There are a ton of things the doctors "glaze over" or simply don't tell you when you find out that your uterus doesn't work for one reason or another.
The biggest one that jumps out at me is the Emotional or Hormonal Menstruation. This is where, due to hormonal changes in your body, you experience all the mental and emotional effects of menstruation.
I lost my uterus about 6 years ago to cancer. Both my uterus and cervix were removed. They left my ovaries so that I wouldn't experience premature menopause. As a result, I still experience the mental and emotional side of menstruation. This is particularly painful, as it is a reminder of what I have lost. I will still experience PMS symptoms, I will still experience cravings. I still get moody.
For a few years I didn't say anything about it. I didn't tell a soul. I thought, " Oh! It's all in my head." (You know, like all other "womens problems.") Finally one day, I was in a super bad mood while I was at the doctor's office. He asked me what was wrong, and I told him. He asked if it was around the time of the month I used to menstruate. I thought about it, sure enough, it was. He then went on to explain about how I still go through the hormonal ups and downs and even cramping in the muscles that used to be around my uterus. "It's pretty common. Not all women experience it, but many do." I asked why no one told me this and he just shrugged. I have never gotten an answer.
If you get PMS and have not uterus, you are not alone. Talk to your doctor about it.
I found this resource while I was writing this post and thought it would be useful for people to know: http://www.hersfoundation.com/
Never feel like you must suffer in silence. Talk to someone.
Jennica Duncan.
Uterine Bereavement Support and Education on Facebook
That's the same as me not getting told that many women who have a tubal ligation subsequently have cramps that are many times worse than prior to the surgery. But when I asked my doctor why he didn't tell me he said "I was afraid that you wouldn't get it done." He decided for me that decades of crippling pain was less important than risking another baby.
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