 15, 2010 at 9:18 pm
Okay, now you guys have convinced me that I am wrong and my doctors did understand my situation and diagnose correctly.
A few weeks ago I woke up with a somewhat noticeable pain in my abdomen. Eventually I discovered that I was having contractions, and at about 20-21 weeks pregnant I was definitely concerned.
Day 1 @ doc’s I was told it was just round-ligament pain and not to worry, Tylenol would do the trick.
Day 2 @ doc’s I came in after a very restless night, and had it not been my actual, regularly scheduled OB appt, I would have been there first thing in the morning. I didn’t want to seem overly sensitive or like the hypochondriac I am. Pain increased and I could barely stand up straight. They did more poking and prodding, listened to the fetal heart rate, and eventually did a urine test and a pap smear.
During this time you could feel my contractions just by touching my abdomen, and the baby would simultaneously push or kick back where the contractions were. It was excruciating.
Again, told that baby was fine, probably experiencing round ligament pain and at the end of appt my lab came in positive for bacterial vaginosis (bv). Sent home with further instruction to use tylenol and a Rx of Clyndamycin.
Day 3 @ doc- went in, they were out to lunch, sent to ER, who sent me to the Ob/Gyn department straight away.
After 3.5 hours they did a full U/S work up, another urine test and after all was said and done they confirmed that a previously discovered fibroid had gone from 3.5 cm before pregnancy, to almost 9 cm that day- as well as a 2nd one that was just approaching 3 cms. Both looked like they were losing blood supply and that was the root of my pain.
Sent home with Tylenol 3 and that was it.
The clyndamycin treatment was to last for 7 days, I still had some lingering pain and I assumed the pain was from the BV, not the fibroid since my pain was below my belly button, and basically was in an area the size of my hand, directly center of my hips… oh, and the fibroids were both above and to the side of my belly button. Day 8 of the clyndamycin (I asked to extend the treatment just in case) and I finally felt better.
Well… here I am 3 weeks later. I started to have similar pains the last couple of days, and today I was full blown back to square one with the issues. I can barely stand up, walking is more like hobbling, I have resumed the Tylenol/Codeine (despite the terrible, horrible, sad case of constipation it causes) and basically I can tell the time by it wearing off. Every 3 hours the pain comes back.
I hobbled back in to the clinic at my doc’s office, assumed it was another case of BV, they did a culture and sent me home to await a response and issue of treatment tomorrow (it’s the weekend, doc’s not there). In the hours since my pain has increased and even as I sit here typing, 20 minutes after taking my most recent dose of Ty/codeine, I wish I could detach my lower half from me until this is over.
BUT… I just got a call and the lab got a negative test for BV … so… I guess now I’ve got another degenerating fibroid going on.
This is just great. I’m at 24 weeks.
I really don’t want to have to medicate so often, or heavily. Poor baby.
Wouldn’t mind the hobbling so much, but I do absolutely hate that it hurts to go from an upright position, to laying down, or vice versa.
Well, back to my constant fruit/veggie diet to keep things moving. Geez.
August 17, 2010 at 12:28 pm
Dear Friends,
A good news post!
Just wanted to update you on my situation. I had a severe bout of degeneration mid pregnancy which resulted in several trips to ER and a hospitalization for a week with a 3 week bedrest.
A bit about me – 44 years old, first pregnancy, conceived naturally, multiple fibroids.
I just wanted to give you hope. I gave birth (vaginally) on my due date to a healthy 8 lb baby boy a few days ago. My 10 x 10 fibroid (the largest of my fibroids) didn’t give me any issues during the labor and delivery or post partum. I was truly scared about what would happen during delivery, but all is well that ends well.
A huge thank you to members of the board who gave me encouragment, hope and support – especially Donna!
Susie
August 19, 2010 at 8:38 am
Susie,
I am thrilled for you. I am glad I could be of help. Enjoy that baby!
August 18, 2010 at 5:55 pm
OH my gosh!! Sweet relief!!
So, I finished out my original Rx of T3′s.
Monday (the day that was SO excruciatingly painful) was awful. That was the day that I literally was trapped in bed, couldn’t get out of it because the pain of rolling from one side or the other, or even sitting up was horribly awful. Wouldn’t have had to get up, except I was trying to combat the dehydrating/constipation effects of the T3′s with massive amounts of water and needed to use the restroom. I even had my hand on my cell phone to call my parents in the other room to take me to the ER- which I never did. Eventually I piled the pillows up so I could sleep in a semi-upright position and the T3′s got me drowsy enough to sleep through the night.
Obviously, the T3′s were not strong enough to kill the pain I was having, and really, they only dulled the pains that were in the range of 10, and I was left to deal with everything that was a 9 and under.
Doc told me he really wanted me to come in. I did so and spent 5 hours there.
They did another fetal heart rate monitor, U/S, and general tapping and vital checking. One fibroid has continued to grow since my last bout with pain, it’s the pedunculated kind, and they think that it has traveled from the upper part of my abdomen to the lower portion. I can feel it. It’s definitely where the pain is radiating from and very hard.
Baby/pregnancy is still TOTALLY fine, and they switched my pain medication to an ANTI-INFLAMMATORY, which I firmly believe is key, now! I can only take it for no more than 48 hours, but comparing this time to the last bout, I’m sure that’s more than enough time for this pain to resolve itself for a period of time.
I’m about 18 hours into my 48 and I can walk again, I can sit up, lay down, roll over!! Woohoo!! The only thing is that they make me really tired and after sleeping a whole night, I put in a good 2 hour nap before noon even hit.
The medication is indomethacin. I think that trying to kill the pain with the T3′s and maybe even the others you have mentioned (oxycodone, vicodin, toradol, etc.) may be an okay route, but as for me, my pain was DEFINITELY inflamed muscle tissue and this endomethacin has almost completely eliminated the issue. The fibroid is still painful to the touch, but I can atleast withstand the pressure of an elasticized waist band against it again. The last few days I’ve been wearing nothing but dresses to negate putting anything around my waist.
In a few weeks they will have a specialist for me to see and maybe we can make some further process. *whew*
Whatever, I’m glad they figured out atleast this much!!
August 28, 2010 at 4:30 am
Ive been in pain since fri night.been a week now.went to the doc.prescribed clauvdn,antibiotic.was back on sunday,gven stronger antibiotics,plus a safe painkler,startd vomtng,monday i was back.gven a stronger painkiler and somethng for the vomiting.its been hel no sleep at all.thursday went to my OB Who confirmd it was the fibroids,has gven buscopan whch doesnt help ad rest.been in bed 4 a whole week now,couldnt stand it last night just took indometacin and got 2 hours sleep.my baby hates the icepack,it just kicks where the pain is.26 weeks along ad dnt know how long ths wil last.bt prayng each nite ad day 4 the best.i cant hav anthr baby with these fibroids.they hav to get out.doc said we push as far as we kan,ad keep hydrated,bt cant seem to keep anythng down!any other way to keep hydratd ad let the fia get enough blood as doc said?anyone
September 1, 2010 at 5:59 pm
Glad to know I’m not alone here – I’m sure I’ll be referring back to earlier posts as I figure out how to deal with this. I’m 20 weeks today and found out yesterday we are having a girl! Yesterday afternoon started having intense cramping and as the evening progressed I ended up with contractions, as close as five minutes apart. From reading others posts, I assume they were just my uterus dealing with the pain. Today the contractions are gone – probably because I went to my midwife and I’ve been taking 30 mg codeine every 4 hours since 11 am. However the pain is more focused and still very intense.
Crossing fingers I don’t end up in the hospital but it sounds like maybe that’s not such a terrible thing in terms of getting over pain more quickly. Will do my best to drink tons of water and eat lots of veggies and fruits as per others’ advice.
Just curious – for those of you who still had large fibroids at the time of c-section – do they remove them during your surgery? No idea if I will need to go this route – I hope not – but one of my 6 is down fairly low in my uterus so it’s possible.
Best to everyone suffering through these damn things!
September 1, 2010 at 8:35 pm
They will not remove the fibroids during a c-section. They might do an emergency hystorectomy if your life was in danger, but that’s an extreme situation. By the end of pregnancy, the uterus has about 10X the blood as normal, and the chances of you having a hemorrhage are very high.
I had two pregnancies with multiple fibroids that affected my ability to deliver vaginally, and all but begged them to take out the largest fibroid during the c/s and was point-blank refused. Unfortunately, that means I am most likely going to have an open hystorectomy sometime in the next few years.
September 1, 2010 at 6:18 pm
You’ll definitely want to be seen, hospitalization isn’t exactly the answer- but getting to a doctor and finding the right path for you is best. I still have yet to see a specialist about mine, ASAP. Travel and planning is in the works as we speak.
I know that the codeine did little for my pain. I don’t think it was because the codeine wasn’t strong enough, but rather because it didn’t deal with the specific TYPE of pain I was having. They got me on Indomethacin, which is typically used for treatment of osteoarthritis- which is essentially inflamed tissue- which is exactly what was happening to me because of the fibroids.
Once they got me on that stuff it was total night and day. It took the course of the maximum 2 days you can be on it for the pain to subside, but unlike the codeine, it didn’t just buffer the most severe pain and leave me with the constant, nagging and miserable pain, it actually put an end to it eventually.
So, meet with your doctor and definitely let them hash out the best course for you.
As for the removal of fibroids at the time of c-section, I’m not a professional, but I think it’s rare that they do multiple surgeries at the time of delivery.
I know that they don’t do a fibroid removal during a pregnancy for fear of hemorrhaging… I think it would be safe to assume this still applies during a c-section. As common as c-sections have become, they still are a pretty extreme procedure and there’s a lot of healing the body needs to do after one is performed. Adding any other procedures to it is a pretty risky business. Also, fibroids thrive on the elevated hormone levels a pregnancy causes, so once a baby is delivered and hormones start to rebalance, fibroids also tend to subside. They don’t go away completely, but they aren’t being fed uncontrollably any more and surgery down the road is a more likely option.
But, like I said. See your doctor and let them construct a plan of action for you.