Post by emmaa on Mar 18, 2015 14:50:30 GMT -5
Hello everyone, thought I would finally join because I am nearing the end of my rope here. Turning 22 in 11 days, university student, works with special ed kids in the summer.
I first got my period when I was 10. Even when I was young, they were horribly heavy and painful and usually lasted anywhere from 10-14 days. On the first few days by the time I got to high school I would stay home just between teachers not letting you go to the bathroom and how often I had to go and I just couldn't make it through the day. I can't even count the amount of times I had to go home just because I leaked.
When I was about 15-16 I got diagnosed with endometriosis after a laparoscopy and was put on the pill. My gynecologist told me to take it continuously and that eventually it would stop my period and the pain. The opposite happened, and I ended up bleeding/spotting for 8 months straight as well as being in continuous pain. I tried tons of different types of birth control pills but nothing helped. Next was the Lupron shots (going through menopause when I was 17 was fun!) but I was told that those shots are bad long term plus at the time they weren't covered by my parents' insurance so it got really pricey. I went to a naturopath and got acupuncture every two weeks for almost a year, but nothing helped. So until I was 21 I just suffered through horrible periods and pain all the time. I have also been epileptic for most of my life and found out that I'm more likely to have seizures when I have my period, something called catamenial epilepsy. Just my luck!
This past summer (July 1st, to be exact) I got the surgery to "remove" my endometriosis and the surgeon put in Mirena IUD in. He also found ovarian cysts on both ovaries. I did not do well with a hormonal IUD - I had acne on my back so badly that it hurt to lean back on anything, I had insomnia keeping me up until 5, 6, 7, in the morning and waking me up at 1 or 2 in the afternoon, seriously messing up my sleep schedule and making me drop a bunch of classes, leaving me in excruciating pain and bleeding so heavily I couldn't even leave my house because I was going to the bathroom every 10-15 minutes.
It's been about a month now since I got the IUD removed and I feel better in some ways. The same doctor put me on Visanne, a pill similar to a birth control pill except that it doesn't provide birth control. I am told that I'll only get my period every four months and that it will help with the pain, except that it isn't. I'm in so much constant pain that I can't even go to class because I can't even concentrate. I almost never go out with my friends anymore because I can't enjoy myself. I'm dizzy, I'm throwing up from the pain, I can barely lift my legs I hurt so much. And it is just constant all the time... there is literally never a moment where I am not in pain. I don't like complaining because I sound like an overdramatic girl complaining about some cramps but it is honestly so much worse than that and people just don't understand.
I'm a vegetarian who almost always eats vegan so my diet is healthy and I am aware of what harms and what helps with endometriosis. I don't drink that often. I'm a dancer so I'm still active. I'm just at such a loss of what to do because this pain is getting unbearable and I have now officially tried everything except a hysterectomy. I'm feeling very hopeless because if I'm likely to be infertile and more likely to miscarry, what's the point of even having my uterus? It has caused me nothing but pain and discomfort and is majorly getting in the way of my life. My doctor says I'm too young to get one and that I'll regret it when I'm older, but I'm thinking more along the lines that even if I do change my mind when I'm older, I can at least accept that I made this decision and will no longer be in pain. There are plenty of other ways to have children and honestly, that is not a concern right now. I am just super frustrated and don't know what to do.
I first got my period when I was 10. Even when I was young, they were horribly heavy and painful and usually lasted anywhere from 10-14 days. On the first few days by the time I got to high school I would stay home just between teachers not letting you go to the bathroom and how often I had to go and I just couldn't make it through the day. I can't even count the amount of times I had to go home just because I leaked.
When I was about 15-16 I got diagnosed with endometriosis after a laparoscopy and was put on the pill. My gynecologist told me to take it continuously and that eventually it would stop my period and the pain. The opposite happened, and I ended up bleeding/spotting for 8 months straight as well as being in continuous pain. I tried tons of different types of birth control pills but nothing helped. Next was the Lupron shots (going through menopause when I was 17 was fun!) but I was told that those shots are bad long term plus at the time they weren't covered by my parents' insurance so it got really pricey. I went to a naturopath and got acupuncture every two weeks for almost a year, but nothing helped. So until I was 21 I just suffered through horrible periods and pain all the time. I have also been epileptic for most of my life and found out that I'm more likely to have seizures when I have my period, something called catamenial epilepsy. Just my luck!
This past summer (July 1st, to be exact) I got the surgery to "remove" my endometriosis and the surgeon put in Mirena IUD in. He also found ovarian cysts on both ovaries. I did not do well with a hormonal IUD - I had acne on my back so badly that it hurt to lean back on anything, I had insomnia keeping me up until 5, 6, 7, in the morning and waking me up at 1 or 2 in the afternoon, seriously messing up my sleep schedule and making me drop a bunch of classes, leaving me in excruciating pain and bleeding so heavily I couldn't even leave my house because I was going to the bathroom every 10-15 minutes.
It's been about a month now since I got the IUD removed and I feel better in some ways. The same doctor put me on Visanne, a pill similar to a birth control pill except that it doesn't provide birth control. I am told that I'll only get my period every four months and that it will help with the pain, except that it isn't. I'm in so much constant pain that I can't even go to class because I can't even concentrate. I almost never go out with my friends anymore because I can't enjoy myself. I'm dizzy, I'm throwing up from the pain, I can barely lift my legs I hurt so much. And it is just constant all the time... there is literally never a moment where I am not in pain. I don't like complaining because I sound like an overdramatic girl complaining about some cramps but it is honestly so much worse than that and people just don't understand.
I'm a vegetarian who almost always eats vegan so my diet is healthy and I am aware of what harms and what helps with endometriosis. I don't drink that often. I'm a dancer so I'm still active. I'm just at such a loss of what to do because this pain is getting unbearable and I have now officially tried everything except a hysterectomy. I'm feeling very hopeless because if I'm likely to be infertile and more likely to miscarry, what's the point of even having my uterus? It has caused me nothing but pain and discomfort and is majorly getting in the way of my life. My doctor says I'm too young to get one and that I'll regret it when I'm older, but I'm thinking more along the lines that even if I do change my mind when I'm older, I can at least accept that I made this decision and will no longer be in pain. There are plenty of other ways to have children and honestly, that is not a concern right now. I am just super frustrated and don't know what to do.