Need Your Input Please

I was 40 when I had my last child (February 2007) and a tubal 6 weeks later. The only side effects I felt were nausea from the anesthesia (I vomited that day and the doc gave me something for that and it went away - It most likely won't happen to you) and the cramps. The cramps were pretty painful, but since I knew it was coming, it was really no big deal.
Good Luck to You!

I really don't have advice on this because I didn't have the surgery. I asked my husband to have a vascetomy and he did. After 4 pregnancies, 1 miscarriage, 1 c-section and 2 v-bacs, plus breast feeding and stretch marks, I figured I had been through enough. The vascectomy was so much easier for him than the tubal would have been for me. Have you considered allowing him to do this? Just a thought, we took my hubby in, and it was quick and painless. I had to make him sit still all weekend but he went back to work on Monday, no complications, that was 6 years ago! It's worth considering.

I had my tubal done almost 11 years ago, with the birth of my last child. Mine was done at the same time as her birth because it was a C Section. I did not experience any side effects, outside of some minor pain in the tube area. As long as you follow your doctors orders and take it as easy as possible, you should be fine. Not having to worry about birth control though, is the best part!! :)
When you get your tubal done, though, if you are absolutely sure that you do not want any more children, tell your doctor that you want a cut and burn. That may even be standard procedure now, but Im not sure. If they are just cut and tied, your chances of getting pregnant afterwards is higher.
And as long as you are relatively healthy, it shouldn't take long before you are feeling like you did before the surgery. Now adays, they can go through your bellybutton and do it, so theres a shorter recovery time. If you have any more questions, Im sure your doctor can answer them for you! Good luck to you!

Have your husband get a vasectomy!! It is a much less invasive surgery, and it should be his way of contributing to keeping your family a family of 4. (5 if you count the dog :) )

The procedure is outpatient. You'll be groggy that day and sore for the next few days but trust me--it's nothing like the discomfort of pregnancy or giving birth.

The only side effect I've experienced has been worry-free sex. Best damn decision I ever made.

Hi J.,

I was about your age when I decided to have my tubal ligation done. We had our 2nd child (both boys) and "thought" our family was complete.

We were in the moving mode (job transfer), and I wanted to get it done before moving and settling down again. After having the procedure done (out patient), I was kind of in "la la land" until the anestesia wore off. Once it wore off, and I went home, I can only remember being sick to my stomache for a short period of time. The only advice given was no heavy lifting. I pretty much felt like my normal self in about one week.

Going back to my first paragraph, stating I thought our family was complete, God had other plans for our future!

I love both my boys with all my heart, but years later (after they were both raised), God placed a strong desire in my heart to have a daughter...leading my dh and I to adopt our sweet daughter from China!

I too...am so thankful to God to have the privilege to have this precious angel in my life. It certainly is a fun and crazy life J.!

The others are right: Vasectomy is the way to go. My husband definitely had some pain and bruising but others we talked to had much less of both than he did. He does not regret doing it and did not want me to have the invasive surgery a tubal ligation required. He had the surgery about 15 years ago. My father had it done probably 40 years ago (he just turned 82).

I had mine done about two years ago. Best thing ever! My husband didn't want me to get it done, he wanted to get a vasectomy instead. I told him I needed this done for me. (I had horrible dangerous pregnancies) He wasn't really for it but I convinced him. That being said, the worst part of the procedure for me was my daughter was about six weeks old, nursing every few hours, and i had to leave her. When I woke up from the drugs, my breasts hurt so bad because they were full of milk. the incision was in my belly button, so no visible scar. the pain meds worked well but i only needed them for about a day or whenever my kids hit my stomach, and I didn't have any problems with the gas escaping at all. I was warned by the dr. about that but it didn't seem to bother me.

If you want it done for you get it done. As far as the vasectomy goes, it can't hurt for him to be clipped too. Good luck!

Hi!
I had it done in October. My sister said it was like having the stomach flu when she had it (24 hours of bad tummy & over), so I thought it would be no big deal. That's not how I experienced it, and I recommend lining up at least three days of sitters! My tummy was in pain for days b/c of the gas they pumped in so they could move the cameras and lasers or whatever under my skin, and I could NOT sit up until the third day when it was reabsorbing more. I've not regretted it physically since about a week later, though-- the scar has healed pretty nicely and it's very, very nice not to stress about being with my husband!

J., I had a tubal ligation after having my third child. Although I'm probably not much help for you; because I had mine done right after my c-section. So needless to say I was in a lot of pain. I was way more sore after having my 2nd c-section compared to my 1st c-section. But I had a difficult delivery and then the tubal ligation.

I lived on my pain pills for two weeks. If I tried not to take on I felt like I was dieing in pain. However, I can't say it was from the tubal ligation or not. But if it was I was ok if I just kept up on my pain med's.

But after 2 weeks I was definately feeling fine again. And haven't had any problems since. But like I said I don't know if the added pain was the tubal ligation or the c-section itself. My kids were close together and then my son didn't want to come out so they were really tugging and pulling. Plus much to our surprise he was breech & had the cord wrapped around his neck.

I think that recovery time depends on the person. I took a week off work but I was a custodian for the school district, that was a little more physically straining than doing computer work where you sit at a desk. I went back to work after a week & did my normal routine. After the first day or two you don't even need the pain killers that the doctor prescribes.Good Luck, I'm glad that I had it done.

hey there J.!
I had mine done and the procedure only took what seemed like 10 minutes but I was loopy. They couldn't knock me out because i had my baby the day before and was breast feeding. They kept my epidural in and loaded me up with the good stuff :). Anyway, just a small incision right under my belly button. I'm not going to say that there wasn't any pain with recovery because for the first week there was. But I just kept telling myself that it was worth it not having to worry about getting pregnant anymore and it totally is! It's nice not having to go through the whole contraceptive thing everytime you want to get a little lovin. Right? The pressure is totally off and sex is soooo much better without that nagging little thought in the back of your mind that there may be a possibility of the pitter patter of little feet.
Good luck on your decision!
-K.

Hi! J.,
I am a 66 yr. old grandmother of 12! Yep! 4 children, 12 grandchildren and 1 great-grandson! Proud of them all! At age 29, I had a tubal! Now, that was a LONG TIME AGO!! Ha! Ha! It was done following the birth of my son, and back then, they treated post-delivery as some sort of illness! No more! It should be a much simpler procedure these days and recovery time should be a snap! Not once have we looked back and not once has there been a problem of any kind associated with the any aspect of the decision or what was major surgery in those days! If you are ready, I would say Go For IT! Good luck and just love and enjoy your children! No matter how many, they are each a spectacular blessing!

I had the essure procedure done 3 months ago. My dr. is one that puts you under completly so there was no going and doing something after wards. I went to my mom's and slept. She kept my two kids (5 year old daughter and 20 month old son) in the other room so I could rest. Then she kept my daughter over night because she thought that it would be easier for me the next day. My husband had to work so he was not home and wouldn't you know it my son had 4 dirty diapers that I had to change so I had to pick him up every time and put him on his changing table so that I did not have to bend over to get him changed. The next day was Sunday and I ended up in bed most of the day. I cramped really bad as well as I was bleeding. When I called my OB's after hours line I was told that this was normal. I did hear later that if you are allergic to Nickle not to have it done, well I question if that was part of my problem. I have to go next week for my 3 month check up. So if you want more details feel free to email me. My problems might have been that I did too much after wards but did not think so because I was told that I could resume my normal schedule the next day. So yes I did have some complications but did not last more than a few days.

Hi J.. I was about 28 when i had my tubal and it was pretty simple. I went into the the surgery center and was put to sleep which didnt seem long but afterwards I cramped for the rest of the day but after that I was just fine. Im sure everything will go well whichever you decide.

Good Morning J.. Both of our daughters in law's went through tubals with no problems what ever. They had the tiny incisions with band-aides. Procedure took less then 30 minutes at the womens clinic in Wichita on 29th st. Rested for about 2 days and were back to normal after with limited lifting is all. Both had a great experience with it.
Our firsts DIL had it done about 2 months after their 3rd was born, our second DIL had it done before her maturnity leave was up. In fact she had it on Friday and back to work on Monday.

Good Luck to you
K.

I also had my tubes tied when my daughter was about 8 weeks old. I am so happy to not have to worry about birth control. I think the hormones were really messing with my system.

I recommend the Essure procedure vs. the tubal ligation. I had the Essure procedure done almost 3 months ago and went back to work the next day. I actually went grocery shopping right after. I will have a 3 month follow up in a couple of weeks to make sure all went well before I can stop taking b.c. I think the web site is essure.com. Good luck in your decision.

I had mine on a Friday morning and was back of work on Monday. I work in an office, so doc said ok. It would be a couple of weeks for someone that did any kind of lifting or "manual labor".
The worst part for me was getting all the gas out, it felt like it was trying to get out through my shoulders, and that was gone within 10-12 hours.
Good luck to you!

I had a tubal ligation done back in 1985. Outpatient surgery all I had to do was take it easy no lifting etc. I had no side effect. Just sore. I am sure now days it is done differently from when I had mine done.
Good Luck
G. R.

Personally I think its crazy for women to have to go thru that after a pregnancy. I think the guys should get a Vasectomy if the family is complete. Us women go thru alot being pregnant for 9 months, then having to push that baby out. The guy should take on some responsiblity if they dont want anymore kids, shouldnt have to always be up to the women to do it all.

Hi J.,

I had a tubal ligation when my son was 6 weeks old. It went very well but I did over do it after the surgery. That was misserable. The gas is quite painful a week after its over also. But, over all, I believe it was a good thing. I had problems having my kids so we decided to stop. My husband wanted to have a vesectomy since I had given birth twice with alot of complications. I appreciated his willingness, but it was my problem. If I should die and he remarry, then I want his wife to be able to have a baby. Also, he would have been out of work for a while because his job is extremely physical. The two spots that they used have completely dissapeared. I would recommend the surgery just as long as you take it easy and NO HEAVY LIFTING or pushing big grocery carts for the next several weeks. I felt good so therefor I was acting like a regular mom...not a good idea;-)

Good Luck!
S.

I work in OB and would strongly encourage to talk to your husband to see if he will do the vasectomy instead. The procedure for him is less invasive with less risks and side effects. Many of our moms are more sore after the tubal than they are from the delivery. A tubal is a major surgery for women, but not all men are willing to step up and do the procedure. Good luck!

Hi J.,
I had my tubes tied when my daughter was 7 weeks old and I don't regret it one bit!!!!!It was a pretty easy procedure and very little recovery time for me. My dr. made a tiny incision in my belly button and went in for my tubal. I was in a twilight sleep and then afterwards I was in recovery. I think from start to finish the whole thing took about 2 hours. I was a little tired and slept most of the day but my mom and gramma took care of the kids for me until my husband came home. then after that I was on my own and had no problems otherwise. I felt fine the next day but I was careful not to lift or do anything i wasn't supposed to.
hope this helps.
Good Luck!!

I was going to have it done as well, until my doctor urged my husband to have his procedure instead. The recovery time is less and less chances of problems. One of the side effects with tubals is that you are more likely to have a tubal pregnancy than before. I didn't know that before. Sure am glad my doctor told me. Talk to your husband and let him know the risks associated with tubals and see where he stands on a procedure of his own. Good luck.

Put me in the vasectomy crowd. I agree... you've done your part, now it's his turn. But there's also the fact that if you have a procedure done, it's a hospital procedure and you will have more recovery. My husband had his vasectomy done 18 years ago. It was done in the doctor's office. He walked to the car, pain free afterward. His was done in the afternoon, and he went to work the next morning! He said it wasn't nearly as bad as he'd imagined. Good Luck!