my endo story. part 1
After so many years of trying to figure out what was causing my pain and so many doctors telling me there was nothing wrong with me, I am finally getting my endometriosis surgery.
It had gotten to the point that I almost believed them. I started to think the pain I was feeling was actually normal. Maybe I was just weak? Maybe it wasn’t really that bad? I had had bad cramps since my first period, so it was actually normal for me. But then it started to get worse.
In 2019, I started having weird stomach pains. Once so severe, I went to the hospital. The pain was intermittent, coming and going and bringing digestive issues. Constipation. Diarrhea. In 2022, I was diagnosed with IBS.
So I changed my diet. I started trying to figure out what foods were triggering. I stopped drinking alcohol.
But it kept getting worse.
I started to have sharp, stabbing pains in my lower right abdomen. At first, it would start the day before my period and continue for a few days afterwards. As time went on, it would continue for weeks after my period ended.
One month it was so bad, I went to the ER. They did blood tests and an ultrasound, but couldn’t find any reason for my pain. So I made an appointment to see an OBGYN. I was so sure it was cyclical and had something to do with my period, but I knew that it wasn’t going to be easy to convince a doctor. I chose a male OBGYN because every woman I had ever seen over the years had told me my pain was normal.
I sat in the examine room explaining my pain and he was unconvinced it was actually gynecological. I was starting to lose hope that anything was going to come from the appointment, but he offered to do an exam anyways. Luckily, he poked something that sent pain cascading into my abdomen and my usual resolve was momentarily broken. After the exam, I could tell he still wasn’t convinced, but was willing to admit that he didn’t know what it was. He suggested that I get another ultrasound and referred me to the Center for Endometriosis and Chronic Pelvic Pain at the Cleveland Clinic.
When I went in for my first appointment, I was nervous. I was so tired of trying to convince doctors that my pain was real. I met with the nurse and we went through the extensive 17-page questionnaire I had filled out. Her reaction: yeah, this sounds like classic endometriosis. The doctor said the same. It was unbelievable really. To finally be talking to people that understood what I was going through. I almost cried when my doctor looked at me and said, “you’ve been dealing with this for a long time…”
