THIS ENTRY CONTAINS POST-SURGERY PHOTOS

DAY 7—ONE WEEK POST OP
Managed to walk the mile to the train station this morning with no adverse effects. Popped an ibuprofen before just in case, but I probably didn't need it. I can sit perfectly upright today and bend at the waist. Walking is normal. Energy levels are rising but still not 100%. Bruising has reached peak color, purple in the center, blues, greens, yellows, and browns. Still rocking baggy, low-rise jeans. Went shopping and accidentally pulled a steri-strip off when undressing in a changing room. Lower incision. It's sealed perfectly, neat, straight, and flat. Looks like a paper cut. One centimeter long. I decided to remove the other lower steri-strip. It's also sealed but it's raised a bit. Walked to CVS and bought a pack of steri-strips (first aid supply aisle), trimmed them down, cleaned the skin, and re-covered my incisions just to be on the safe side. Tip: a cotton swab dipped in nail polish remover will remove sticky band-aid residue from skin. Only took one ibuprofen today, midday.

DAY 8
Walking, bending, moving fine. Swelling is nearly all gone. Bruise is huge and dark, starting at my navel and extending down about two inches below. Looks terrible but I feel fine. Incisions are itchy, seems like a good sign of healing. There's just the slightest hint of a dull ache in my lower abdominal area, randomly from time to time. Period ended last night. Totally normal. Went for an easy hour walk at lunch. Energy levels are around 95%. Felt good enough where I occasionally forgot that I'm recovering from surgery. Also, I didn't need the ibuprofen today.

DAY 9
Energy levels are 100% back to normal. Went to Mike's Friendsgiving backyard party for the day. Helped with all the cooking, prep, and clean-up. Didn't feel fatigued at all. Happy to report that my sex drive is fully intact and everything appears to be in perfect working order, much to my frustrations. I'm under a strict "no intercourse or pelvic activity" ban until my two-week post-op appointment. Also no exercising, swimming, hot baths, or tampons (in case you were wondering).

DAY 10
Went to a Patriots game with Mike. I am not a sports fan but I am a supportive partner to a sports-loving man, so sometimes you wind up spending your Sunday in a football arena out of love. Also slept on my side for the first time since the operation! Until now, side-sleeping had pulled on my internal navel stitches making them sting a bit and I had been sleeping strictly on my back to avoid that, but thankfully this was no longer an issue.

DAY 11-13
Pretty uneventful. Random twinge or flutter once in a rare while but nothing requiring ibuprofen or really note worthy. Swelling is completely gone now and I fit back into my skinny jeans, although I've been sticking to low-rise since the button on mid-rise jeans presses uncomfortably against the bruise below my navel. The bruise itself is finally starting to yellow and fade, but it's still a bit tender if pressed against.

DAY 14—TWO WEEK POST OP APPOINTMENT
At the Doc's office, everyone was super nice and asked how I was doing. Doc came in and removed the steri-strips from all three incisions. Everything looked really great! Like tiny, thin paper cuts. The one in my navel is hard to see, it's so small. After the redness fades it will be invisible. The two lower cuts are sealed up and healed over with new skin. No hard scabs, just shiny pink lines. Right one is still a tad raised but it IS flattening down. I answered questions about my recovery experience and the doc seemed really pleased. He showed me on a diagram how much tube he removed and that he sent a sample off for testing and everything came back normal. He said everything inside looked great, very healthy. I thanked him profusely and told him I was very pleased.

DAY 15
Since I now have the all-clear, I can resume all normal activities including running, jogging, biking, swimming, tampon use, hot baths, and sexual intercourse. With regards to the latter (TMI warning), slow and careful is key when resuming sex. For the most part everything was good. There were a couple of angles that felt uncomfortable (but never outright painful). Also, anything too hard or fast was a bit jarring to the insides (like the cramp from having your cervix banged into), so again, keeping things slow at first is best. But it all still works! Which is what you worry about since it's the key reason you seek a permanent, anxiety-free sex life in the first place.

Bilateral Salpingectomy Two Weeks Post Op

DAY 16
Woke up with mild acne all over my face. Haven't changed my diet or skincare routine at all and my pillowcases are clean, so I'm guessing this is the "coming off birth control" hormone fluctuations. Time to slather on the benzyol peroxide.

Day 17
Well hello Mittleschmerz, my old friend. I’m definitely back to ovulating because I'm getting ovulation cramps and twinges. Because of birth control pills, I have not ovulated in a long time. The first time feels a little crampy.

DAY 18
Started massaging Mederma into my incisions to help them fade and flatten out.

DAY 19
Cramping has now localized over on the right side, around my ovary. It's a dull persistent pain. Not sure if this is still ovulation pain or what. Will monitor and call the doc if it persists.

DAY 20
Still experiencing ovarian pain on the right side. I can feel it in my ovary, abdomen, through my pelvis, and lower back. Taking some ibuprofen for it. Google tells me it could be an ovarian cyst.

DAY 21
Yup, it's an ovarian cyst. Confirmed over the phone with my doc, a result of coming off birth control pills and ovulating for the first time in a while. Following "monitor and wait" instructions, as it should dissolve and reabsorb over the next week.

DAY 28
Cyst has thankfully dissolved and cleared up. Much relieved.

Day 31
Second menstrual cycle starts. All is normal. Right, raised incision has happily flattened with nightly Mederma application. All incisions are still pink and thick under the skin when pressed upon, but otherwise healing well.

DAY 34
Trump wins the election and my one surviving happy thought is that I'm so glad I had this done when I did. He'll start tearing down the ACA the minute he gets a toe inside the White House and Roe is now at a very real risk.

DAY 60
Wrapping up third menstrual cycle. Still normal. No ovarian cyst this time around. Navel scar is practically invisible. Two lower scars are fading very fast with the Mederma applications. Smooth, flat, only slightly pink. Should be completely colorless by summer time. Acne is subsiding and my skin is returning to normal hormone levels. Also worth noting, I've received no additional billing for my surgery. So total out of pocket costs for me: $300.

ONE YEAR POST SURGERY

Bilateral Salpingectomy: One Year Post Op

ONE YEAR POST OPERATION
Well, it's been an entire year since my bilateral salpingectomy. Over the months my scars have healed, flattened, smoothed out, and nearly disappeared. If you didn't know I'd had this done, you'd likely never notice them.

I have not experienced any additional side effects. No additional ovarian cysts. No hormonal changes. No early menopause. No unplanned pregnancies. No sexual dysfunction. And absolutely no regrets whatsoever. Having this done has been the best decision of my life. I'm so happy to be off hormonal birth control and my body feels good. I'm no longer plagued with worry over missed pills or late periods. I feel like I have total control over my reproductive health, as well as a part of my future, and it feels very, very liberating.

I also received a $50 check in the mail last week from my doctor's office, reimbursing me for the two office visits from last year. Awesome? That brings down my total out of pocket costs to $250.

FIVE YEARS LATER….

In the years since I’ve had my sterilization surgery, hundreds of people have reached out through this blog to say thanks for sharing this important story. When I wrote this, I had no idea it would reach so many people but I am ALWAYS glad to hear that it does and that it helps them on their own sterilization journey. So if you are reading this and considering sterilization (or already on your journey), THANK YOU for reading. I hope my diary is helpful to you too, that it illuminates a still fairly stigmatized procedure, and that it alleviates anxieties around surgery and permanent reproductive choices.

If you have ANY questions, concerns, worries, thoughts, please send me an email! I’d love to hear from you and I’m happy to chat or answer any question. No matter how specific or personal. I’m always happy to share or hold your hand virtually as you begin your own sterilization journey. I’ll support you through this, whether you have children and have finalized your family planning, or you are completely child free and want a permanent forever birth control option. I’m here for you!

All the best!