Hysterectomy is the surgical removal of a woman’s uterus (womb).
Reasons for having a hysterectomy include: tumours (cancerous or non-cancerous), excessively heavy periods or long term pelvic pain.
A hysterectomy is a major operation and full recovery can take up to 8 weeks, depending on the type of procedure which may be keyhole surgery, vaginal hysterectomy or abdominal hysterectomy (where the womb is removed via a cut in the lower abdomen).
Following a hysterectomy it is important for patients to rest as much as possible and time needs to be allowed for the abdominal tissue to heal (which may take a little longer with abdominal hysterectomy).
There can also be emotional effects following a hysterectomy, including a sense of loss or sadness and even depression.
The link below is to an extract of a study aimed at finding the effects of reflexology on pain and anxiety levels in patients after abdominal hysterectomy.
Please follow the link to find out more:
Öztürk Ruşen; Sevil Ümran; Sargin Asuman; Yücebilgin M. Sait
Complement Therapies in Medicine February 2018 pages 107-112 volume 36
Reference for this blog:
NHS UK (Oct 2022) Hysterectomy. Available at: https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/hysterectomy/ (Accessed 24 April 2025)