Personal Stories - Page 2

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Becky Roche - My Experience of Adrenalectomy

I have been asked to tell you about my Adrenalectomy or the way I put it having my adrenal glands out.

Before I start about that a bit of the background. I have spent a long time trying to get my hormone leaves and all other leaves in my body right for a long time about 2 or 3 years. But it did not work at all we tried everything taking the pills in different levels up and down with no success it got to a point that I did not know what to do. I was thinking for killing myself and told the doctor on my next appointment and he could understand why I felt like this.

I told him all about this and he said that the hormone lives where not going right and he had try all he could he said that we could keep going on with the steroids, he all so explained that I had a option if I wanted to go down that root. He told me about the Adrenalectomy where they go in and remove both adrenal glands if they can with then would bring down the hormone levels down and fewer steroids.

After that I went home with my mum and we spoke about it I told my dad about and their answer was the same it’s up to you. I sat and thought about how it was for me but the only thing I was concerned about was the risks I new that only a few people had, had this done.

I looked around but could not find much information about the only thing I could find was about Addison’s Disease. So at that point I stopped looking. And spoke to one of my friends and she had the same thing to say it is up to you. That was it, I decided I am going to have this done.

After about tree months of speaking to the doctor I got an appointment to see the surgeon, he was extremely nice, he told me all about the operation. He told me the risks and the only thing that I did not like the idea about was them cutting me open but he did tell me that it was going to be done by key-hole surgery so that was ok.

The time came up and I was in hospital I went in the day before I was put on a ward. The surgeon came to see me, he told me that the surgery would be done the next morning. I was the first on his list and I would be going in at about 8.30am. That’s what happened I went in at 8.30am and I came out at 6.45 that night they told me that I had very big Adrenal glands and that’s way it took so long. I went in on the Wednesday and I came out on the next Monday.

I have now been home for 4 months and I am doing really well. When I went in I was 12 stone and today I am just under 10 stone my facial hair is going slowly and all over I am filling better. I still have to take the steroid pills and will always have to but I am doing well.

So if you feel you want to do this I would do it.

If you want to talk to me about it you can email me via the Webmaster at AHN who will forward your emails to me. Hope this helps Becky.

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