So, here’s a topic just about ALL of us ladies are ALL too familiar with.... Our periods!! Let’s take the typical hormonal imbalance and misery that comes along with that ever so special "time of the month" and throw in some extra factors just for fun; here are my A, B, C and D:A) Having endometriosis inside and out of most of my vital internal organs (which has regressed!)B) Having severe spasms of the pelvic floor musclesC) Having two surgeries two months ago to remove scar tissue, my appendix, Botox (to paralyze) my pelvic floor muscles, and to remove a cyst on my ovary that made its little nest in a major nerve bundleD) Having been on either Lupron injections and/or continuous birth control since I was 14 to stop my periods and control estrogen production. Now having stated the above I am currently having my first period in nearly a year and spent four of the recent five days alone in a dark room like a mama bear in hibernation. My best weapons against Mother Nature were Advil and a heat pack; it was a downhill battle my friends... I have been so infuriated because I had just worked so hard for several weeks to taper then detox off morphine which I have been on and off of for two years solid. I get better... detox immediately... and yup, a few months later my abdomen declares war. So, without sharing my entire story with you today I am simply putting it out there that our cycles can be VERY hard on us! I have found it to be very embarrassing and difficult to express (especially to men!) the amount of pain and discomfort a woman’s period can cause. With or without added complications they can be debilitating! I clearly advise anyone experiencing extreme pain to seek out medical help, however when given an explanation... Seek a second! I've been blessed with immense resources and yet I was still in the dark about the true nature of my problems; despite seeing various "specialists" for over two years. The point is, don’t be embarrassed about being in pain or second guess yourself when you seek out your own medical matters further. It’s empowering to be proactive and take control. Oh! And if you’re PMS(ing) like a wild woman (such as myself) cut the man you love a liiiiittle slack... After all, it’s not his fault he has nooooooo idea what you’re talking about!! ;-) - Sincerely, Ashley
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Ashley, what a great, great post. Thank you for sharing it!
I would like to echo your call for women to seek help when they have severe menstrual pain. While it is normal to have cramps, it is not normal to need huge doses of ibuprofen or other medicine just to control those cramps. I endured very painful cramps for years before I finally found out that, like you, I had endometriosis and ovarian cysts. After treatment, my period and my cramps were very different.
If you are on medicine continually for the first couple of days of your period, if you find yourself unable to work or do much because of the pain, or if you realize that you seem to have greater pain than most of your friends do when they have their periods, it's worth asking about. And ask about whether you should be seeing a specialist to figure out why it's so bad. Many general family doctors are not as well-versed on such things as endometriosis or polycystic ovarian syndrome, for instance.
If you need some more information to get started, try EmpowHer's endometriosis page:
http://www.empowher.com/condition/endometriosis
and here's our polycystic ovarian page:
http://www.empowher.com/condition/polycystic-ovarian-syndrome
Take heart. On a scale of 1 to 10, I used to have cramps that I rated a 7 or an 8. My doctor said that they should be more like a 4 or 5 on the scale. If you'd rank your pain on one of the higher levels, don't hesitate to find out what else might be going on. You shouldn't have to be in that much pain.
Thanks again, Ashley. And best of luck to you!
May 11, 2009 - 9:33amThis Comment
You are so welcome!... I work here at EmpowHer and still have much to share. However, sitting here at my desk still all crampy I had to share last night! I am very excited to see someone has read my post. This site truly is a remarkable networking tool. The woman who started it (Michelle)has been a second mother to me for as long as I can remember and I am so blessed to share in what she is doing! Thanks again for the comment... -Ashley
May 11, 2009 - 12:29pm