Dr. Katie C Lee, MD

For reasons beyond my comprehension Dr. Lee convinced me that I could return to work three days after a total laparoscopic hysterectomy, and she was insistent that I go home the morning of my surgery instead of staying in the hospital a few days to recover (as I later learned is absolutely the norm). All of this despite her being made aware that I lived alone, have no family, live in an upstairs apartment, and worked a highly labor-intensive job. Coworkers were surprised that I wouldn't need weeks off of work. I myself was surprised, given everything I was reading online about recovery. But Dr. Lee insisted the procedure had come a long way and I would be capable of caring for myself, driving, and lifting at work in under 5 days. The morning of my surgery, in prep, nurses at the hospital told me I'd be staying 3-4 days after my procedure. Surprised, I told them Dr. Lee said I wouldn't be staying overnight even one day. The nurses said there was no way I'd be going home that same… morning. They confronted Dr. Lee about this when she arrived at my bedside. An actual shouting match ensued as the hospital nurses stressed that hospital policy dictated every hysterectomy patient needed to stay 3-4 days for observation. Dr. Lee angrily argued that it wasn't necessary. The nurses told her the hospital wouldn't change their directive for her opinion. In the end, the hospital did indeed insist I stay longer than Dr. Lee wanted for my recovery. They kept me two nights and days. During this time, I was in complete agony. There's absolutely no way I could've gone to work by the 3rd or 4th day- and I was informed by nurses that I shouldn't even attempt such a thing (no one should). Once home, a concerned friend convinced me not to drag myself to work or to even drive, given what they'd read online. I didn't WANT to go back to work so soon, and I felt like I'd actually die doing so because the pain was so incredible, but I didn't want to be fired for needing even more time off of work. This friend finally convinced me that something was very wrong with the information Dr. Lee had given me. They convinced me to even give up my job, if necessary, to take time to fully heal from such a major surgery. Looking back I feel like an absolute moron for trusting Dr. Lee on all of this. I called my my primary care physician and saw her about a week after my surgery. My PCP was utterly bewildered at Dr. Lee's behavior. She told me not to work for at LEAST SIX WEEKS. She explained that's the typical recovery time, and that it is vital a patient rest and heal properly after a hysterectomy. She told me not to lift so much as a jug of milk, not to drive, and not to vacuum or use stairs during this time. She wrote a note for my employer explaining that I required a month and a half away from the job. Now, if all of this weren't enough, the worst part is that Dr. Lee refused to perform the surgery if I didn't consent to her removing my cervix, too. I told her I wanted to keep my cervix. I sent her links to medical studies outlining the risks of removing a woman's cervix. Most importantly, that a bundle of nerves very near to the cervix could be severed during surgery, which would impact sexual pleasure. I mentioned my concern that cervical orgasm would no longer be possible. She told me there's no such thing. I had to choose between continuing to live with excruciating monthly menstrual pain from Adenomyosis, or letting her remove my cervix and uterus. In the end, I chose the surgery; because 20 years of crippling 28-day cycles of agonizing pain is more than anyone should ever have to suffer. Wouldn't you know... I now have a complete loss of sex drive and almost zero feeling down there. It's almost as if those studies citing the experience of hundreds of other butchered women weren't baseless garbage.