Ovarian Cysts - Lewisville,TX

Hi D.. I am unfortunate enough to be prone to cysts. A large number of women get small cysts everytime they cycle, but for some women those cysts do not dissolve and continue to grow. I was 21 when I had my first laproscopy for a cyst
that was a honeycomb cysts, since it was a cyst on top of a cysts, several of them and they resembled a honeycomb. The went in, ruptured it and then tested some of the fluid. Since then I have had two large cysts rupture, which is extrememly painful. One cyst was so large the weight of it had actually pulled my left ovary behind my uterus.

I have had to have one other surgery on a cyst, but my doctor watched it for 3 months. I had some minor pain now and then and during sex. Though as it grew the pain became constant and then the went in an ruptured it. My doctor had changed me to a low dose birth control pill, but when the cyst was found he switched my back to my higher does pill since they are suppose to help prevent the cysts. Wiht a sonogram they can tell if it is a cyst or something else. With a cyst they can see the fluid inside it.

As for the tipped uterus. I was diagnosed with a backwards tipped uterus before I had my first son, and I have 4 kids and so it doesn't seem to have affected anything.

If you can hang on until you insurance kicks in, I would recommend that. If you get diagnosed before it kicks in alot of health insurance will not cover what they consider a pre-existing condition. Try to take some Aleve. It really helped me.

2 moms found this helpful

Have you ever been tested for PCOS ?
Polycystic Ovary Syndrome

I went through 1 solid year of severe pain,
in and out of hsptl,surgery since they thought
I had endemetrosis but after they went in I didn't have it.
They thought the bleeding would stop but didn't.
Now of the birth control helped.

Until 1 Dr tested me for PCOS.
In my case I have High Insulin and it causes female bleeding
I now take medicine and it lowers the insulin and
the bleeding is gone and the female problems are too.
I don't have problems with cysts anymore as long as I stay on the medicine. You might check into this.

There is a test on the following website, if you have symptoms
or not.

Can include the following symptoms:

Irregular or absent menses
Numerous cysts on the ovaries in many, but not all, cases
High blood pressure
Acne
Elevated insulin levels, Insulin Resistance, or Diabetes
Infertility

If you like to learn more go to www.pcossupport.org

There is even a test you can take if you have enough of the symptoms it will tell you.
Excess hair on the face and body
Thinning of the scalp hair (alopecia)
Weight Problems or obesity that is centered around your mid section

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Hey there... I have one we're "watching" right now. Here's the extended reasoning on what I was told. Apparently when you're on b/c pills they keep your ovaries in "hover" mode which means that they don't produce eggs. Eggs are released from your ovaries basically by being in a cyst-like sac and when that sac erupts the egg goes through the fallopian tubes and on it's merry way. But when you're on the pill, it's supposed to keep that whole process from happening which is how being on the pill kind of prevents cysts from forming. However, the drug companies (that make b/c pills) when their patents run out they have to recreate and do a "new and improved" and many have gone to SUCH a low dose that it does't prevent cysts from forming -- one of the many perks from being on the pill. I'd been on the pill since I was 14 years old b/c my periods were SO completely irregular adn that was the ONLY way they would remain in any form of a consistent manner.

So my dr just prescribed me a new - higher dose - pill. I just finished my first month of it.

I was experiencing pain and had a cervical infection -- don't know if that caused the cyst or not...but he was unable to palpatate it ... so I had an OUTRAGEOUSLY expensive ultrasound and they discovered it was about 3.5 inches in diameter.... but on subsequent check ups it has reduced in size. So they can go away on their own and many women have them and never know because they go away before they are even aware. Mine, however, was causing me a great amount of pain and now has completely thrown my periods -- even being on the pill -- out of whack.

Here are some of the websites I'd saved from when I was first diagnosed with one (I freaked out big time -- felt like a walking time bomb)

http://www.4woman.gov/faq/ovarian_cysts.htm#2

http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/001504.htm

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ovarian_cyst

http://www.ovarian-cysts.com/html/symptoms.php3

http://www.webmd.com/hw/womens_conditions/hw181646.asp

2 moms found this helpful

Don't worry, but if you have more pain or bleeding go to the dr. I had an ovarian cyst and had to have my ovary removed but it was large and causing bleeding.

When I asked my doctor about it he said, the cysts are produced during the normal ovulation process. He said I only needed to worry when the cysts get to be large (bigger than a golf ball), rupture or take over an ovary like mine did.

He did say birth control pills would help the problem too. After I had my ovary removed I took birth control for about a year. I've been fine ever since.

Check out this website, it has a good explanation.
http://womenshealth.about.com/cs/ovariancysts/a/ovariancy...

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First: Not to scare you, but a cyst can be anything from completely benign to a serious problem. The new pills should work, but if you're desperate, you might see if a local Planned Parenthood could see you. They charge on a sliding scale. There was a short time when I was in college that my mom and I didn't have insurance and we both went to PP -- me for bc pills (which I had to take for cysts, otherwise I wouldn't have needed to go) and mom for her hormone replacement therapy.
Second: I've heard of people taking a supplement of Mexican Wild Yam for female problems. I believe you can find it from different manufacturers, but the one I'm familiar with is distributed by a company called Mannatech. Their wild yam product is called PLUS. I know a handful of people who have had great results for everything from endometriosis to menopause.

1 mom found this helpful

It is my understanding that ovarian cysts in general are eggs maturing in ovaries that have not broken through the membrane that is supposed to rupture to release the matured egg to "float" to the fallopian tube. They are a fairly common occurance.

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I've had a couple ovarian cysts and the cuases, from what I've been told, vary from woman to woman and cyst to cyst. Personally, I've never had any issues as long as I was on the pill. Re the tipped uterus thing. I've also been told that I had a tipped uterus. This does not have any effect on anything. It doesn't prevent pregnancy, increase cramps, etc. In fact, many women's uteruses are "tipped" to one degree or another. I think it's just something Dr's used to tell women. My last practitioner said she couldn't beleive Drs were still telling women that in this day and age.

You might consider getting a second opinion if your cysts continue.

1 mom found this helpful

I have also had ovarian cysts rupture and like you was in quite a bit of pain. I had never had anything like that happen before and when the first one occured my husband took me to the ER I was in so much pain. After two opinions and some ultrasounds it was determined that yes I did have ovarian cysts that ruptured and not to worry due to the size of them. If they had gotten any bigger, caused any more problems than my doc said she would do day surgery just to check everything out. Luckily we never got to that. I do remember that with each one I was in a lot of pain and also vomiting for a day or so. The pain would gradually subside over a weeks time until I was better. This happened a few times and each time it was a week or so before my period would start. I also remember that my doc did change my bc pill but it was a few years ago and I can't remember what I was on and what I changed to. You do need to get to the doctor to rule out any major problems though.

1 mom found this helpful

Hi D.!

I have had several Ovarian cysts. My first one (in 2001) ended up disolving on it's own, but my OB/GYN changed my birth control pills, and I didn't have one for several years. I've recently had several, and now that I am a nursing momma, they switched me to a different birth control pill that is safe for me to take while nursing. My doctor told me that the cysts feed off the hormomes, and they tend to follow the menstraul cycles, so this is why the birth control pills help - regulate the hormones so the cyst don't form.

I had heard of several different things that could be done naturally, but I can't do any of them until I'm done nursing. I had been talking with Peggy, the owner of the Healthfood store called "Abundant Life" in Lewisville.

My internal medicine doctor said that if my pain didn't clear up, then I might have intestinal issues, and some things did show up in my CT scan (which also showed my cyst.) But again, I can't really take much meds or do any natural treatments (cleanses, supplements, etc.) until I stop nursing.

So I haven't really persued much yet, as I plan to stop nursing when my daughter turns one next month. Then I was going to do an intestinal/abdominal/female organ cleanse from the Abundant Life store, as I've had several friends go talk to Peggy there, and Peggy really helped them out and they feel a lot better now.

I don't know if you are comfortable with the natural route, but if you aren't on insurance, then I would recommend contacting her.

Well, I actually had a Transvaginal Ultasound today due to major cramping. I have dealt with Ovarian cysts since I was about 20 (i'm 32 now). I never had to have them removed, but as I got older the cysts became worse and then of course I was given the icing on the cake and found out that I had endometriosis. In May 2005, I was told that my uterus was enlarged and that because of the severity of the endo I had to have a hysterectomy (still have the ovaries). Well now, for about the past month I have had severe cramping again. I thought maybe the endo was back, so I was sent for the ultasound yesterday. I was told today that I have Follicular cysts on me left ovary and either a hemorrhagic cyst or an endometrioma on the right ovary. Of course the way it was explained to me was that my left ovary is normal and my right ovary is bleeding....OF COURSE I FREAKED OUT. Well I went to an OB/GYN today and was given the following options:

1. Start on Birth Control Pills (to level the hormones and help with the pain)
2. Get some kind of shot that will put me in menapause, but I can only do it for a year.
3. Deal with the pain and in 6-8 wks have a repeat ultrsound to see if the cysts have vanished or grown (or even multiplied)
4. Have my ovaries removed, go into menapause way to early and hope like hell that I do not lose a ton of bone mass and break a hip in my 40's or 50's, plus take estrogen and hormones.

So I can understand where you are coming from and your frustration of not being able to find info that is helpful. All I can suggest is that if the doc that you see does not make you feel as if he/she are concerned or that it is no big deal, find a different doc for a second opinion. To me no matter how "normal" it is for women to develop ovarian cysts, your doctor still needs to take your concerns seriously.

I am an ultrasound tech so I deal with cysts and positions of the uterus all the time. The position of the uterus is not a big deal at all. In fact, I have even seen the position of a uterus change on the screen as I was doing the exam. Cysts are extremely common in women that are still having periods because of the hormones. Most of the time the will go away on their own, either by rupturing and the fluid spills out and is reabsorbed by the body or they bleed into themselves and are reabsorbed that way. Either way can sometimes be painful depending on the size of the cyst and the persons pain tolerance. Some women know exaclty when they get them and other times we find them and women have had no symptoms. Sometimes the cysts don't go away on their own and they have to be removed by surgery. But they have to get really big before most doctors do that. We don't want them to get too big because there is a possibility they can cause the ovary to twist and lose some of its blood supply. Most of the time they go away without even being discovered or we see them incidentally when we are looking at other problems. Some women just seem to produce more or larger ones that cause them more problems. Let me know if you have any other questions and I will be happy to answer them.

I had one burst a year ago too, i am actually still researching my self, even seen 3 doctors. it is confusing, cysts just happen, ever since mine bursted my uterus has been enlarged. is yours the same? i am also 28 and confused. my doctor put me on yaz, and this birth control actually controlls my pain.

Due to lack of insurance and being above the financial requirements for financial aid through Planned Parenthood, I did not have my annual check up for about 3 years. I finally got insurance and immediately made an appointment. I just had my appointment this week and found out I had cysts too!

Basically there were a few minor woman things going on for about a year - minor pain during sex, wierd cramps and odd periods. I mentioned this to the doctor and she said we would look into it further after the exam. When she did the "hand check" to feel for my ovaries and such, I had a really sharp pain and jumped. She said that was very odd and asked if I had time to do an ultrasound. Ofcourse, I said yes and waited my turn. All though the "internal ultrasound" is awkward and was very uncomfortable, I am so glad I did it. One of my ovaries had 7 or 8 small cysts and my other ovary was nearly covered by a huge one! I am sure she could see the look of concern in my eyes. She said not to worry. She explained that it happens in many women during ovulation and according to my last period I was ovulating now which was why this cyst was so large. She said there was probably a large one on the other ovary and it ruptured during my exam. In one part of the ultrasound there was fluid in my pelvic area that you could see which was from the rupture. I am SO relieved to see that this is so common!

So keep an eye on it and monitor your symptoms for future visits, but don't worry. It is probably normal. My doctor too gave me a prescription for the pill. I have had problems with the pill in the past killing my sex drive. So she gave me a prescription for Loestrin24Fe because she said it was high on the female hormone which would aid in the cyst problem. But it is low in the "male hormone" that is in many birth control pills which is what kills the sex drive. I haven't started these yet because I have to wait for my next period to start, but I am keeping my fingers crossed that they help. She also said because these pills are only 24 days of active therapy with only 4 days of inactive pills, it would lessen my cycle or make it non-existant! Yeah! :)

Good luck and hopefully this info helps! :)