I was finally diagnosed with severe endometriosis after thirteen years. This diagnosis only came about because my husband and I have been struggling with infertility. We went to a infertility doctor who confirmed I had endometrioma in both my ovaries which is usually a sign of Endometriosis but he advised I needed to go for more tests etc. even though it wasn’t his fault of this finding, he apologized so sincerely that it took this long to even get a scan done like this to find out I have Endometrioma. Two weeks post that appointment I ended up in hospital with a ruptured endometrioma which was operated on and cleared. They then took a sample of what they had cleared and confirmed I was in the later stages of endometriosis and that getting pregnant naturally would be extremely difficult. I had always struggled with bad periods, and for so many years and visiting different doctors, I had always been told that my pain can’t be “that bad” or that I was “over exaggerating”. I had been told that over and over to the point where I believed it, and had given up trying to go to the doctors about it. I would just hack the pain at home even if that meant being bed ridden for days on end and taking way too many painkillers. The painkillers unfortunately I was using wasn’t as helpful but sadly had nothing else to rely on. This was my life for years, up until just before I met my husband and I found the courage to go to another doctor who thought I possibly had menorrhagia and put me on the pill to manage the “bad period”. I bled for almost six weeks before they put me on blood thinners to stop me from bleeding. It stopped for two days and started again. I stopped taking the pill as I knew it wasn’t right for my body. I had to let me body re-adjust itself again. My husband and I had started trying a year after we had met, and three years after we started we still hadn’t fallen pregnant. I knew it in my gut it had something to do with my “bad periods” or “menorrhagia”. It was confirmed it was me and my husband was completely fine. My mental state from February 2021 when I finally got diagnosed, deteriorated fast. I completely shut down from friends and family. I was an emotional wreck. Some days I couldn’t get out of bed because my anxiety was at an all time high, and my feelings of self worth was at an all time low. It was so bad that I had tried to take my life. It was at that point I had decided to do something about this hatred I had towards myself and went to therapy sessions. It helped me so much, and little by little I started feeling a bit more human. Took small steps such as writing in a journal, walking, even if it was to the mailbox and back. Taking time to pamper myself like getting my nails or hair done, facials. The next goal I had lined up was to manage my endo, and I am currently doing that with acupuncture, diet by trialing which foods trigger my endo symptoms. At the moment, I am waiting for my next laparoscopy to remove my right tube, resection of my bowel and bladder, then remove all the endo sores everywhere else. As nervous as I am about it I know I’m in good hands! The Gynae teamI have seen so far have done their hardest to get my surgery across the line. Once this surgery is done my hope is that my symptoms are much easier to manage and I can live a somewhat normal life, hopefully have children too. To those that have a feeling they may have endometriosis, trust your gut! Chase those appointments, and follow up when necessary. You know your body the best. And know that there is a whole community of us here that you can lean on if you need who are going through exactly the same things. As for me, I’m doing better than yesterday, and I’m continuing to look forward to the future.
