Year: 2015

Share Your Story : Ginny

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A blonde woman smiling

Ginny was diagnosed when she was 31.  Now 37, Ginny lives in Arkansas with her wonderful husband.  Despite this happy ending, she continues to suffer from the pain and effects of Endometriosis, and continues ongoing treatment…and a hunt for answers.

Ginny’s Journey: My first hospitalization for severe abdominal pain happened at age 16. The intensity of the pain and internal bleeding had caused my blood pressure to drop to 70/30 and my body to go into shock. It was the first of many ER visits for similar symptoms but the only one taken seriously enough to admit me to the hospital overnight.

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Poor Posture & Pain

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Diagram showing poor posture

Growing up, you’re always told to “sit up straight” or “don’t slouch!”  I don’t know about you, but as an adult, I do anything but.

I spent most of this last weekend sitting at the computer wasting away on the internet, smooshed into a little ball on the chair. Either hunched over or leaning back into a curved husk.  And it got me thinking : what does bad posture do to my body? Internally. Mentally.  Physically. So, you know me : let the research begin!

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Reader’s Choice : I’m SOOO Tired

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Sleeping Beauty painting by Henry Meynell Rheam

An EndoWarrior came to me with complaints of fatigue, exhaustion, and a general lack of energy.  Is it related to Endometriosis?  If so, why?  And is she the only one who has to take 2-3 naps every day? Let the research begin!

Fatigue & Endo

Fatigue is one of the many common symptoms of Endometriosis.  But why does something growing in our bodies make us tired?  No one is really sure.  Some feel that it could be our body’s coping mechanism to the pain, it could be that our body’s immune system is working on overdrive to fight our inflammation, it could be from depression, or it could be due to the mental and physical stress people with Endometriosis endure.  It could even been some deeper unforeseen medical reason that nobody has figured out yet…

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Share Your Story : Mel

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Group of four women posing together for a photograph

Mel was diagnosed with Endometriosis when she was 21.  Now 28, Mel and her husband are hoping to expand their  family.

Mel’s Journey:  I was diagnosed and have had two surgeries since. Now trying to conceive seems harder then ever and about to go through IVF. But I am also very lucky to have such a wonderful family and a supportive husband with a fur baby! =)

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Feel Good Fridays!

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Person walking with a right prosthetic leg

It’s Friiiiiday! We made it through another week!

Today’s Feel Good Friday quote is brought to you by Bodie Thoene, who (coincidentally) was one of my favorite authors growing up.  She and her her husband wrote several series of books and I was sucked into them! Looks like they’re still writing…

“Sometime the only way t’ keep goin’ is t’ keep goin’.”

Words to live by when you’re stuck, when you feel that you cannot go any further.  Unable to take one more step, endure one more ounce of pain.

Yes, yes, you can.  Just hang in there and keep going.

It was fun stumbling across her name in today’s search for a quote.  I nearly peed myself. Nearly. 😉

Have an enjoyable weekend!

Share Your Story : Tara

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Text that reads Endometriosis has no real face. I am its face.

Tara was 24 when she was diagnosed with Endometriosis.  Now 32 years old, she shares her experience with us…

Tara’s Journey: I am sick. I am chronic illness. I am not curable. I am angry. I am scared. I am pain. I am draining. I am sad. I am a fighter. I am strong. I am weak. I believe. I hope. I dream. I wish. I love. I suffer. I struggle. I laugh. I cry. I scream. I am mad. I am endometriosis.

Endometriosis has changed my life in more ways than I could ever possibly explain. It has ripped away part of me and has destroyed many of my hopes and dreams. I feel like an alien is living inside my body. I am no longer in control of my future. Endometriosis owns me. It holds ownership to one of the biggest dreams I have ever held. It has taken away my right as a woman to bare a child. It has left me hopeless, resentful, angry, confused, and scared, scared to death that one day it may take my life. No endometriosis cannot kill me, I understand that but it can cause things that can.

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Signs & Symptoms of Endometriosis

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Stop sign, caution sign, yield sign all text replaced with the Bloomin' Uterus logo

Many people born with a uterus have Endometriosis and don’t even know it.  They may be cis-gender, transgender, non-binary, or others. And there have been rare instances of men developing Endometriosis, too. I sure didn’t know what it was until I received my diagnosis. I’d never even heard of it. Endo-what?  

So what are the red flags of Endometriosis?  If I only knew about this list prior to my diagnosis, I would have gone to my doctor years ago! I met every single one of these symptoms!! Every. Single. One.

You may have Endometriosis if you have any of the following issues:

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Bad Gas!

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mushroom cloud after explosion

As much as I’d like to giggle, I’m not talking the *funny* kind of gas.  I’m referring to the Carbon Dioxide gas trapped in your body after a laparoscopic surgery. Approximately 35-80% of patients who undergo a laparoscopic surgery complain of shoulder pain.  It is reportedly supposed to last for up to 72 hours, but some patients have the ongoing pain for longer (mine lasted a few days longer).

During a laparoscopic surgery, Carbon Dioxide is injected into our abdomens to create a distended abdomen, a big balloon, so the surgeons can look around inside without all of our crammed organs in the way.  Some of that gas remains in our systems after surgery, causing pain. There are a few theories as to what causes the post-op pain in our shoulders:

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Tampons : Taboo ?

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unused tampon

The History o’the Tampon

The Egyptians used softened papyrus as a makeshift tampons and the Greeks used lint wrapped around wood.  Other materials used in the past were wool, paper, plant fibers, sponges, grass, and cotton.

Early tampons available to women in the 1920s did not have an applicator.  Some had to be removed by actually reaching in and handling the cotton or gauze tampon, while others had strings for easy removal.  In 1929, Dr. Earl Haas invented a stringed tampon with an applicator.  He filed for the patent in 1931, and later trademarked the name “Tampax.”  The rights and product were then purchased by Gertrude Tendrich, who founded the Tampax company.  And in 1936, the first Tampax ad was launched and a package of 10 tampons cost a whopping 35 cents!  There are a lot more tampons on the market to choose from, some with applicators (cardboard or plastic), some without, some organic, some with odor control, some without.

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