Endometriosis anyone???

[Bissonnettemi]

Curious if any others are having issues w/ endo and how you are handling it.
This feels wretched!

[GoodnightRose]

It is wretched. I had it behind the uterus and it somehow involved the bowels and resulted in stabbing rectal pains...ugh. It was awful.

I tried pretty much everything... progesterone, Danazol, birth control pills, prescription Naproxen for pain, etc. and I just got more and more miserable every year. Because I also had fibroids and was done having kids, I opted for a partial hysterectomy (I still have my ovaries).

It's not the right choice for everyone and it was not a decision I made without a lot of research and thought, but my quality of life has improved 200% and I haven't had a single regret. I hated the side effects from the prescription meds and the Naproxen tore up my stomach so just to be drug and artificial hormone free is a huge blessing.

I hope you find some relief Bissonnettemi

[Bissonnettemi]

Thanks GoodnightRose! Mine gives me excruciating upper left abd pain. Was even hospitalized for 8 days back in Sept. with this pain & no diagnosis. Upon packing up to leave hospital I remembered the box of tampons I'd left in the bathroom and a thought came to me...always coincides w period...hmmm..think it's endo. I have a great GYN who thinks we can try the hormones to put me into medicinal menopause. I am just not that open to taking more meds right now. I have a great deal of allergies (especially pain meds) and intolerances to many meds. too. I think it is risky for me. I am not even properly taking the ones I am suppose to take till this flare-up subsides.

Glad that the partial hysterectomy was helpful for you.

I will have to bite the bullet and call GYN soon about this. They say the best thing for endo is a pregnancy... and I just wish that would happen to me instead.

Appreciate your input!

Mi

[Wifey]

Right here. I have it so bad I faint some times on the toliet. My gyno told me the name of a herb thats supposed to help alot. It takes 3 months but she said her patients have had great results from it.

[Wifey]

Ok I found it it called Pycrogenol and she said it works wonders. She said I can find it at VitaminWorld.com.

[Wifey]

I've found several sites to buy this actually. My sis had a full hysterectomy at 30 because her's was so bad I'm hoping to not have to do the same.

[Bissonnettemi]

Hi there AmberNikki,

I used pycnogenol about two decades ago... and it's good stuff! I was really surprised that it's mentioned for endo. I Googled it for endo and sure enough, it's there! I remember it being expensive, but easy to take. Thanks, this may be worth a try.

Have you been taking it for a while or are you just starting or about to start? I am not really a candidate for a hysterectomy with all my other health issues and plus we would still like to conceive someday! And...it shows promise with male factor IF, too. It's like hitting a homerun for this household , think I'll get some.

Mi

[Wifey]

I haven't tried it yet but she was pretty sure that it will help she said also with my pmdd too. I'm going to Vitamin world tomorrow. I hope it works for you too!!

[Fitterly]

Hi All,

I am new here but I've suffered from bouts of pretty painful periods. I am having an extremely intolerable one now and it's to the point where I cannot think straight. I've taken several pain killers and NOTHING. I also found out not too long ago that my grandma's twin sister's daughter just died of endometrial cancer. The first words from her husband (who is a quiet type of guy) were, "make sure you get your daughters checked out, this is genetic." Well, of course, I didn't do anything and I believe now this is a sign from God.

For people with the kind of pain I'm in right now, they really should consider some kind of medical release time from work.

I'm going to go to the doctor as soon as TOM ends to get checked out, but I just wanted to say that wow... for those of you suffering pain I cannot even imagine how rough it must be. I am a pretty tough girl, but this I can barely handle.

[Bissonnettemi]

Originally Posted by Fitterly

Hi All,

I am new here but I've suffered from bouts of pretty painful periods. I am having an extremely intolerable one now...

I'm going to go to the doctor as soon as TOM ends to get checked out, but I just wanted to say that wow... for those of you suffering pain I cannot even imagine how rough it must be. I am a pretty tough girl, but this I can barely handle.

Don't wait...go now!

[KJMK31]

IVE SUFFERED FOR 16 YEARS WITH ENDOMETRIOSIS. HAD LAPROSCOPIC SURGERY FOR IT. BEEN ON LUPRON DEPOT FOR IT. IT IS A HELLISH DISEASE. I COULDN'T TAKE IT ANYMORE, SAID ENOUGH IS ENOUGH AND JUST THIS PAST JUNE I HAD AN ENDOMETRIAL ABLATION. YOU MIGHT WANT TO LOOK INTO IT. I AM FREEEEEEEE!

[Bissonnettemi]

tell me a bit more about the endo ablation.

[verbqueen]

I had my endo lesions surgically excised six years ago, followed by a full year of Lupron Depot shots, and since the shots ended, continuous low hormone BCPs. One ovary was so tangled up with with a so-called "chocolate cyst" (blood-filled endometriosis-related ovarian cyst) that it had to be removed, but I still have one ovary and my uterus (not that I especially want them.) I had the odd and pretty rare problem of having endo in my chest cavity, and it ultimately caused a partial lung collapse.

I am happy to say that I have been completely pain-free since my endo was treated. I'm even free of some things I didn't know the endo was causing--back pain and bowel/digestive issues, among other things.

I am also happy to say that I had no side-effects from the Lupron, except for the "instant menopause"-related issues that are the natural side-effect of the total loss of estrogen--basically just hot-flashes and sleep disturbances. And as soon as the last shot wore off, those were gone.

Don't suffer. Get it treated. There's help out there, and if your gyno can't come up with some ideas, see an endo specialist.

[Bissonnettemi]

Thanks verbqueen!

I am thinking I better do something. will see a neurologist today for all the shooting pain... Gyno wants to use the some med to put me into menopause and I have just hesitated for @ 10 mos. (and suffered horribly, too) till about now, hoping and praying for a pregnancy. But this weeks pain that lead to hospitalization was the doozy! Worse than a heart attack, starting with back pain, radiating into upper abdominal pain that was unbearable and then into the most severe chest pain I have ever encountered...I thought I was going to die!

My cardiac enzymes were fine this time...so that wasn't it...thinking that it's nerve related or endo on the nerves. <<Deep Sigh>>

I so appreciate your input about the relief you got.

[AnitaLCing]

I deeply sympathize with all women with endometriosis, fertility issues, pain and depression.

I haven't read every thing on this post yet, but I wanted to throw my $.02 in. For years I had experienced excruciating pain and PMS. In July 2007 I went in for lap surgery to verify endometriosis, sure enough I was covered. It was all over, ovaries to bowels. Before surgery, I told my doctor that if it looked bad go ahead and do a hysterectomy and try to save one ovary. It was bad and now I have one ovary.

About 3 months after my surgery I was experiencing bad PMS (road rage and bouts of anger and sadness) and was diagnosed with PMDD. My doctor Rx'd anti-depressants. Three months later, I could not handle the Rx so I stopped.

In an effort to find out why I couldn't lose weight-stalled for a year, I began looking into my thyroid, thinking that was the issue. The more I dug into the thyroid hormone issue I discovered other problems. My adrenal glands were out of whack (can you say adrenal fatigue syndrome). From the adrenal issue I had more tests done and found out that my other hormones were out of whack (progesterone and estrogen). Apparently all these hormones work or not work together in unison. There is a kind of a domino effect. Not sure which ones started the downward slide.

I found out that I have been estrogen dominate for YEARS!!! Research estrogen dominance for yourself. I realized that my fertility problems, endometriosis and other PMS disorders were a result of the estrogen dominance. Doctors have been throwing Rx's at me for 20 years because of this problem. They put me on the PILL, anti-depressants and other pain meds for 20 years....never looking into the underlying issue: HORMONES.

I believe that if I could have gotten my hormones straightened out earlier, I could have saved myself from the hysterectomy and years of pain and PMS. I am now on BHRT (Bioidentical Hormone Replacement Therapy) and have never felt better!! No more PMS, PMDD, depression issues. My energy level is 100% improved and things are awesome. I have been on BHRT about 9 months now. It does take a few months to get things leveled out.

I strongly encourage anyone with these types of issues to do research and learn as much as you can for your own health. Look for the underlying issues instead of placing bandaids on the symptoms.

Educate, educate, educate!

***On a side note, also learn how estrogen is stored in fat cells. Low-carbing and losing weight also affects the estrogen levels in women and causes even more estrogen dominance/imbalance. I am still trying to learn more about this, but I know there is a connection.

[Bissonnettemi]

Thanks Anita. Good points!