Endometriosis: Endometriosis occurs when tissue that should line the inside of your uterus, the endometrium, grows outside of it instead. ... Surrounding areas may become inflamed or swollen, and scar tissue and lesions can develop. The most common site for endometriosis is on your ovaries. -webmd
Endometriosis is known as the 'invisible disease" because it does not show up in blood work, on ultrasounds, in colonoscopies, during pap smears, etc. Most doctors are not qualified to go much further than diagnosing. The only way to see it is to do a laparoscopy where the surgeon opens you up through the abdomen. More sophisticated surgeons /radiologists can diagnose endometriosis from a MRI but they have to be very knowledgeable on what they're looking for. Most OB/GYN's and radiologists miss it completely.
Many women, myself included, have been mis-diagnosed for years because endometriosis can spread to places other than just your ovaries, causing a variety of symptoms. It can spread to all your pelvic floor organs such as your: bladder, uterus, bowels, and others like your diaphragm.
This is my story. Please do not take everything as fact. I'm sharing my experience with endometriosis which varies from others'. Endometriosis is such a broad umbrella of diseases, so symptoms can be different for everyone depending on if they have endo, adenomyosis, etc. I'm not a nurse, doctor, surgeon, or even someone vastly educated on the topic; as I, after 17 years of searching, am just now being diagnosed with it.
To me... endometriosis feels like my organs are exploding. My insides are so tight and inflamed that I honestly worry that they are exploding or imploding and I'm slowly bleeding to death. It's so painful that most people would rush to the ER... except I don't because I know there is nothing they can do to help me. It feels like bloating, constipation, Irritable Bowel Syndrome, and heartburn. It feels like instantly my back is covered in 100 knots. It's so tight that it hurts to move. I'm constantly crossing my arms over each other, hugging opposite shoulder blades in an effort to pop and relax the extreme tension. I think the compensatory upper back pain is almost more painful than the actual pain of endometriosis attacking my organs. My only solace is my heating pad, which helps mildly even on it's hottest level. I've suffered burns from my heating pad because it's never enough.
This weekend, my husband and I had a little getaway. His work provided it for us. We had the option of skiing, snow-mobiling, or the spa. My husband (knowing how much pain I've been in since our 3rd baby was born almost 5 months ago) signed us up for an amazing spa package. We unknowingly went way over the limit the company was providing... but it was definitely worth the $$$ we had to pay out of our pocket. This story is relevant... :) I'm a spa-snob. My mom spoiled me with really nice spa / massage experiences since I was a 16. So when I say that this was the best 90 minute massage I've ever had... it holds weight. The masseuse was amazing. I've been working on being more present in my body lately. The entire time I was so relaxed but also so aware of what was going on inside my body. Interestingly, I noticed that as she worked the knots in my back, shoulders, and neck away the dull / burning pain became present. I didn't notice my stomach hurting prior to the massage, but during and after I was aware that it's always there. My body is always in pain. The muscles in my back, shoulders, and neck just tighten in an effort to provide a helpful distraction from the stomach pain.
For me, endometriosis began with the onset of puberty... about 12 years old. This is usually case for other women, but some women can have late onset endometriosis towards menopausal age. My periods were always very painful. The cramping was strong and debilitating. I would l curl up in the fetal position with a heating pad for hours. When I complained, I was told to take a Midol and get over it... that's just part of being a woman. In an effort to "buck up" I slowly stopped complaining about it and eventually stopped talking about it all together. I held it all in. I didn't want to be a nuisance to my family. Around age 13-14 my mom was surprised about how many tampons I was going through each month. She probably thought I was just wasteful. I imagine it was conversation about tampon usage when I told her how much I was really bleeding. I was soaking super tampons within 1 hour... as an 80lb 13 year old girl. Concerned, she took me to a family doctor. He recommended birth control. That controlled the bleeding and life went on... still painful periods. Eventually I started having pain when I wasn't on my period though. My stomach would hurt and I'd again curl up in the fetal position with my heating pad. I didn't complain much around my mom, our relationship struggled for 4 years during that time from other matters. When I'd talk to my dad about it, he just said I was having a "stress stomach ache" and that I was probably worried about going back home after the weekend and starting another week of school (my parents divorced when I was 10).
In high school I moved in with my dad and step mom. As a 16 year old girl, it was awkward talking about my period with my dad and I wasn't close enough with my step mom to discuss it with her either. As I got older, the non-period pain became more and more intense. I mostly hid away in my room on my heating pad when I was home... which was rare. I busied myself with sports and friends which helped provide a distraction from the pain. But even then, I couldn't deny the pain I was constantly in. My closest friends were boys and I remember feeling awkward during my painful attacks when we were hanging out. After football games, I'd lie flat on the floor on my back or stomach to cope. My guy-friends always teased me that I had eaten so much I threw my back out. After all, I was 4'11 / 90 lbs and eating lunch with teenage boys.
In college the pain was getting worse. My best friend / roommate would rub my back for me at night. When I had an attack it would last late afternoon until 3-4 AM. I was in so much pain I could not sleep.
When I was engaged, I was in constant pain. My [then] fiance would rub my back while I lied on a heating pad. Finally, my soon to be father-in-law spoke up. "It's not normal to be in this amount of pain." I talked to a family doctor about the pain and how my FIL suspected an ulcer. I began taking ulcer medication for over a year. After being in even more pain my [now] husband was eager to get some answers. I started seeing a gastroenterologist. He did various tests: endoscopy, HIDA scan, and something similar to a Barium Swallow test where I swallowed pills with metal rings and got x-rays every 48 hours for a week to track them moving through my bowels. His diagnosis was: no ulcer. Gallbladder is 16-21% functioning but he didn't want to remove it since I was only 20 and he didn't want me to have the life-long side effects of loose stools. He also wasn't convinced the Gallbladder was causing the pain, he felt it was the pain effecting the Gallbladder from functioning properly. And his final analysis was that my bowels were too long, all twisted up. Since I was in child-bearing years he (and no other surgeon) would dare do bowel reconstruction. He told me to take Miralax with each meal until I'm 40 years old and then he would fix my bowels.
Endometriosis feels lonely, isolating, lost, hopeless.
5 year later, after our second daughter was born, I started researching more holistic approaches. The interesting part was that my pain completely vanished when I was pregnant. And then returned with a vengeance within weeks of delivering my baby. After my second child, the pain was so intense. I started seeing a chiropractor, which made the pain even worse, as he said it would. After 4 adjustments I spent my birthday lying on my living room floor in the most intense pain I've ever experienced. My mom came over to take me and my daughters to lunch. I couldn't move. I felt like I had ruined a fun afternoon for her. I lied on the hard floor on top of my heating pad while my mom rubbed the knots out of my back.
Endometriosis feels like guilt, shame, embarrassment.
This was my final straw. I was going to figure this out! I was tired of living life in so much pain all the time. I was willing to try anything. So I started with diet changes. I did Whole 30 for 45 days. And then I started a Candida diet for 30 days following that. And guess what.... I was still in pain. I started seeing an Energy Worker, hormone specialist, and was gluten and dairy free for 3 years before I became pregnant with our third child... and I was still in pain. While eating cleaner did help reduce the IBS symptoms I still had stomach pain often without pattern or reason. I still felt like my insides were going to explode. Miraculously the pain went away during my pregnancy with baby #3 like it did with the others... which was great because I all I wanted to eat was carbs!
Weeks after delivering my son, the pain resurfaced. I reached out to my hormone specialist who recommended oxitocyn and some other hormone but said I couldn't take it while nursing. Ugh. Another possible answer that I couldn't yet try. Finally by the time my son was 6 weeks old I had been in pain more days since his birth than not. Learning that I couldn't take any of my stomach relaxers while nursing, I had to put my health first, so I quit breastfeeding so that I could have the minuscule relief of the stomach relaxers. Asking for support through the guilt I was feeling for not nursing, I posted on a FB mommy group. One of the moms said "It sounds like you have endometriosis." "No, I've had stomach pain for years. It's not during my period and I don't struggle with infertility." Her response was earth-shattering for me. "There are different forms of endo. Yours could be more endo in the bowels than the uterus." She referred me to a FB Endometriosis support group. For the last few months I've been researching and finding answers. For the first time in years I have hope!
Through the Utah endometriosis support group, I was referred to a qualified surgeon. Like I mentioned above, most OB/GYNs only know how to diagnosis and do laparoscopic ablation where they burn the lining of the uterus. This removes the scar tissue and allows the uterus to expand more. It's mostly helpful for women struggling with infertility. But for women suffering from pain, this procedure only helps for 6-12 months and then the pain is back because the disease is never being removed. The only way to remove the disease is to do laparoscopic excision surgery where a surgeon opens you up and removes the diseased tissue from whatever organs it has spread to. By removing all of the diseased tissue, it can no longer spread and cause pain to your organs. So after finding this out my first question was, "Who can do excision surgery? I need an appointment yesterday?!" My question was met with another disappointing response... unfortunately the only qualified surgeon in my state just moved across the county. wah wah. :/ Because I know several women who have had surgery from him, and been pain free for 7+ years, we decided it was worth it. After all, I can't imagine being pain free for a month, let alone 7 years. That would be life changing. When pain strikes it sometimes lingers with dull non-stop pain for up to 3 weeks and sometimes it's an intense, debilitating attack for 3-4 days straight: morning, noon, and night.
Surprisingly, there are only about a dozen qualified surgeons in the U.S. and I believe 76 world wide. We need more medical students to specialize in Endometriosis. About 10% of women suffer from some sort of endo pain. There are not enough doctors who understand or even care. One of the surgeons in a support group shared a seminar where he told his story and the history of endometriosis. He said in medical school he was fascinated with gynecology but didn't want to deliver babies. That left him with not very many choices. His day-to-day would look like helping women with menopause, or what most doctors refer to as: hysterical women claiming to have pelvic pain. This is a bad reputation for us women constantly in pain. We're scoffed at, like our pain and despair for answers is somehow burdensome to these doctors. He explained that the first case of endometriosis was in the 1800's. Women were stoned or burned to death because they were "unclean" (constant, heavy bleeding that follows no normal cycle) and their constant pain was a burden to society. Actually, the word hysteria / hysterical comes from the Latin / ancient Greek root meaning "suffering in the uterus." So over time, us women suffering were disregarded as hysterical and sadly this stigma is still the case today. Women with pelvic floor pain issues are just hysterical. We're crazy, pain medicine seeking drug addicts or simply making it all up for attention.
I for one, will gladly be called hysterical. How could I not be?! I'm in constant pain. My insides are exploding! Not to mention, the inflammatory nature of endo makes you 2x more likely to have autoimmune diseases. And women with endo are twice as likely to develop chronic fatigue... which leads to chronic depression. No wonder we're so CRAZY!
Endometriosis feels like drowning. I've found empathy in Avril Lavigne's new song "Head Above Water." Here are some of the lyrics:
Yeah, my life is what I'm fighting for
Can't part the sea, can't reach the shore
And my voice becomes the driving force
I won't let this pull me overboard
Becoming Educated:
Did you know that endometriosis shows up in many forms? You could have endo and never experience any pain, but suffer from infertility. Or you could be a fertile mertile like myself but spend the days hunched over in agonizing pain.
10% of women struggle with this invisible disease. It shows up as IBS, bladder pain, painful sex, painful and lengthy periods, cramping, nausea, infertility, and so much more. It can develop right at puberty, or later in life after having children. If anyone in your family has suffered, you could be at risk since it appears to be genetic.
While this disease is extremely awful and overwhelming, DO NOT FEAR! Don't freak out. I am here to help.... along with thousands of women who can relate with what you're going through.
Go to Nancy's Nook Endometriosis Education Facebook group and research the heck out of it. Or if you're overwhelmed... don't. Take solace in knowing there's a cure... you don't have to suffer like this forever.... it can end. Breathe.
Getting in Contact with a Surgeon:
After you've learned about the symptoms, signs, and affects of endo, start finding surgeons. You may not need a surgeon... maybe a laparoscopic ablation could help your uterus expand enough to conceive... and you don't have any pain treatment needed.... I don't know. But make sure that you find a qualified doctor from Nancy Nook's files: International Excision Surgeon Listing. It's very frustrating to spend thousands of dollars on tests and procedures with doctors that don't know what they're looking for and misdiagnose your disease.
Endometriosis is known as the 'invisible disease" because it does not show up in blood work, on ultrasounds, in colonoscopies, during pap smears, etc. Most doctors are not qualified to go much further than diagnosing. The only way to see it is to do a laparoscopy where the surgeon opens you up through the abdomen. More sophisticated surgeons /radiologists can diagnose endometriosis from a MRI but they have to be very knowledgeable on what they're looking for. Most OB/GYN's and radiologists miss it completely.
Many women, myself included, have been mis-diagnosed for years because endometriosis can spread to places other than just your ovaries, causing a variety of symptoms. It can spread to all your pelvic floor organs such as your: bladder, uterus, bowels, and others like your diaphragm.
This is my story. Please do not take everything as fact. I'm sharing my experience with endometriosis which varies from others'. Endometriosis is such a broad umbrella of diseases, so symptoms can be different for everyone depending on if they have endo, adenomyosis, etc. I'm not a nurse, doctor, surgeon, or even someone vastly educated on the topic; as I, after 17 years of searching, am just now being diagnosed with it.
To me... endometriosis feels like my organs are exploding. My insides are so tight and inflamed that I honestly worry that they are exploding or imploding and I'm slowly bleeding to death. It's so painful that most people would rush to the ER... except I don't because I know there is nothing they can do to help me. It feels like bloating, constipation, Irritable Bowel Syndrome, and heartburn. It feels like instantly my back is covered in 100 knots. It's so tight that it hurts to move. I'm constantly crossing my arms over each other, hugging opposite shoulder blades in an effort to pop and relax the extreme tension. I think the compensatory upper back pain is almost more painful than the actual pain of endometriosis attacking my organs. My only solace is my heating pad, which helps mildly even on it's hottest level. I've suffered burns from my heating pad because it's never enough.
This weekend, my husband and I had a little getaway. His work provided it for us. We had the option of skiing, snow-mobiling, or the spa. My husband (knowing how much pain I've been in since our 3rd baby was born almost 5 months ago) signed us up for an amazing spa package. We unknowingly went way over the limit the company was providing... but it was definitely worth the $$$ we had to pay out of our pocket. This story is relevant... :) I'm a spa-snob. My mom spoiled me with really nice spa / massage experiences since I was a 16. So when I say that this was the best 90 minute massage I've ever had... it holds weight. The masseuse was amazing. I've been working on being more present in my body lately. The entire time I was so relaxed but also so aware of what was going on inside my body. Interestingly, I noticed that as she worked the knots in my back, shoulders, and neck away the dull / burning pain became present. I didn't notice my stomach hurting prior to the massage, but during and after I was aware that it's always there. My body is always in pain. The muscles in my back, shoulders, and neck just tighten in an effort to provide a helpful distraction from the stomach pain.
For me, endometriosis began with the onset of puberty... about 12 years old. This is usually case for other women, but some women can have late onset endometriosis towards menopausal age. My periods were always very painful. The cramping was strong and debilitating. I would l curl up in the fetal position with a heating pad for hours. When I complained, I was told to take a Midol and get over it... that's just part of being a woman. In an effort to "buck up" I slowly stopped complaining about it and eventually stopped talking about it all together. I held it all in. I didn't want to be a nuisance to my family. Around age 13-14 my mom was surprised about how many tampons I was going through each month. She probably thought I was just wasteful. I imagine it was conversation about tampon usage when I told her how much I was really bleeding. I was soaking super tampons within 1 hour... as an 80lb 13 year old girl. Concerned, she took me to a family doctor. He recommended birth control. That controlled the bleeding and life went on... still painful periods. Eventually I started having pain when I wasn't on my period though. My stomach would hurt and I'd again curl up in the fetal position with my heating pad. I didn't complain much around my mom, our relationship struggled for 4 years during that time from other matters. When I'd talk to my dad about it, he just said I was having a "stress stomach ache" and that I was probably worried about going back home after the weekend and starting another week of school (my parents divorced when I was 10).
In high school I moved in with my dad and step mom. As a 16 year old girl, it was awkward talking about my period with my dad and I wasn't close enough with my step mom to discuss it with her either. As I got older, the non-period pain became more and more intense. I mostly hid away in my room on my heating pad when I was home... which was rare. I busied myself with sports and friends which helped provide a distraction from the pain. But even then, I couldn't deny the pain I was constantly in. My closest friends were boys and I remember feeling awkward during my painful attacks when we were hanging out. After football games, I'd lie flat on the floor on my back or stomach to cope. My guy-friends always teased me that I had eaten so much I threw my back out. After all, I was 4'11 / 90 lbs and eating lunch with teenage boys.
In college the pain was getting worse. My best friend / roommate would rub my back for me at night. When I had an attack it would last late afternoon until 3-4 AM. I was in so much pain I could not sleep.
When I was engaged, I was in constant pain. My [then] fiance would rub my back while I lied on a heating pad. Finally, my soon to be father-in-law spoke up. "It's not normal to be in this amount of pain." I talked to a family doctor about the pain and how my FIL suspected an ulcer. I began taking ulcer medication for over a year. After being in even more pain my [now] husband was eager to get some answers. I started seeing a gastroenterologist. He did various tests: endoscopy, HIDA scan, and something similar to a Barium Swallow test where I swallowed pills with metal rings and got x-rays every 48 hours for a week to track them moving through my bowels. His diagnosis was: no ulcer. Gallbladder is 16-21% functioning but he didn't want to remove it since I was only 20 and he didn't want me to have the life-long side effects of loose stools. He also wasn't convinced the Gallbladder was causing the pain, he felt it was the pain effecting the Gallbladder from functioning properly. And his final analysis was that my bowels were too long, all twisted up. Since I was in child-bearing years he (and no other surgeon) would dare do bowel reconstruction. He told me to take Miralax with each meal until I'm 40 years old and then he would fix my bowels.
Endometriosis feels lonely, isolating, lost, hopeless.
5 year later, after our second daughter was born, I started researching more holistic approaches. The interesting part was that my pain completely vanished when I was pregnant. And then returned with a vengeance within weeks of delivering my baby. After my second child, the pain was so intense. I started seeing a chiropractor, which made the pain even worse, as he said it would. After 4 adjustments I spent my birthday lying on my living room floor in the most intense pain I've ever experienced. My mom came over to take me and my daughters to lunch. I couldn't move. I felt like I had ruined a fun afternoon for her. I lied on the hard floor on top of my heating pad while my mom rubbed the knots out of my back.
Endometriosis feels like guilt, shame, embarrassment.
This was my final straw. I was going to figure this out! I was tired of living life in so much pain all the time. I was willing to try anything. So I started with diet changes. I did Whole 30 for 45 days. And then I started a Candida diet for 30 days following that. And guess what.... I was still in pain. I started seeing an Energy Worker, hormone specialist, and was gluten and dairy free for 3 years before I became pregnant with our third child... and I was still in pain. While eating cleaner did help reduce the IBS symptoms I still had stomach pain often without pattern or reason. I still felt like my insides were going to explode. Miraculously the pain went away during my pregnancy with baby #3 like it did with the others... which was great because I all I wanted to eat was carbs!
Weeks after delivering my son, the pain resurfaced. I reached out to my hormone specialist who recommended oxitocyn and some other hormone but said I couldn't take it while nursing. Ugh. Another possible answer that I couldn't yet try. Finally by the time my son was 6 weeks old I had been in pain more days since his birth than not. Learning that I couldn't take any of my stomach relaxers while nursing, I had to put my health first, so I quit breastfeeding so that I could have the minuscule relief of the stomach relaxers. Asking for support through the guilt I was feeling for not nursing, I posted on a FB mommy group. One of the moms said "It sounds like you have endometriosis." "No, I've had stomach pain for years. It's not during my period and I don't struggle with infertility." Her response was earth-shattering for me. "There are different forms of endo. Yours could be more endo in the bowels than the uterus." She referred me to a FB Endometriosis support group. For the last few months I've been researching and finding answers. For the first time in years I have hope!
Through the Utah endometriosis support group, I was referred to a qualified surgeon. Like I mentioned above, most OB/GYNs only know how to diagnosis and do laparoscopic ablation where they burn the lining of the uterus. This removes the scar tissue and allows the uterus to expand more. It's mostly helpful for women struggling with infertility. But for women suffering from pain, this procedure only helps for 6-12 months and then the pain is back because the disease is never being removed. The only way to remove the disease is to do laparoscopic excision surgery where a surgeon opens you up and removes the diseased tissue from whatever organs it has spread to. By removing all of the diseased tissue, it can no longer spread and cause pain to your organs. So after finding this out my first question was, "Who can do excision surgery? I need an appointment yesterday?!" My question was met with another disappointing response... unfortunately the only qualified surgeon in my state just moved across the county. wah wah. :/ Because I know several women who have had surgery from him, and been pain free for 7+ years, we decided it was worth it. After all, I can't imagine being pain free for a month, let alone 7 years. That would be life changing. When pain strikes it sometimes lingers with dull non-stop pain for up to 3 weeks and sometimes it's an intense, debilitating attack for 3-4 days straight: morning, noon, and night.
Surprisingly, there are only about a dozen qualified surgeons in the U.S. and I believe 76 world wide. We need more medical students to specialize in Endometriosis. About 10% of women suffer from some sort of endo pain. There are not enough doctors who understand or even care. One of the surgeons in a support group shared a seminar where he told his story and the history of endometriosis. He said in medical school he was fascinated with gynecology but didn't want to deliver babies. That left him with not very many choices. His day-to-day would look like helping women with menopause, or what most doctors refer to as: hysterical women claiming to have pelvic pain. This is a bad reputation for us women constantly in pain. We're scoffed at, like our pain and despair for answers is somehow burdensome to these doctors. He explained that the first case of endometriosis was in the 1800's. Women were stoned or burned to death because they were "unclean" (constant, heavy bleeding that follows no normal cycle) and their constant pain was a burden to society. Actually, the word hysteria / hysterical comes from the Latin / ancient Greek root meaning "suffering in the uterus." So over time, us women suffering were disregarded as hysterical and sadly this stigma is still the case today. Women with pelvic floor pain issues are just hysterical. We're crazy, pain medicine seeking drug addicts or simply making it all up for attention.
I for one, will gladly be called hysterical. How could I not be?! I'm in constant pain. My insides are exploding! Not to mention, the inflammatory nature of endo makes you 2x more likely to have autoimmune diseases. And women with endo are twice as likely to develop chronic fatigue... which leads to chronic depression. No wonder we're so CRAZY!
Endometriosis feels like drowning. I've found empathy in Avril Lavigne's new song "Head Above Water." Here are some of the lyrics:
Yeah, my life is what I'm fighting for
Can't part the sea, can't reach the shore
And my voice becomes the driving force
I won't let this pull me overboard
God, keep my head above water
Don't let me drown, it gets harder
I'll meet you there at the altar
As I fall down to my knees
Don't let me drown, drown, drown
Don't let me drown, it gets harder
I'll meet you there at the altar
As I fall down to my knees
Don't let me drown, drown, drown
Endometriosis feels like fighting for your life each and every day. Fighting to have energy just to survive. And all of the energy required just to survive and help your family survive totally depletes you... drains you beyond measure.
What you need to know from here... if you are having abdominal pain, infertility, PSOC, or pelvic floor pain that affects your daily well-being, do not ignore it. Stop wasting time arguing with OBGYNs and other doctors that don't know or don't care. Join Nancy's Nook Endometriosis Education group on Facebook and get informed. And be prepared for when you come into your doctor's office educated. They will get defensive. It's not their fault. They just don't have the answers... and you're hysterical. ;) Find a qualified surgeon. Get help.
From what research is showing, Endometriosis seems to be genetic. So if you have it, your daughters and granddaughters are 7x more likely to have it as well. Have open communication with your daughters about their menstrual cycles: how long and how much they're bleeding, if they have IBS, constipation, etc. Painful sex, and frequent UTI's are also signs of endometriosis. Untreated endo can lead to colon or ovarian cancers. Do not let your loved ones suffer. Take action before it spreads.
If you know someone in pain, please don't judge them. In addition to being in constant state of pain, they are now more susceptible to autoimmune disease like Hashimotos. They have chronic fatigue. They are NOT lazy. They physically cannot pull themselves out of bed or wake up on their own. They're body is in a non-stop state of war... they're exhausted. Be kind and be helpful.
I'm scheduled for surgery next month. I'm so excited for my new life ahead. Stay posted for updates during my recovery. :)
Becoming Educated:
Did you know that endometriosis shows up in many forms? You could have endo and never experience any pain, but suffer from infertility. Or you could be a fertile mertile like myself but spend the days hunched over in agonizing pain.
10% of women struggle with this invisible disease. It shows up as IBS, bladder pain, painful sex, painful and lengthy periods, cramping, nausea, infertility, and so much more. It can develop right at puberty, or later in life after having children. If anyone in your family has suffered, you could be at risk since it appears to be genetic.
While this disease is extremely awful and overwhelming, DO NOT FEAR! Don't freak out. I am here to help.... along with thousands of women who can relate with what you're going through.
Go to Nancy's Nook Endometriosis Education Facebook group and research the heck out of it. Or if you're overwhelmed... don't. Take solace in knowing there's a cure... you don't have to suffer like this forever.... it can end. Breathe.
Getting in Contact with a Surgeon:
After you've learned about the symptoms, signs, and affects of endo, start finding surgeons. You may not need a surgeon... maybe a laparoscopic ablation could help your uterus expand enough to conceive... and you don't have any pain treatment needed.... I don't know. But make sure that you find a qualified doctor from Nancy Nook's files: International Excision Surgeon Listing. It's very frustrating to spend thousands of dollars on tests and procedures with doctors that don't know what they're looking for and misdiagnose your disease.
Comments
Post a Comment