Home Ovarian Cysts concern

[violet02]

I'm full of questions but my current Dr doesnt seem to have any good answers for me right now so I thought I'd see if anyone here could share their experiences with me in re: to cysts.

A bit of backstory:

I had an ovarian cyst when I was 15 that ruptured and caused a lot of internal bleeding. I almost died since my dad and I had no idea what was wrong with me for most of the day it happened. When I was taken to the hospital I lost a lot of blood and my Dr. at the time said they removed what was left of the ruptured cyst, my appendix and part of my right ovary. My dad and I were under the impression that I was down to one ovary. It’s been a long time but we’re pretty sure that was the way it was presented. Throughout the years I’d go to various OBGYNs let them know the history, get examined and be told yes, you have one ovary but that’s fine the other one will work over time. This includes my current Dr. who’s more like a Dr that does all the OBGYN examine type stuff but when it comes to the harder stuff I have to see another Dr.

Fast forward to now:

I got on the pill at age 17 and stayed on it or some form of birth control (except for one four month period years ago) until probably about 4 months ago. The intention was to get off of it to hopefully get pregnant this fall. A month ago I had horrible twisting doubled over pain then my period started later that day and it was extremely heavy. The pain seemed very familiar to me since I’d have a similar experience years ago (I guess your body doesn’t forget!). I went in a week later to see the doctor and she sent me in for an ultrasound, a couple of weeks later I got in to get the ultrasound and about a week ago the Dr. called to tell me I had ovarian cysts that were small so she believed they may have formed recently but wasn’t sure.

The kicker to this story is that I have one on each ovary and in order to do that the right one has to be working! So apparently I have two working ovaries but have yet to discuss the details of all of this until I get in to see the Dr. in September. I’m kind of in shock about it since I went this many years thinking I had only one ovary and had Dr.’s tell me the same. It’s crazy.

My next appt is mid-sept for another ultrasound and a meeting with a regular Dr. in the office to discuss if it’s grown or will go away etc. I know that cysts can form during ovulation and can be common so mine may be no big deal. I’m not stressing per se but I was due (per my fertility chart software) to have my period on the 18th or later and I got it last Friday. It was really heavy the first day too. It was spotting Friday, super heavy Saturday into Sunday then barely anything Monday. The thing that’s concerning me is having an early period and they seem to be getting shorter.

I was supposed to ovulate on the 7th but per the OPK I ovulated four days early on the 4th. The fertility software reset me and put my next period at the 18th (which was early to begin with) but I had it on the 14th. I just started having a bunch of twinges in my abdominal area tonight too. I’m wondering if that period was a regular period with an irregular schedule or if there’s something going on with the cysts. The Dr. raised no concern about it and the wait til Sept is to see if they are growing. My friend who’s husband is a Dr. said I should still be able to get pregnant if I want and I can certainly try. My current Dr. said the same but said she might wait if she were me just to see what’s going on. Since my period last month started on the 25th I’m concerned about this short cycle.
I assume since I got off birth control and started ovulating regularly this increased my chances at cyst but to have two seems strange, but I’ve been told its common and my Dr. said they often go away in 6-8 weeks. I’m really hoping at my age we’ll be fine having kids but with this cyst thing cropping back up again in my life I’m really concerned about what’s going to happen.

I guess I’m asking if the shortened cycle is cause for concern and the same for the cysts in re: to that. Sorry for the ramble but I don’t know anyone that has real experiences with this.

 

[somethingshiny]

I just wanted to link this really quick so you can start reading some of the other PSers back stories and see if anything clicks.

linky

 

[violet02]

Thanks for posting that. I spent some time reading up on it.

I took the quiz and I''m probably a 3.

After I got off the pill I was in the sun a lot on vacation. I''ve always probably had a bit of melasma on my face but not that noticeable. After being out in the sun in June I got MAJOR melasma, my forehead looks like it has big brown areas on it. My dermatologist has me applying some prescription cream for it. That''s probably the most noticeable thing, otherwise I don''t have any other symptoms really other than the period irregularity.

I was thinking that getting off the pill might have caused a hormone shift and the melasma, I was told that usually happens when you''re getting on the pill though.

 

[MichelleCarmen]

Hi,

How old are you?

My experience is fairly straight forward. I went on the pill in my teens and stayed on it until I was 26. Then I went off of BC with the intensions of becoming pregnant. . .did and had my first son and then after he was a year old, I became pregnant again.

A few years later, I began having pain in my lower right side and it was worse when DH and I were intimate. I was given an ultrasound and it was discovered I had a cyst about the size of a golf ball! They told me it would go away on its own (TMI - there would be stuff coming out - brown - so I'd know). We'll it did shrink and go away. Since then, I get them on and off and I mostly know because of the slight pain and the TMI stuff I just talked of would happen again. I don't have any symptoms of PCOS. Long time (years) after that golf ball cyst, I became preg. again but miscarried for an entirely different reason, so it seems the cycts didn't interfer with TTC. I probably had them growing from the point I went off the pill.

Good luck to you!

 

[violet02]

Date: 8/18/2009 11:35:56 AM
Author: MC
Hi,

How old are you?

My experience is fairly straight forward. I went on the pill in my teens and stayed on it until I was 26. Then I went off of BC with the intensions of becoming pregnant. . .did and had my first son and then after he was a year old, I became pregnant again.

A few years later, I began having pain in my lower right side and it was worse when DH and I were intimate. I was given an ultrasound and it was discovered I had a cyst about the size of a golf ball! They told me it would go away on its own (TMI - there would be stuff coming out - brown - so I''d know). We''ll it did shrink and go away. Since then, I get them on and off and I mostly know because of the slight pain and the TMI stuff I just talked of would happen again. I don''t have any symptoms of PCOS. Long time (years) after that golf ball cyst, I became preg. again but miscarried for an entirely different reason, so it seems the cycts didn''t interfer with TTC. I probably had them growing from the point I went off the pill.

Good luck to you!

I''m 38.

My only concern was the fact the last big cyst I had ruptured, so since i''m having these monitored it should be better. So far I''m assuming mine will go away. The twinging etc is the thing thats bugging me and the early period. Is it possible that''s part of the gonig away process? It seemed like a reg. period. Also cysts are supposed to form during ovulation but I had all of that pain the day I started my last period with a lot of heavy bleeding. Overly heavy bleeding. I had taken a pregnancy test that day and it was negative.

So you could get pregnant with the cyst correct?

I wonder if this last period is a fake out, no idea when the next one will be then.

 

[MichelleCarmen]

Yes, seems that I could become pregnant with cysts. With my last (the miscarriage), the odds were astronomical that I could even conceive. I had a Paraguard that was still in place and managed to become pregnant with that & the cysts. . .the odds are 1 in 1,000 when the iud hasn't dislodged! Seems like I always had a cyst around that time. Maybe the paraguard even made them worse. (eta - the paraguard - obviously - caused the miscarriage. Normally it prevents implantation, but somehow implanation occurred and the preg was 2-3 months along before it was unsustainable due to the iud)

From what I've experienced, the "going away" won't be like a standard TOTM. It's brown. You should be able see a difference.

Find a good dr. You're in WA. State, right? Have you gone down to the UW Medical Center?

 

[violet02]

Date: 8/18/2009 11:59:51 AM
Author: MC
Yes, seems that I could become pregnant with cysts. With my last (the miscarriage), the odds were astronomical that I could even conceive. I had a Paraguard that was still in place and managed to become pregnant with that & the cysts. . .the odds are 1 in 1,000 when the iud hasn''t dislodged! Seems like I always had a cyst around that time. Maybe the paraguard even made them worse. (eta - the paraguard - obviously - caused the miscarriage. Normally it prevents implantation, but somehow implanation occurred and the preg was 2-3 months along before it was unsustainable due to the iud)

From what I''ve experienced, the ''going away'' won''t be like a standard TOTM. It''s brown. You should be able see a difference.

Find a good dr. You''re in WA. State, right? Have you gone down to the UW Medical Center?

I''m in CA and I''m supposed to see a dr in september so I guess I wil ride it out until then. I guess my periods are normal or they seem to be, just short.

 

[MichelleCarmen]

Date: 8/18/2009 5:20:20 PM
Author: violet02

I''m in CA and I''m supposed to see a dr in september so I guess I wil ride it out until then. I guess my periods are normal or they seem to be, just short.

oops, sorry. I must have gotten mixed up. Best of luck to you!

 

[Beacon]

Hi Violet - I don''t have any good information to suppy but I wanted to offer support and wishes that you will be better soon, with no lasting ill effects. Hope it works out fine.

Mary

 

[ilovethiswebsite]

Cysts can be painful but most of the time are completely normal and don't interfere with getting pregnant. If you are pain often and have cysts that bleed I would also look in to endometriosis (which may cause pain, especially during your period, and when you have 'chocolate' cysts which are cysts that are full of blood). Anyway - if I were you I would try not to worry about it and see if you get pregnant. Both cysts and endometriosis can get much better once you are pregnant. If you are unable to get pregnant after a long time of trying, then you may want to consider a laporoscopy to remove the cysts or any blockage, which would likely improve fertility. The only reason I know this stuff is because I am considering a lap in the fall for similar reasons related to pelvic pain and cysts. I am not a Dr. though so you will want to discuss this subject with your OBGYN.

 

[violet02]

Thanks Mary and everyone else for your support and all the info you''ve provided so far.

I''m really hoping it isn''t a big deal but knowing i can feel twinges in my ovaries and that I have to do another ultra sound, particularly with my past history is scary. Luckily I caught it right away and double lucky I may actually have two working ovaries. When you think you only have one its much scarier for sure.

 

[swimmer]

Hi Violet,
Hmmm, not sure what to add, good that you are going in for an appt in sept. Just wanted to put it out there that in my situation, I lost most of one ovary and a quarter of the other to cancer in my 20s, but the ovaries just keep on kickin'' it is really the pcos that has made it difficult to conceive. My college roomie has only one quarter of one ovary due to endometriosis, but got pregnant with no interventions. These are just anecdotes, but wanted to reiterate that it can happen.

GEKO! So i saw your more recent post in that old thread (i posted there days before going off bcp! ah, the good old days on Yasmin!) and figured you might check in here...Metformin has been found to be beneficial in preventing miscarriage in women with PCOS, there have been several studies on it now. So look around at that info. Spiro...whatever it is is not compatible with pregnancy, but my RE (reproductive endocrinologist) has told me that I will be on Metformin for at least the first trimester (when i do get pregnant) in order to help prevent miscarriage. One study put pcos women at 70% chance of early miscarriage. That is pretty scary. Some other research, but mostly anecdotal is that women with pcos are more likely to get pregnant right after going off the pill as that is when we are more hormonally regular and before the cysts start to form a hard casing all over the ovary. Look into D-chiro-inositol, as some research has shown that it helps, it is spendy, but i totally shed some serious stuff the cycles I took it.

Good luck Violet, G, and others dealing with this.

 

[Colored Gemstone Nut]

Date: 8/18/2009 9:13:09 PM
Author: violet02
Thanks Mary and everyone else for your support and all the info you''ve provided so far.

I''m really hoping it isn''t a big deal but knowing i can feel twinges in my ovaries and that I have to do another ultra sound, particularly with my past history is scary. Luckily I caught it right away and double lucky I may actually have two working ovaries. When you think you only have one its much scarier for sure.

Violet:

I am a man, so please excuse me giving you my opinion...

Your history is different, but there are many things hat can be going on...

My wife has severe scare tissue and growth on one of her ovaries. The doctors informed us years ago she only had one functioning ovary.
Your symptoms of "twinges" sound familiar to some of my wifes symptoms and she had pains in her pelvic area for years. She was finally diagnosed with endometreosis and also has several fibroids which are actually pretty common among women (according to the doctor).

The ultrasound can also be used to examine blood flow in the uterus and ovaries in infertile patients and also during early pregnancy. There are different methods of measuring this uterine bloodflow.

All in all after 2 growths removed for possible cervical cancer, one functioning ovary, endometreosis, and fibroids Regina found out she was pregnant in November of 08 and just gave birth 7/30. So my point is through all your concerns and apprehensiveness, frusterations, and trying to process how all this information your being told will play a role in your pregnancy...Keep in mind a proactive approach is great, but things might happen when you least expect.

The human body is a wonderful thing and I have seen it overcome huge obstacles even with the odds so severely stacked...
With all the issues Regina had and the both of us being in our late 30''s the doctors told us we would never be able 2 conceive...

Keep your head up...

 

[violet02]

Date: 8/21/2009 4:53:24 AM
Author: Colored Gemstone Nut

Date: 8/18/2009 9:13:09 PM
Author: violet02
Thanks Mary and everyone else for your support and all the info you''ve provided so far.

I''m really hoping it isn''t a big deal but knowing i can feel twinges in my ovaries and that I have to do another ultra sound, particularly with my past history is scary. Luckily I caught it right away and double lucky I may actually have two working ovaries. When you think you only have one its much scarier for sure.

Violet:

I am a man, so please excuse me giving you my opinion...

Your history is different, but there are many things hat can be going on...

My wife has severe scare tissue and growth on one of her ovaries. The doctors informed us years ago she only had one functioning ovary.
Your symptoms of ''twinges'' sound familiar to some of my wifes symptoms and she had pains in her pelvic area for years. She was finally diagnosed with endometreosis and also has several fibroids which are actually pretty common among women (according to the doctor).

The ultrasound can also be used to examine blood flow in the uterus and ovaries in infertile patients and also during early pregnancy. There are different methods of measuring this uterine bloodflow.

All in all after 2 growths removed for possible cervical cancer, one functioning ovary, endometreosis, and fibroids Regina found out she was pregnant in November of 08 and just gave birth 7/30. So my point is through all your concerns and apprehensiveness, frusterations, and trying to process how all this information your being told will play a role in your pregnancy...Keep in mind a proactive approach is great, but things might happen when you least expect.

The human body is a wonderful thing and I have seen it overcome huge obstacles even with the odds so severely stacked...
With all the issues Regina had and the both of us being in our late 30''s the doctors told us we would never be able 2 conceive...

Keep your head up...

Thank you so much for sharing your story! You are so right, the human body really is an amazing thing. I''m encouraged by how things turned out for you. Big congrats on having a baby!