Reoccuring one-sided pain on healthy tube side

Preparing For Your Next Pregnancy
1

Hi all,

I have recovered from an emergency surgery removing a ruptured fallopian tube and the pregnancy on my left side in October last year.

After about 2-3 weeks since surgery I started having sensations on my right lower abdominal side that really cause me a lot of anxiety. It initially was present quite frequently and for longer times and over the weeks has lessened in frequency. It seems to appear a bit over a week before I have my period now ( I am on the combined pill though cause my partner thinks we are very fertile- I dont think so anymore but thats a different can of fish).

It starts as a dull, nearly pulsing sensation in my right lower abdominal side and then kind of radiates over the hours, sometimes I start feeling it in my right pelvic floor muscles, sometimes I feel a sharp sensation when pressing my bowels when constipated, only shortly and when I breathe and relax for a moment the sharpness is gone. Almost all of the time I begin ti feel it down my leg, on the inside of my right knee and into my right bigger toe, where I have a bunion anyway. Its not super intense but its constant and I am very aware of it of course.

As you may guess I start being terribly anxious about this being another ectopic pregnancy or even some scarring around my right"healthy" tube. I have one child 18mth and did not know Inwas pregnant last time until I fainted and split my head when the pain got too strong in the middle od the night. Everyone I went to see because i#of the intense painful cramps at the time did not have an idea what it could be or that it could be so serious.

The sensation I am having on my right side are not as intense nor are they shortlived as when I had the ectopic pregnancy. I have done a lot of pregnancy test every time I get anxious to rule out and not to be caught of guard,

I also had two ultrasounds since- the last one 5-6 weeks ago as my doctor wanted to make sure nothing is wrong down there. But again no explanation for this and everytime the sensation comes back and stays for a few days I get so worried that something bad is being ignored again. I really want to try to get pregnant again int eh next weeks, we have just been waiting for all other things in life to be sorted such as jobs and having a house.

What I am looking for and womdering is whether this is something that other women have expereienced after a keyhole surgery and removal of a tube and pregnancy?

Is it common for the other side to feel like this? What could be going on when this dull oulse/pulling feeling starts radiating down my leg?

I wondered if it is ovulation pain, my posture, my shoes, my foot on the gas pedal of the car, some reminants if ligaments healing from the surgery? Maybe my other tube scarring up??

I just really hope the other tube and ovary are staying healthy as apparently it looked like on the ultrasounds ( they dont seem to be able to see much about the tube though, they always seem to focus on the ovaries and check whether they are mobile). but everytime the sensation reoccurs I start doubting.

Thanks so much if you have any comments or advice for me

2

Hi AnkeR,

I am so sorry to hear about your ectopic pregnancy and very sorry that you are having to go through this worrying time. I’m not medically qualified so cannot comment on your specific situation, but I will do my best to help.

Many women experience discomfort after experiencing ectopic pregnancy and it can be a scary time. The pain could be for a number of reasons. It could be due to adhesions or scar tissue that form as part of your recovery. It could be as a result of ovulation pains (many women feel this when they hadn’t before including myself). It may also be heightened awareness after everything you have endured.

It’s very normal to have questions and worries about what comes next. To be honest, I still do. After suffering ectopic pregnancies, I sought to investigate every possibility of their cause and the sensations I had after. Please know, there was nothing you did to cause ectopic pregnancy and there was nothing that could have been done to prevent it.

Experiencing ectopic pregnancies has changed the way I view pregnancy and I can’t undo my experience. I do know that with time that some of the worries fade, and that there is hope in the statistics that getting pregnant is possible. Most importantly take these next steps in your own time. What may seem like ages of waiting, may only be months in the grand scheme, but it could afford you some extra recovery time and space.

These boards are filled with people who, unfortunately, are bonded by similar experiences of ectopic pregnancy and loss. Please know that we are all here for you as you go through the next stages. You don’t have to have all the answers on your own.

With good wishes,

Michele

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Further information is available at http://www.ectopic.org.uk

Email us at ept@ectopic.org.uk.

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Detailed medical information can be found on our website. Please remember online medical information is NO SUBSTITUTE for expert medical advice from your own health care team.

3

Hi there,

I had my ectopic about 4 weeks ago and I am feeling the same exact symptoms. Did you have any updates on what it may be? I’m hoping to have it checked out this week as well

4

Hi, I am 3 weeks post salpingectomy (left fallopian tube) and I’m experiencing the same symptom as yours. I’m having pulsating pain in my right “healthy” tube sometimes if I’m exerting. I also feel dizzy and short of breath when I’m doing household chores. I don’t know the reason for this but I think I’m gonna call my GP if symptoms persist. Off the top of my head I’ll say our body is still adjusting. I’ll be back to work in 2 days time but I feel my body is not ready yet. I’m a nurse so I’ll be in the front lines. Fingers crossed all will be fine for us. Xx

5

Hey I had an ectopic in jan with removal of my left tube , I keep having this ! it’s like pulling on my healthy tube side when I bend down or do certain movements ! I worry so much I have to do a test all the time to make sure it’s not happening again! And wonder why it would hurt on the side which is supposed to be ok! Hopefully it’s just where it’s healing in the inside ! My docter gave me another ultrasound to check if there was anything missed which they said was all clear so I think maybe it’s just our minds driving us to worry from the past experiences xxx

6

I am only one week post op and while I am healing I am noticing that my residual pain is worse on my healthy tube side. Its also slightly more inflamed. The side my tube was removed from doesn’t hurt at all. My incision is off-centered to my healthy tube side, so that combined with the pain makes me have this terrible fear that they took the wrong one or damaged my healthy side in the process of the surgery.

7

I had eptopic 5 years ago and last week I ended up in the hospital because I have abdominal pain ,was tested positive for pregnancy but went for scan and couldn’t locate anything (pregnancy of unknown

Location )afraid I might have another eptopic pregnancy, or miscarriage and ended up having another surgery.

My hope is all gone , feels like I’m not prepared to go through this again.