It doesn’t really bother me that much that the testing of
the tissue samples came back as inconclusive (well, “not endo” for one sample
and “maybe endo” for another).
I am pretty sure I had it.
In high school and college, my periods ruled my life. Before the days of Aleve, I would wake up in the middle of the night, writhing in pain, after my Tylenol wore off. I’m not sure why I didn’t try Advil.
Well, I can’t remember when Aleve hit the market, but when
it did, it changed the game. I could
sleep through the night without waking up in pain. I religiously took Aleve every 12 hours,
because if I didn’t, I could not function.
One time, I had to run a mile for my Fitness for Life class
in college. I was out of shape, but also
on my period. It was the first time I
experienced Aleve failing. I
think it was due to a combination of my physical activity, dehydration, and
my period. Well, I barely hobbled the
track. After I was finished, I pretty
much collapsed onto the ground in pain.
My teacher was concerned, and asked if I was alright. “Cramps,” I said. “Water and stretching should help,” he said. “Not those kind of cramps,” I quipped.
Well, afterwards, I spent what seemed like an hour in the locker room, alternating between laying in the
fetal position and pacing up and down the
locker-lined aisles. One girl finally
asked if I was okay. I told her I had
cramps. I can’t remember if she
expressed understanding or not.
One day in college, I forgot to take my medicine between my
classes. In the middle of a lecture, I
started to feel pain. I thought, “I’ll
just tough it out.” Yeah. Instead, I left the classroom, went to the bathroom, took the medicine, and walked around the building in
agony. I ended up back in the bathroom,
but never back to the class. The teacher
sent a classmate to check on me, which was embarrassing.
Nowadays, since my lap surgery, my period pain is manageable
without medicine. I still feel twinges
every once in a while. One time, I
thought the pain was progressing and I would need to pop a pill, but then the
pain diminished.
Before the surgery, I had agonizing pain. Now I do not.
I think I had endometriosis.
Do you think I did?
Also, is it going to return?
That's hard to say. Before my surgery I had such painful periods, you know the vomitting kind of cramps. After my surgery they got better but still painful, it turns out i did not have endo. all those years. I had a lot of inflammation and a gluten/dairy intolerance which made the cramps worse. Now I still have cramps but I haven't had to pop a pill in the last 3 cycles. Has your diet changed at all? That could be a factor to.
ReplyDeleteI suffered from 17 years of debilitating cramps which was caused by stage 4 endo. Sounds like you had it too. :(
ReplyDeleteKat - Very interesting. My Napro doc suggested I start the anti-inflammatory diet and take fish oil supplements after she saw all of the inflammation in my abdomen. But...my food sensitivity testing only showed a slight sensitivity to pecans. Nothing else really jumped out. I did switch to eating less grains and cut most dairy out of my diet. I used to drink milk for every meal, but don't anymore. Maybe it was the dairy. It's hard to say. Did you get tested for food intolerances?
ReplyDeleteJellyBelly - Maybe I'm just a wimp! I had several areas of inflammation that the doctor vaporized or cut out, but it definitely didn't look like stage 4 endo. But...the difference between my cramps before and after the surgery is so apparent. It's like someone turned a "pain switch" off.
I was never tested for food intolerances because my idiot Drs.(not my NaPro Dr.) thought that food sensitivities were so rare I could not possibly have them. They also said because I didn't look sick that I was probably fine. It could also be that the way your body reacts to pain and inflammation is different than someone else. I am physically sensitive to a lot of things and my body reacts violently to pain right away. Also with the inflammation being gone in your body your uterus might be able to expand and contract more freely without being hindered by inflammation around it.
ReplyDeleteIt sounds like you had Endo. My cramps were debilitating as well (from age 14 until my surgery 1.5 years ago).
ReplyDeleteThe anti-inflammatory diet should help. I discovered through trial and error, that I am intolerant of gluten and dairy. Since cutting them our of my diet I hardly get any cramps. The ones I do get I can feel are my uterus. Before I would just have pain all over my pelvis. Now I can feel my uterus working.
If I have a month where I cheat on my diet, then the general pain comes back. (Coffee is a big no-no for me.) Some people are more sensitive to dietary changes than others.
Also, one cause of Endo is autoimmune disease, so our immune systems like to target things they're not supposed to. Which is why I think I developed my dietary allergies after my surgeries. Suddenly my body wasn't attacking itself in the usual way, so it found a new way. (Just my own theory. But, when I told my Dr. he didn't say I was crazy.)
I take fermented Cod Liver oil--it helps me feel better generally. I take capsules- as long as I take them sandwiched between food, then no yucky fish burps later on. :)
Also, the degree of pain during menstruation is not directly tied to the severity of Endo. Each person's body is different. I know someone who had stage IV Endo, but no painful periods.
Hi. I have had painful periods since the age of 9 and irregular cycles since teen years. I had surgery for endometriosis about 3.5 years ago. I was also going through hormonal treatments, and i did have 1 year of less painful periods. However, after tha 1 year, things started back to the way they were. I did the food testing, and nothing really popped out on mine, though dairy can increase cramping. Endometriosis can come back, over time. I only had stage I or II endometriosis, but the doctor also stated that the pain is not associated with the level. I find Midol my best help. Endometriosis is increased by irregular cycles, and I was informed by the nurse practitioner, and the doctor, that each year I was not able to get pregnant led to the likelyhood of recurrence. I am off of any treatments right now, becuase we are going through our 2nd adoption, and the HCG injections were not exactly decreasing my irregular cycles, so I chose to save the money. After we bring our new son home, I'm hoping to work with another Napro doctor. However, the doctor has repeated that I also have a thin endometrial lining, and that seems to be my final diagnosis from him. optivite is also a vitamin that has helped wth cramping. In case anyone was interested. Glad that you have found some relief after the surgery.
ReplyDeleteKat, Being Refined, & JEM826 - thank you for your comments. I love this part of being connected to all of you through the blogs. It is so great to be able to share information and see that although you may feel very alone, you are not!
ReplyDeleteI had very very similar stories I could tell about myself, just like you have suffered. I had stage II-III Endo. I was supposed to be on an anti-inflammatory diet. I have now started really trying to watch what I eat and hope to get food testing for allergies (just so I know). My surgery was over 2 years ago, and while my periods are no where near as painful as they used to be, I think for me, the better the diet I eat, the less need there is to take any meds. I've been taking meds the last few cycles, but I've also been eating like crap too. :-)
ReplyDelete