I don't really do text posts (and this is a long one, and maybe a little TMI), but figured that since my experience seemed so different than what I'd read about and prepared for that I would share since it's still very fresh in my mind. Reading the more detailed experiences here and in r/sterilization and out in the wilds of Google really helped with my peace of mind, so I hope this does the same for someone else! I read a lot of horror stories and "you'll have all this pain" and I feel like my operation was a comparative walk in the park - I psyched myself out stressing before it, but there really is a range of experiences. I'm absolutely open to PMs or comments with questions! I went into this never having had surgery before. The sterilization procedure I got was a laparoscopic, bilateral salpingectomy (both Fallopian tubes fully removed) - according to my doctor this is more recently the preferred method over just severing and clipping/cauterizing the tubes. I was in and out of the hospital in about 6 hours (it is generally out-patient surgery). I'm 27 and completely (and forever!) childless. As of today, I am one week post-op.

I got incredibly lucky finding a local doctor. A friend of mine had recently done the leg work and had just gotten the sterilization procedure herself and she was super open about everything with me. I called up the doctor's office like a week after talking to her and making sure everything checked out with my insurance. I got no lip over the phone - just said what I wanted (a consultation for sterilization) and that I was interested in seeing a specific doctor (who I've added to the list for CF friendly docs in Michigan :] ). The initial visit was set for about 2 weeks later when I could fit it around my work schedule and their availability - this was mid October of 2018.

She's super cool and open-minded and realistic. Never a bingo, just a final "you're sure?" She had okayed the sterilization off the bat "because that's what I wanted." I've had issues with overwhelming pain related to menstrual issues for most of my life, so my doc and I also discussed that. Due to this, I underwent more testing (an ultrasound, women's wellness, etc) at the next visit with her as there was a chance that the exact surgical procedure could change based on their findings. The extent of the testing meant that I had to find a time with scheduling when multiple facilities were available same-day that also worked with my schedule. If it weren't for that, my fix probably would have been even sooner than it was - my friend just had an initial consultation, a pre-op appointment, and the operation, I think. In the mean time, my doc puts me on a birth control pill to help the hormones from my Mirena IUD (I started having issues with pain after being on it about a year and a half, which is the typical cycle for me and the hormones to control it). She says my experiences have all the hallmarks of Endometriosis. My dad's family has a history of Endo and hysterectomies (Fallopian tubes, uterus, cervix) - while I had brought this up and was kinda hopeful for removing the whole lot of it, this was denied on the basis that insurance won't cover it off the bat and that opens the practice up to potential liability. The tests all come back looking great, however (which isn't all that great to hear when you're hoping for some cause for the ongoing pain that's easily explained and treated). Nope, my innards are textbook. But they opt to do some digging around while I'm in for surgery anyway to remove any potential growths missed by the ultrasound or be able to report on any irregularities. She wanted my procedure moved up, but scheduling with the hospital's surgical rotation ended up with it being set for the end of January as the next soonest (turns out that December is one of the busier months for surgery and harder to get in). About 4 months from my initial consultation to the date of the operation.

I had a pre-op appointment a week before the procedure to go over any last minute things about the surgical procedure and recovery and sign the paperwork for it. I had to have blood work and an EKG done within the week prior to the procedure. I'd been mailed a pre-op informational packet with all the info I needed. I'd been called a few times by nurses to verify medical history, register for the procedure at the hosting hospital, and schedule my post-op appointment. A few days before the procedure I was called by the OBGYN's office as my doctor had an emergency that would prevent her from being available for the operation. They had already worked with another doctor to move my operation to her instead, and I was offered a call from her if I had any concerns. She had gone over everything in my file with my original doctor/surgeon. They contacted my insurance to file any necessary changes. So it was a minor panic that smoothed out and I wasn't left feeling less confidant in anything.

For the procedure itself, I had been told and read to prep for sooo much. The sore throat from intubation (I bought fruit popsicles that were a life saver for this); the bloating, constipation, and pain from the gas they use in your belly and the general anesthesia, and the cramping and potential vaginal bleeding. The gas that is left often presses on a nerve below your diaphragm that has endings in your shoulders - so there's this phenomenon where you can end up with a lot of shoulder pain. I bought some GasX, a mild laxative, and made sure I had pads/liners before the procedure to have on hand in case I needed them.

Both my friend and doctor had mentioned that because the tubes help minimally with hormones that there is often an initial sense of "loss" after their removal until everything sorts itself out again. My friend got hit with this and it was mentally something she had to work through: she had really wanted the procedure and now her body was telling her that everything was wrong. She said this went away pretty quickly - she didn't just suddenly regret everything. So if someone tries to tell you otherwise, tell them to fuck off - it'll blow over as your body heals and adjusts. I never had that feeling - I attribute this to being on a cocktail of hormones, however, cuz my body can't freaking regulate itself (if I remember right, my friend wasn't on anything going into the op).

Other things I deemed important to have/do: easy-prep meals (you're not gonna feel like doing anything for at least a few days); all chores done (laundry, fresh bed, food stocked, bills paid); loose, comfy pants (definitely necessary); heating pad (relied on this the most and with Michigan temps the past week it's been amazing to have on hand); plenty of blankets and pillows to prop myself up/on (or prop other things on); a friend/family member to help take care of my critters for a couple days; entertainment. You'll also want snacks to take meds with. The ones that I was on were all of the "do not take on an empty stomach" variety and I ended up having to ask a friend to pick me up some junk food (pretzels) to take them with. I took out some cash to throw on the table in case I had to ask my sister or roommate to pick up anything for me.

I got everything sorted with work to have the day of the operation and the following week off. I had built up more than enough PTO and everyone was super supportive. If I needed more time off, I just had to ask. As it stands, I could have gone back as early as maybe 5-6 days following the op since I work an office job with no physical labor, but I chose to take the whole week as a R&R break.

My procedure was scheduled for 8am on a Friday and I was to be there 2 hours early for prep. I was instructed not to eat anything after midnight the night prior to the surgery and to only drink water (or basic Gatorade or Apple Juice) on the day of. I took out all of my piercings the night before. I used a special soap showering the night before and morning of the op. My sister drove me there, stayed with me, and drove me back home after. Checked in on time and found everything easily enough. I was taken back almost immediately to begin prep. It took them like 5 tries to draw blood and get the IV set up and that was honestly the most nerve-wrecking part cuz I'm a needle wimp and that shit hurts. The bed's comfy though and they put these heating/pulsing things on my legs to help circulation and a tube that blew warm air at me under the surgical gown. There were posters and warnings about my latex allergy on every side of the bed (and I vaguely remember them talking about latex protocol in the operation room before I went under - so they had that shit covered). I was given a cup of several pills to take about an hour before the op.

I watched cheesy infomercials for an hour while various nurses went in and out. I met my new surgeon and the anesthesiologist. Had to verify my procedure a bunch of times with each one. My sister and her boyfriend were in the know, but my parents do not know that I got fixed - I just told them about the Endo stuff and played off the whole thing as having growths removed (even if that wasn't the case). This would be something to keep in mind with whoever is chaperoning you - they had asked if I wanted my family in the pre-op room with me, however, so this is something that could be declined or maybe having them come in right before going off to op if you don't want your ride home knowing everything - I would not have been ready to spill everything to my mom. They had also asked if it was okay if my present family was given pictures and told about everything after the procedure (which I agreed to). My sister was given a buzzer and I gave her my important ID cards/insurance info (so they wouldn't have to try to locate and dig them out of my things while I was out of it if they were needed) so that they could wander out to the cafe, etc while I was in operation.

After I was given the initial sedative via IV (this kinda stung) everything immediately became a blur as I was being wheeled back. I remember being moved to a different table, the oxygen mask being put over my face, and then nothing. And then I was waking back up and everything was done and over. The whole thing had been about an hour. I had some issues with over-sensitivity from the overhead lights (and subsequently freaked out because I wasn't able to move or communicate what the issue was for several minutes). I was offered ice chips which helped right away with my throat and mouth, and once I was able to tell them that the issue was the lights, they put a towel over my eyes since they couldn't turn them off. I was given something like 45 minutes to fully come back to while the doc watched over me (I have no remembrance of that passage of time), and was then wheeled over to post-op. I mostly just felt exhaustion, very little to no pain.

My sister joined me and talked with the nurse that was there - she gave them the prescriptions to go pick up from their pharmacy (600MG Ibuprofen and Norco), the post-surgery docs and the pictures. I thought the pics were really neat - they're absolutely going on my wall of Miscellaneous Weird Stuff. We chilled there while I gained my bearings, took a little nap, and got everything in order - there was never any rush. I was given and dressed in special underwear with a pad (this turned out not to be needed since I had zero issues with bleeding/spotting after). I left the hospital at around noon. I was incredibly hungry almost right away after initially waking up. It hadn't had any affect on my appetite at all (I had been warned that it might and to start simple). Well, in my state of mind after seeing one I had insisted on a Starbuck's chocolate frappe (no coffee/caffeine, and my sister's boyfriend [bless him] got me the largest size) and one of their little, bland sandwiches (didn't wanna get too exciting). Didn't have any issues with nausea unless I was standing up and walking, so I was mostly fine since I did that very minimally at first. I was told to avoid eating anything super fatty for a few days.

Got settled in on my super comfy couch at home and I was mostly awake and "sober." At that point, my shoulder was killing me from the gas, though. Popped meds, watched TV, fell asleep. It became a pattern that I'd fall asleep within about a half hour-hour of taking the meds. I mostly relied on the Ibuprofen which always felt like worked faster for me than the Norco. I 95% took pain meds for my shoulder pain (maybe a 5 or 6/10 on a pain scale), the rest was a little twingey at most (never more than a 2, I'd say - it never became more than a dull ache). I have three tiny incisions - one on either side of the inside of my hip bones right above the crease of my thighs and one running vertically through the bottom of my belly button. They're about the width of my thumbnail and were simply covered in glue that's been slowly wearing off over the last week. The procedure I'd been told was clean and "almost completely bloodless." There weren't any complications. I think there are some dissolving stitches on the inside? I took pain meds as needed, which wasn't often (couple times a day). I took Norco before bed a couple days, and was completely off pain meds by the third day post-op. The GasX helped marginally with clearing out the gas (I looked like I had gained 20 lbs I was so bloated), getting up and occasionally moving I think helped more. With regards to the general surgical site/my stomach and girly bits, getting my IUD hurt far more and longer (which I'd also taken lesser pain meds for). This surgery overall has been less painful by far than my typical periods (when my hormone meds fail to stop them) - and it's shocked me that I'm able to even make that kind of comparison now.

For a few days I was definitely doing a kind of waddle anytime I walked and I had to be careful bending/twisting. Stairs are still a bit easygoing, but not difficult. I kept a water bottle next to me at all times and drank a tooon of water. Using the bathroom wasn't any issue, a bit tender through the next day post-op, but not painful. I didn't have any issues with constipation. I did have some trouble sleeping the first few days due to the shoulder pain waking me up and being generally uncomfortable sleeping on my back (I'm a stomach sleeper). It helped to prop myself up a bit and have blankets tucked/pillows on either side of me to help prevent myself from rolling in my sleep. I think it was day 4 post-op I was able to sleep on my side again, and day 6 when I was able to sleep on my stomach finally.

The nasty weather this week inadvertently made it easier to take care of my dog cuz he wanted to be outside about as much as I did, even when bundled for the cold and ice. Otherwise, I probably would have had to ask a friend or my roommate to walk him for me (which we'd discussed prior in the event it was needed). With the heating pad and that animal sense of "different," my critters were super snuggly (namely the cat) and helped me relax when home alone.

I'm a week post-op today and I feel great! It is such an incredible relief and I feel like I've lost a lot of the pressure off my shoulders. I had quit dating for awhile because even though I was open and would mention my childfree status early on, I kept running into guys who'd assume I'd change my mind or didn't take me seriously. My last relationship had ended due to the topic of kids. That's off the field now, it's very "take me as I am." I now have more freedom to experiment with my hormone drugs and figuring out what combos work best since I no longer have to worry about down time where they're ineffective at preventing pregnancy. My doctor has left the case of my pain management open to further work on. There's no more fear of human error. That pregnancy paranoia has quieted. I can toss out the supply of pregnancy tests strips I'd been using monthly before. Everything has been so simple that it almost feels unreal.

Four days after the op, I had gone back to the gym with a friend and just walked on a treadmill to get some exercise in and not fall off my routine. In a couple weeks, I'll start up my strength training again little by little (am currently not supposed to lift more than about 10 lbs for a couple weeks). I'm a bit bummed at losing progress, but I hope to be back at everything fully within another month or so (I obviously don't want to overdo anything as healing completely first is most important). My post-op appointment is next week where my doc will check me over and I'll wax on about all the super nice nurses, whose names I unfortunately don't remember. I've had a couple other health-related appointments since then and a recurring issue so far is really only having to repeatedly explain that yes, I really am sterilized, on a hormonal IUD, and on BC pills - the place had removed the others after putting in my file that I had a salpingectomy. I get a giggle out of the automatic pregnancy tests that everyone still does when I step in for an appointment.

I'm now just waiting on the statements from my insurance and the hospital to make sure everything lines up. My insurance should be covering nearly everything if not all of it. :)