Dr. Sinervo and me just 4 days after my surgery. Excuse the pajamas and messy look, I was still recovering!

As my husband and I started to lose hope on searching for a doctor specializing in endometriosis excision, I came upon Nancy’s Nook. When someone is added to this group, they have to answer questions and agree to some rules before being added. One of those rules is that you cannot post on the group until you have researched and used the search feature with the files on the page. So, there I was, printing out all this information on endometriosis and the bowel and bladder, and I found it: the golden ticket- the patient to patient excision surgeon list. I printed it out and started highlighting surgeons based on different specifications. Since I live on the east coast, that was the first on my check list. Then I checked off whether or not the surgeon did one or more fellowships under an endometriosis specialist. Then I looked to see if the surgeon performed their own bowel work. I got the list down to five surgeons, and then I looked at all of the doctor rating sites (specifically for bad reviews), and there was one doctor in my now biased opinion who was above the rest: Dr. Kenny Sinervo at the Center for Endometriosis Care in Atlanta, GA.

I got right to work on getting all of my records sent to him for his free record review. I filled out the packet of papers that gets sent in with the record review. There were many questions about pain, location of pain, infertility, family medical history, and mental health. I answered everything to the best of my ability. I found it hard sometimes, because I remember one of the questions was “On a scale of 1-10 what do you rate your quality of life?” And for me, mostly, I’m usually an 8 or 9. However, when I get my period, there have been times that I would be hovering around a 2 or 3 from the pain and misery I was experiencing. I expressed all of this throughout the paperwork, and typed up my own personal narrative to explain my symptoms over the past decade.

Within weeks, I got a call from Dr. Sinervo. Not his office, not a receptionist, but the doctor and surgeon himself. He took close to 45 minutes to explain to me that he could take me on as a patient, what the excision surgery would entail, and some possible complications and alternate plans if certain things were found. This being the longest surgery I have undergone and me being the naturally anxious person I am, I had a list of questions written down for when the doctor called. He answered all of my questions with confidence, but also in a way that I could understand. Being that I had a bit of a complicated case involving my entire left side and two places on my bowel, I was worried about a resection and the possibility of coming out of surgery with any kind of ostomy bag (even if it was only temporary). Dr. Sinervo explained what would happen during surgery and the possibilities of complications being low. I actually cried getting off the phone with him and explaining to my husband everything we had just discussed. I was so relieved.

Over the next weeks and months, I was in touch with several people from the Center of Endometriosis Care (CEC). The surgical coordinator, the billing coordinator, and countless receptionists to ask questions. Every single person I came in contact with at the CEC was kind, compassionate, and so helpful. I got my surgery scheduled and before I knew it, my husband, my mother, and I were packing up our SUV with all clothing and medical necessities and making our 12 hour drive to Atlanta.

I was nervous, but I was also so excited. I was nervous because I knew I had needles and bowel prep coming up. I was nervous because this was the longest surgery I would have so far. I was nervous because even though Dr. Sinervo is one of the best in this country, there were still possible risks associated with my surgery. I was excited that I knew I was doing the right thing for my body and situation the first time (I read many people that went through so many failed laparoscopic ablation surgeries). I was excited that I would be out of pain and have so many answers to a decade worth of suffering. My brain was so full of these thoughts that I just slept most of the way to Atlanta.

I went to Dr. Sinervo’s office the day before surgery for my pre-op appointment. I talked to a few nurses and they checked my blood, blood pressure, heart rate, and other things pertaining to surgery. I then spoke to a billing coordinator so that we would know how everything was moving forward financially. Then, we finally met with Dr. Sinervo. He was well versed in my medical records that I had sent in and knew a lot about my case. He answered more questions that all three of us had, and put many worries at ease. After leaving his office, I was still very happy and excited, but my nervousness shifted onto the fact that it was also the same day I had to do bowel prep.

I went back to the hotel, completed my bowel prep, and got up the next day at 4:30 in the morning for my 7:00AM surgery at Northside Hospital. I got checked into the hospital, got my IV started, and started to get prepped for surgery. The Northside Hospital staff was also amazing, they let my mom come back and hold my hand before starting my IV (have an anxiety with needles, and I have been known to get lightheaded and pass out). Then, my mom went to the waiting room and sent my husband in to see me off to surgery. My husband came in and sat with me and tried to crack some jokes to help me to relax. While he was in there, Dr. Sinervo came in and held our hands and prayed, and this was the most peace I had felt since I arrived in Atlanta. I was then wheeled back to the OR, where I had to shift myself onto the operating table. After I did that, I saw the anesthesiologist, and as soon as he started putting something in my IV, Dr. Sinervo came and sat on my right side and squeezed my hand and looked at me as I fell asleep.

Stay tuned next week for my post surgery diagnoses and how I turned what was supposed to be a 5 night stay in the hospital to a 3 night stay in the hospital! Thanks for reading, feel free to like, share, and comment!