Laparoscopy, hysteroscopy and dye test

Well I am one week on from my 'lap'. I wasn't too nervous going in but the fact I only got my period two days before concerned me as I had read online that they won't do the dye test if you're menstruating. Luckily it didn't seem to be a problem. I woke up groggy from the surgery expecting to go home that same day but the nurses let me know that I would have to stay in overnight. I was wheeled into the ward and over the course of the afternoon was told that the doctor had found endometriosis in a number of locations- particularly around my bladder. Due to the fact that they had to cut away the endometriosis quite deeply in this area they also put dye into my bladder to ensure they had not perforated the bladder wall. I was told that a catheter needed to be in for 24 hours which is why I had to stay overnight. The pain relief was effective and I was mostly uncomfortable afterwards with the catheter in and some sharp shoulder pain from the gas they used to inflate my abdomen during the laparoscopy. My husband and sister visited in the evening and I felt much better after something to eat. I got very little sleep during the night as I was lucky enough to share the room with three old men. All of them appeared to have hearing problems as the nurse needed to shout instructions every time she came in to check their obs during the night. I propped myself either side with pillows to maintain a level of semi-comfort but the short length of the catheter and the drip in my arm severely restricted my movement. Morning eventually arrived and I asked any nurse that came in whether I would be going home soon. No-one seemed to be overly fussed with speeding up my discharge and attended to the needs of the hearing-impaired men around me who had more pressing needs. My surgeon visited and let me know that I had 'moderate' amounts of endometriosis on the left side of my abdomen as well as in the Pouch of Douglas and obviously on my bladder. He made a follow up visit with my fertility specialist (my surgeon was different than my fertility specialist) for the following week and approved my discharge. My husband arrived around 11am and I managed to get my incision sites cleaned and re-dressed, my catheter out (hallelujah!) and the needle in my arm removed by different nurses who took pity on my obvious need to get home. I had to make sure I had no blood in my urine so had to use my bladder twice before the let me go. I moved very slowly initially and was surprised at how weak and tender I felt. Finally, I was discharged and my husband drove me home- about an hour away. I slept on a mattress in the lounge room for the first few days afterwards to ensure I could put pillows all around me. I tried to move around as much as possible and was able to walk around quite well after 3 days. The shoulder pain was probably worse than the tummy pain-especially if I walked around quite a bit or got cold- although I didn't need any pain killers after I left the hospital. I attended my follow up visit five days after my surgery and felt about 80% back to normal. I obviously couldn't move quickly and needed to be careful of the incision sites but they healed really quickly. The nurse at the reproductive medicine clinic said it probably helped that I was fit, healthy and relatively young. I was told that my tubes had been patent (open) and the biopsy they took from my uterus wall was normal. My fertility specialist said the removal of the endometriosis would likely have a positive impact on my fertility and said to keep trying for another three months and see what happens. So, I have an appointment at the end of January 2013 to see him again unless I fall pregnant in the meantime. Fingers crossed :)

Still a bit swollen and sore. About 1 week after lap.