My Life with Endometriosis

I have had endometriosis for 15 years now, and it has been no picnic. I know that almost every website on the internet states that it is a problem for women during their childbearing years, but I strongly disagree. I first started having signs and symptoms of the disease when I was 12 years old, and was then at the age of 13 diagnosed with it. It has been a very painful thing for me to go through, especially when I was younger. The area around my uterus and other female organs became so inflamed at times that I could not even get out of bed. Periods were never normal for me, and I never knew when they were coming or how bad they would be.

When I was 13 the doctor preformed a surgery called a laparoscopy. A laparoscopy is a minor procedure in which there are normally about 2 small incisions made. One in the belly button and one lower towards the top of the pelvic area. They use a small camera to go in through these incisions and look around. This is how they determined that I had endometriosis. I have had several more surgeries since then, one including a DNC in which they scrape the uterine walls, and also a majority of my left ovary was removed do to a cyst that had developed due to the endometriosis.

Each case of endometriosis can be different. There can be different signs and symptoms and also different treatments used if diagnosed with it. The treatment that was used on me was the Depo-Provera shot. This shot unfortunately did have some side effects, such as weight gain, irregular menstrual cycles, delayed return of fertility, abdominal pain, headache, nervousness, and fatigue. I did not suffer many of these side effects while on it. It is stated that Depo-Provera should not be used for long term, normally no more than 2 years. I however was on it for 7 years, before being switched to another treatment. I decided not to take this other treatment, instead I tried getting pregnant. Unfortunately after 8 years of being off the Depo-Provera shot I still have no children. I have gotten pregnant three times, and have miscarried all three. The doctors have stated that I may never have children, another side effect of endometriosis.

With endometriosis, you can have several different side effects. These side effects include, but are not limited to pain in your lower belly, vagina, rectum, or lower back. Also included in these signs and symptoms are pain during sex or during a bowl movement, pain during ovulation, abnormal bleeding, and trouble getting pregnant, or infertility.

Talking to your doctor and having regular checkups can help you deal with your endometriosis. I have been dealing with it for 15 years now and I still have pain, both physically and emotionally. I have used many sites on the web over the years to help me deal with this disease, and take control over it so that it can no longer control me. Each woman will be different with endometriosis. Some will say "oh it's not that bad" and some, like me, will say it is a very painful sometimes debilitating problem to have