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Never Waste a Good Hysterectomy: Life Lessons From a Crisis
"I devoured this book. Truly, the work of an artist and a creator."
Dr Erika Mitchell MD
"Wow! I didn’t want to put this book down…. It’s like sipping a warm
tea, comforting and funny and relatable and raw. I LOVED IT!"
Katie Tripp
“I’m a very level-headed person,” Melanie Verwoerd told the gynaecological oncologist. “However, I feel like my dogs during a thunderstorm. I’m desperately trying to find somewhere to hide, but everywhere I go, it is still there.”
A week earlier, another gynaecologist had paused mid-sentence during a routine ultrasound examination. Something big was wrong.
Blood tests showed elevated tumour markers and scans revealed a huge ovarian tumour with at least a 70% chance of being cancerous. A few days later a radical hysterectomy was performed.
As the terror grew, the only way for her to make sense of what was happening was to write. This book is the brutally honest reflection of the year that followed the operation.
The physical recovery was painful, messy and took much longer than expected. However, even more surprising was the deeper, soul-searching questions that the procedure brought to the fore. The physical crisis triggered an intense journey of self-reflection and discovery.
It required courageous investigations of the darkest corners of her psyche and forced her to face many of the fears that had comfortably lived there for decades. It also threw a spotlight on the relationship she – and many women – have with their bodies, sex, money as well as the role of intergenerational trauma.
In the process, Melanie also had to come to terms with the rage, pain and grief of the hysterectomy specifically and many other losses in general, whilst investigating what she wanted to do with the second part of her life.
Although this book was triggered by a hysterectomy, it is not intended just for those who have had or are going to have a similar experience. It is also meant for every woman who comes to a crossroad and has to reassess her life.
Although it is brutally honest, it is also hope giving, and insists that women’s voices be heard.
Melanie Verwoerd is a former Member of the South African Parliament, former South African Ambassador to Ireland, and was the Executive Director of UNICEF Ireland. She is a published author, columnist and top-rated political analyst from Cape Town. Her bestselling memoir, When We Dance was published in 2012.
Dr Erika Mitchell MD
"Wow! I didn’t want to put this book down…. It’s like sipping a warm
tea, comforting and funny and relatable and raw. I LOVED IT!"
Katie Tripp
“I’m a very level-headed person,” Melanie Verwoerd told the gynaecological oncologist. “However, I feel like my dogs during a thunderstorm. I’m desperately trying to find somewhere to hide, but everywhere I go, it is still there.”
A week earlier, another gynaecologist had paused mid-sentence during a routine ultrasound examination. Something big was wrong.
Blood tests showed elevated tumour markers and scans revealed a huge ovarian tumour with at least a 70% chance of being cancerous. A few days later a radical hysterectomy was performed.
As the terror grew, the only way for her to make sense of what was happening was to write. This book is the brutally honest reflection of the year that followed the operation.
The physical recovery was painful, messy and took much longer than expected. However, even more surprising was the deeper, soul-searching questions that the procedure brought to the fore. The physical crisis triggered an intense journey of self-reflection and discovery.
It required courageous investigations of the darkest corners of her psyche and forced her to face many of the fears that had comfortably lived there for decades. It also threw a spotlight on the relationship she – and many women – have with their bodies, sex, money as well as the role of intergenerational trauma.
In the process, Melanie also had to come to terms with the rage, pain and grief of the hysterectomy specifically and many other losses in general, whilst investigating what she wanted to do with the second part of her life.
Although this book was triggered by a hysterectomy, it is not intended just for those who have had or are going to have a similar experience. It is also meant for every woman who comes to a crossroad and has to reassess her life.
Although it is brutally honest, it is also hope giving, and insists that women’s voices be heard.
Melanie Verwoerd is a former Member of the South African Parliament, former South African Ambassador to Ireland, and was the Executive Director of UNICEF Ireland. She is a published author, columnist and top-rated political analyst from Cape Town. Her bestselling memoir, When We Dance was published in 2012.
- GenresNonfiction
237 pages, Kindle Edition
Published March 4, 2023
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
July 29, 2023
Just what I needed!
I discovered this book a week before my hysterectomy. I was scared and uncertain. I dug in fully intending to finish it before my surgery.
Time got away and I finished it this AM, from my hospital bed, the morning after y hysterectomy.
Peace, comfort and reassurance are what this story brought me.
It took me 15 long years to come to acceptance that I needed a hysterectomy. I never wanted to give up my hopes of having children. I had to mentally struggled to come to terms.
This book reassured me & comforted me.
Thank you for your bravery & vulnerability.
I discovered this book a week before my hysterectomy. I was scared and uncertain. I dug in fully intending to finish it before my surgery.
Time got away and I finished it this AM, from my hospital bed, the morning after y hysterectomy.
Peace, comfort and reassurance are what this story brought me.
It took me 15 long years to come to acceptance that I needed a hysterectomy. I never wanted to give up my hopes of having children. I had to mentally struggled to come to terms.
This book reassured me & comforted me.
Thank you for your bravery & vulnerability.
March 29, 2025
"Grief is funny thing. It is something only those who have walked a similar road can fully understand. It also never leaves you completely."
November 3, 2024
This was exactly the book I needed to read as I faced my own hysterectomy and possible cancer diagnosis. In reading this I felt comfort knowing that I was not the only one having gone through this. But this book is about so much more than a hysterectomy. It's about letting go of other people's expectations for yourself. It's about finding yourself amidst your trials. It's about tuning into your body and finding what you actually want. It's about sharing our lived experiences with others. I'll admit that some of the writing was confusing and not great. But overall it was a 5 star read for me because of the value that it added to my life.
May 4, 2025
I was hoping for real stories from an average human. It was good at first but then just became a book on all the political work the author has done. I couldn’t relate anymore.
June 13, 2025
Wow..... any woman who has gone through this, please read. You are not alone♡
October 24, 2023
Raw honest funny and full of life lessons for me. A quick one day read - hours very well spent
March 9, 2026
thoughtful and deep
I enjoyed her take on hysterectomy - the emotional journey she had to take and how she dealt with it is beautiful.
I enjoyed her take on hysterectomy - the emotional journey she had to take and how she dealt with it is beautiful.
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews