Happy Friday! What a crazy week it’s been for me. *whew*

Yesterday, one of our local SoCal EndoSisters wrote this in our private Facebook group.  It was so freakin’ encouraging and uplifting, I asked if I could share here with you today. Obviously, the answer was yes.

“Sometimes, especially when the pain is bad, it is hard for me to remember the things I am thankful for.

I am going to say now, this post is not meant in any way to lessen what we go through, the hardships we manage, but it is one of thanks. Chronic pain, although often debilitating, is not always terminal and doesn’t always mean we are at risk of losing our lives.

Today, I’m thankful that my burden in life is pain and I thank my stars that I don’t have to deal with other chronic issues, where a misstep, or lack of medication, means I could lose my life early. I don’t wish pain on anyone, but I think of those who struggle with healthcare and doctors when their life is on the line, and it makes me thankful I just have to deal with the pain (even though sometimes it makes me feel like I’m dying or makes me wish for it just to end).

I’m thankful I don’t have to worry about conditions that, left unchecked, could mean limb loss (like diabetes), that I don’t have to be confined to a wheelchair as I slowly lose the ability to control my muscles, and even risk not being able to breath on my own down the road. I’m thankful that on good days I can go for a hike, or even just go meet my friends for drinks (even if I am losing the ability to tolerate alcohol without it setting off a flair and I just have water). I’m thankful that I’m not stuck in a hospital bed, confined to a sterile room, even if I’m a frequent flyer. And sometimes I have to remind myself to be thankful when things are bad. Not because others have it worse and I don’t have the right to feel bad, because sometimes it is the only way I can get through what I’m dealing with. It is my coping mechanism. It sometimes is the only way for me to deal with the bad days to get to my wonderful good days, that I don’t take for granted anymore.

This disease can easily crush us mentally, make us lose hope, but on those days where I feel well, or well enough just to do things on my own, I’m thankful. I’m hopeful that someday we will find a solution to our condition, and be given our lives back, or that those much younger than us, will never have to suffer like we do.

And I’m thankful for a community of people like you, even if I’m not often present or involved, and haven’t really met any of you yet. I’m thankful when I see, even through the pain and unfairness, that you all haven’t lost your empathy, your compassion, your supportive natures. It is so great to see people that suffer daily themselves willing to put themselves out there to offer support or love to others dealing with the same thing, strangers we don’t know but are tied to through our shared suffering.

I’m NOT saying that we should ignore what we deal with because “others have it worse”, I’m not saying that at all. What we deal with is real, has huge physical and emotional impacts on our lives, I’m just not ready to give up and roll over and hope I can always find a reason to be thankful, no matter how bad things get. Because what do we have if we don’t have hope? And sometimes that hope is the only thing that can push us past the worst.

I wish you all the best, I wish you strength and pain free days, days where you can still get out and live and appreciate what those days mean. And I wish for all of us that a cure if found and someday we don’t have to worry about young girls finding themselves having to suffer through each day or each period.”  ~Ashlie McCormick

May we all hold onto the hope and strength offered in these words.

Love, Lisa

And another week has gone by.  This one flew! I’ve been so incredibly busy with work and personal life.  Augh! And February draws to a close…

This weekend I’ll be celebrating an annual tradition with beautiful friends: Girl’s Day Weekend!  A handful of girlfriends that I’ve known for nearly a decade (and then some) get together at least once a year to reconnect, hang out, giggle, and just chill.

As I packed my bags and headed out the door this morning, my lovely husband gave me a kiss and reminded me to take it easy, to not push myself too hard, to take rests and breaks as I need them.  He’s been aware the past few weeks had been painful for me.  And his gentle reminder to be gentle with myself warmed my heart.

It has inspired today’s very simple, yet very powerful, quote:

“Be good to yourself.”
― Lailah Gifty Akita, Think Great: Be Great!

Have a wonderful weekend.  And if you need it, remember to take it easy on yourself.

Love, Lisa

Blogs I’ve updated this week:

Readers Choice: Can Men Get Endometriosis – added a 2018 study of a man who developed Endometriosis.

Support Group Meeting – our next meeting will be Saturday March 31st

Oh, it’s that time of week again!  FRIDAY!

What a bumpy and painful week it’s been for me.  But, on the plus side, today is my first pain-free day since last Friday. So YAY!  Hopefully it lasts.  I hope you, my dear Readers, are doing well.

Today’s quote dares you to get out and DO:

“Be fearless. Have the courage to take risks. Go where there are no guarantees. Get out of your comfort zone even if it means being uncomfortable. The road less traveled is sometimes fraught with barricades bumps and uncharted terrain. But it is on that road where your character is truly tested And have the courage to accept that you’re not perfect nothing is and no one is — and that’s OK.” 
― Katie Couric

May you get out there and step outside your comfort zone, go nuts, have fun, and discover a bit of adventure and mischief. ❤

Happy Weekend!

Love, Lisa

Welcome to another Friday. We made it through yet another week!

Here I sit today laying in bed, wrapped around my heating pad, taking a sick day from work. My pain has been sneaking up on me these past few days: had a lovely incident EndoBelly earlier this week, had an incredible acupuncture session, and spent yesterday with my microwavable heating pad all day while I was at work. So today I’m laying in bed, with Tramadol coursing through my system, as I am patiently waiting for it to kick in and take away my pain.

It’s on a day like today where I’m reminded that self care is not selfish. I don’t like taking days off of work. I have very few and very precious sick days available to me to last throughout the year. That being said, I also acknowledge that my comfort and my health and my mental well-being are incredibly important and sometimes I need to focus purely on me. Had I gone to work today, I can almost guarantee you that I would have made it to lunch and then begged off to stay home for the rest of the day. I also likely would have regretted going in in the morning when I could have stayed at home laying in bed embracing my heating pad and my agony.

I know that endometriosis is not curable. I know that pain medications are a Band-Aid. I know that birth control pills, Lupron Depo, Danzanol, Letrozole, and any sort of medication marketed toward reducing the symptoms of endometriosis are all purely Band-Aids with awful side effects. I know that excision surgery is considered the “gold standard” to treat endometriosis. I also fully understand that it’s not a guarantee that my pain will not return. Acknowledging that the treatments are insufficient at times, and acknowledging that this filthy disease may return whenever it wishes, doesn’t make it any easier to deal with.

There are good days. There are bad days. Today is a bad day.

I’ve been lucky enough to have two excision surgeries by a surgeon I believe to be incredibly skilled and knowledgeable and passionate about treating our illness. There are times like today where my pain is so bad that all I want to do is feel sorry for myself, and I do for a little bit. But, something deep down inside reminds me that I can get through this. I may not be able to get through this well today, but I can get through this and I will resume the good days hopefully very soon.

You have to find a light at the end of the tunnel somewhere even if you can’t see it yet, it’s there… Somewhere.