Hi, Laurie and welcome to the board. I had my ablation done in hospital October 27 2008 and it was the best thing I ever did for myself. Like you, I had heavy periods with large clots - I was soaking through a super tampon and overnight pad in 45 minutes, and for one weekend every month I was afraid to leave the house because of the gushing and clots the size of eggs. Now my periods last roughly six days - two days of spotting, two days of light bleeding and two more days of spotting.

Now to address the cramps. Bear in mind that I have a very low tolerance for pain. I had percocet after my procedure which I took within half an hour of waking up in recovery. They gave me a scrip for Naproxen and something else (I can't remember) which I took for a couple of days. I ended up taking three days off from my office job and the last two days I put in about three quarters of a normal day. I woke up fine from the sedation. I remember going into the OR and having to shift onto the operating table, having them strap down my arms and then that was it until I woke up.

I had a total of about five to six weeks of discharge after the ablation (including my first post ablation period or PAP). Be prepared that you may have that much, you may have much less. I continued to use up my stock of overnight pads to deal with the discharge, which was usually just mucousy thick yucky stuff with a bit of pink mixed in. Sometimes I would get gushes of clear fluid, which I thought must be similar to when a woman's water breaks before childbirth.

I am glad that they told you you will feel cramping - many doctors make this sound like having your hair done. Some doctors will tell you you can go back to work the next day - don't listen to them. On average, it seems to take a couple of days to feel more like yourself. You may find yourself tiring quickly, so you should make sure you are getting enough rest and drink lots of fluids to rehydrate yourself.

Good luck with your procedure, and do come back to let us know how it goes.

Jeri, Age 47
Ablation Oct 27, 2008