"getting your tubes tied"

[snugglebug14]

my sil is planning on getting her "tubes tied" and I have a few questions about the process. So I know that they go in and in one of a number of ways obstruct the fallopian tubes so that an egg can not be released into them and therefore can not be fertilized. But...
-does an egg still get released and have no where to go? (if so, what happens to it?)
-Does it affect your hormonal cycles?
-Do you go through menopause at the time of the procedure? Do you go through it at the normal age?
-Other than complications form the procedure, what other long term effects (besides the obvious of sterilization) are there? Thanks so much.

[pamamidwife]

Originally Posted by snugglebug14

-does an egg still get released and have no where to go? (if so, what happens to it?)

Yes - it still gets released and gets reabsorbed by your body

-Does it affect your hormonal cycles?

No.

-Do you go through menopause at the time of the procedure? Do you go through it at the normal age?

No. one would only go through menopause if their ovaries were removed.

-Other than complications form the procedure, what other long term effects (besides the obvious of sterilization) are there?

There is always a risk if you undergo general anesthesia, a small risk of infection and some women say that they experience stronger pain with ovulation.

It's a misnomer, really, to say "tubes tied" - most tubes are cut and cauterized and/or clamped.

[scsigrl]

There is also a 7 in 1000 failure rate (doesn't sound bad unless you are one of the 7)

There is an increased risk of a tubal pregnancy.

[MCatLvrMom2A&X]

There have been studies that show woman who have had it done have major hormonal issues. Not sure why it happens but for some woman it really affects them badly. Not sure how many this happens to tho. You could do a search on tubal ligation and see what all you find.

[BetsyS]

There is something called "post tubal ligation syndrome". Google it, and you can get lots of information. It's somewhat controversial as to whether it really exists.

When I was a new midwife, I was in a new town, and I had several (at least 10 in the first 6 months) women come to me with the symptoms of the syndrome. These women were fairly ignored by most medical professionals, and I got the feeling that they were coming to me because I was new and a fresh face, to get another opinion. If I hadn't seen so many women in such a short time, I don't know if I'd put a lot of stock into the syndrome. But, in my experience, for some women, yes, it does cause problems.

For most women, probably not. But, for those women it does cause problems for, it can be one of those mysterious things that plagues you for years, and those women have to really fight to be heard.

[tlcdoula]

Originally Posted by MCatLvrMom2A&X

There have been studies that show woman who have had it done have major hormonal issues. Not sure why it happens but for some woman it really affects them badly. Not sure how many this happens to tho. You could do a search on tubal ligation and see what all you find.

I think this might have been what happened to my sister (not really sure since she is very hush hush about female issues). Anyhow, after she had her tubal done she started to have her period more than not having it. She would bleed probably three out of the four weeks and she cried so much. This went on for a few years, and truthfully I am not sure that it is resolved as she doesn't talk about it (I only hear bits and pieces through my mother and heard about it once when she broke down and cried to me about it - at the time I convinced her to see another doctor).