SHG Results

I wish I were here to report good news, but unfortunately that is not the case. Before doing the actual procedure, Dr. Dunn did a baseline ultrasound to take a look at my lining. For a point of reference a normal, healthy lining should measure around 8-10mm. Mine measures right around 3mm. He told me right away that it was looking pretty thin.

Next he inserted the catheter and attempted to infuse my uterus with saline solution. I say "attempted" because my uterus didn't inflate the way it should. He was only able to use half of the solution, and even most of that didn't inflate my uterus and just ran back out onto the table. He could see a small portion near the cervix fill with water, but otherwise I was completely blocked. That fact, combined with my thin lining caused him to give me a diagnosis of "severe uterine adhesions".

Dr. Dunn has wonderful bedside manner. He explained what he was doing and seeing every step of the way. Jamie and I both were extremely impressed. When he finished the SHG, he had me get dressed and we met him in his office. I would love to say that there is a positive side to things, but right now I can't really find one. As I said, my condition is severe. The next step is surgery and it may require more than one procedure. There is no way to assess the true condition of things until he gets inside to take a better look. There will be an incision at the belly button and another somewhere around the pubic bone where he will insert cameras and other instruments to get a good view from above the uterus. He will also go in through the cervix. He will begin closest to the cervix and work his way back, attempting to break away and remove the scar tissue. Depending on the degree of scarring and the quality of what little lining remains, he may choose to stop at some point and go back in at a later date to continue working on it. In between surgeries I will be on estrogen (the dosage will depend on what he sees when he operates) to foster regrowth of the lining. If he were to remove too much all at once without quality lining in the surrounding areas, there is a high chance that the uterine walls would stick together and rescar. That is the reason that we may have several surgeries ahead of us to get it completely repaired. The doctor said that he's seen one case that required 4 operations - but the woman did end up having a baby.

He wasn't able to assess my tubes today, and he cannot guarantee that he would be able to see them during the first surgery either. There is a chance that the scarring extends into the tubes, and if this is the case, it would be very difficult to repair. That would leave us with no other option besides IVF to conceive if that is the case. I have to at least consider that it is a very real possibility with all my scarring.

I held myself together very well as I received the bad news, and I thought I was going to make it out of the office without tears...until we got up to leave. Dr. Dunn was so sincere and kind when he shook my hand. He told me that he knew this was not what I had hoped to hear, but not to lose hope. So, I started to cry. I *hate* crying in public. When I got out to the desk to check out, I couldn't find my stupid debit card. The staff was so very kind. They told us not to worry about paying. They said they could just bill the insurance and send me a separate billing for the copay. Then we talked about scheduling surgery. The nurse asked me if I wanted her to check his calendar for next week...I didn't even know what to say. I was just tongue-tied. I felt like I couldn't even digest all of this, much less make a rational decision regarding surgery. Jamie stepped in for me and I am so glad he did. They did some checking and said they could do the surgery next Thursday. We took the appointment. So I guess I am having surgery in less than one week. My pre-op appointment is on Monday afternoon.

Jamie and I have full faith in this doctor. We believe that he can help us. At the same time, I cannot help but feel incredibly discouraged. I was really hoping this would be a more minor issue. And I don't know what we are going to do if my tubes are scarred. I don't think we can afford IVF. I don't know what I would be willing to do at this point.

For now at least we know that he will go in at least once and see what can be done.