Facing Endometriosis is a Fight of a Lifetime

When I was 13 years old I started having severe menstrual cramping. Being so young and having so much pain my mother took me to the emergency room. The doctors ran some test and I stayed there for what felt like forever and a doctor came in and explained that I had something called endometriosis. He went on to explain that endometriosis is when tissue that has the appearance of tissue that lines the uterus, grows in other places in the body. The most common places that the tissue would grow is anywhere in the female reproductive system. For some women they have it showing up on the intestines and even in the vaginal walls. Women that have Caesareans also run the risk of it appearing in the scars of the procedure. As the battle with endometriosis continues scarring from the condition will appear internally.

It turns out that a lot of women are affected with endometriosis and some are not even aware of it. The pain from it can affect a woman's life severely. When I was in high school my pain would appear even when it was not time for my menstrual cycle. I had it growing on my intestines and stomach lining. I would have days where I would wake up and feel like I was dying. If you or someone that you know is experiencing any pain in the lower back area and having trouble with bowel trouble when on the menstrual cycle ask yourself these following questions. Do I have irregular bleeding during my cycle? Do I have pain when I urinate? Do I experience bloating with fatigue? Do I have during sexual intercourse? If you have said yes to some or all of these questions you might want to ask your doctor about your chances of having endometriosis. There are things that can be done to help you through all of these symptoms.

Diagnosing endometriosis can only be done by doing a procedure called a laparoscopy and have a biopsy. From experience I would say that you will want to make sure that the doctor you have is a specialist in endometriosis. This procedure is not one to go into lightly. I would say to only put yourself through this if you are having severe problems. Some insurances will fight you on this procedure because of the cost. If you decide to have the procedure remember it is a form of surgery and will take a time to recover and may require time off from your normal routine. My doctor used other methods before we went to this extreme. You can have an MRI or a ultrasound to get a view of any endometriosis adhesions.

Endometriosis can not totally be diagnosed with these methods but it is an alternative to surgery. Helping with the pain can be a pain in itself. There are no true treatments to cure endometriosis but there are things that you can do to cope with the symptoms. If not real severe you can try things that are over the counter such as Tylenol for Menstrual cramping or Midol. I personnally have tried about everything over the counter and find that the Tylenol works for me, but remember that everyone responds differently to things of this nature. I am lucky because my pain threshold is high, some women can not bear pain at all and need to resort to perscribed medications for pain. When choosing this method remember that pain killers can be addictive and you may have to be on this for years. Sometimes your doctor can get you involved in a drug research trial that can help with the pain. I found a drug to work one time by doing this.

Hormone treatments are also available if your doctor decides this is a good practice to help your needs. Due to endometriosis aggravating the oestrogen ( group of hormones that help develop and maintain the female body). The hormone treatments will cease the production of oestrogen and will help discontinue the pain for the woman. Kee in mind that hormone treatments are not right for every woman so it is important that you work with a doctor that is well trained in treating endometriosis. Don't forget that hormones have their own set of side effects and to each is different.

Infertility is a grave concern with women that have endometriosis. It is said that 30-40% of women that have endometriosis is considered infertile. Now we all know that news can cause emotional distress in some women, it did me. I was told at 18 that the doctor was 98% sure that after all of the testing and the laparoscopy that I had done that I would not get pregnant ever. That is a lot for a person at that age to wrap her mind around and face. Having a baby is what most women look forward to doing in life. Although I did prove them wrong and my daughter is now 6 years old, most women are not so lucky. Pregnancy with endometriosis is not a picnic either. My pains seem to have gotten worse when I was in my 3rd and 4th month of pregnancy.

Hysterectomy is a possible solution if you want to go that route. It is not recommended to have one if you are under the age of 30 unless extreme measures are needed. Even with the hysterectomy, endometriosis tissue can still grow and pain can be still just as strong. This is a measure that you have to really put thought into because it can make your body go through changes and you have to be willing to risk it.

Laproscopy can be a double effort, it can not only be used for diagnosis but for treatment efforts also. Once diagnosis is confirmed the doctor then can go in and remove any cyst and repair any lesions caused by endometriosis. Adhesions can also be removed but keep in mind that it is possible for it to regrow in the same spot. As I said earlier recovery time will be needed. It requires general anesthesia and you will need someone to drive home for you. Driving will be restricted for awhile during recovery. Most of the time it is considered to be an outpatient surgery and only requires a small incision. If is found that your intestines have been affected you might have to have more surgery to repair that and require more time at the hospital. I would probably pack a bag just in case. I personally had a lot of shoulder pain and they said that it was caused by the diaphragm having CO2 pushed against it during the surgery. Getting in water and taking a bath will be restricted for about 2 to 3 weeks til your incision heals. From personal experience pain with the first period after this procedure will be strong but will get better after you recover more.

Pregnancy can also help somewhat with endometriosis. It can reduce the growth of te tissue because of the growing fetus that is taking up space in your belly and it can help pain. I had bad pain at times during my 3rd and 4th month of pregnancy but I will say after that I had less problems with my endometriosis after that. I did not even feel many endometriosis symptoms again til my daughter was 5 months old. I enjoyed the break from them. Some women enjoy more time without symptoms and some have problems all the way through the pregnancy.

I hope this helps someone out there. Maybe one day they will find a cure for endometriosis, til then we can do what we can to help the symptoms. I guess after I have lived with endometriosis for 18 years I have learned some ways to cope with it. Everyone's journey will be different, and it takes a while to figure out how to not let it consume your life. There are support groups that you can join in almost every area. Check out the link below to find one in your area.