I am a mid-40s, cisgender, sapiosexual, heteroflexible woman who loves language, music, cats, bright colors, and artsy/crafty things. I geek out pretty hard about stuff like yarn, medieval songwriting, and language typology. I am curious about damn near everything (except pro sports, sorry). I’m Dominant on the BDSM spectrum and I’ve dabbled in polyamory. (That last bit is mentioned because at some point a post might make you wonder a bit! More of a disclaimer in case those sorts of things might bother you.)
In February 2022, I had a total hysterectomy, plus salpingectomy and sentinel lymphadenectomy. That means they took my uterus (including the cervix and the very top bit of my vaginal canal), Fallopian tubes, and the lymph nodes connected to that system. Plus some surrounding tissues, I think. Ligaments were cut, fascia was separated from the excised tissues, veins and arteries were cut and cauterized, and of course, organs were removed. That is a lot of trauma to recover from, and even though I have been repeatedly told that “most women are fine” regarding sexual health after the procedure, that is way too vague for me, and way too simplistic (and also, that is not inclusive language, is it??). Also, “most” does not mean “all,” and I have no idea which camp I’ll fall into in the end.
It is my hope that sharing my whole recovery journey (and, hopefully, those of others) will start a valuable conversation about sexual health, as it is affected by medical treatments administered for myriad reasons. I wanted to find a place like this when I was getting ready for my hysterectomy and didn’t find it (if you have found a site I’ve missed, please let me know), so I started my own. I think writing about my experiences will help with the mental and emotional aspects of my recovery, and who knows, maybe I can help someone else not feel so alone.