Endometriosis, lupron, lap surgeries, birth control pills

by Amy
(Troy, MI)

I didn't discover I had endometriosis until I was 32 years old and it was when I was in the middle of teaching a high school class when a cyst ruptured during my menstrual cycle.

I was on the floor in debilitating pain, the worst pain in my life. (And I had an audience of students! Lucky me!) The school called an ambulance and I spent an extended weekend in the ER until they could figure out what was wrong with me.

The doctors argued as I underwent numerous tests and numerous doctors pressing on my abdomen with my natural reflexes kicking in and almost pushing the doctor away from the excruciating pain! Lots of tests, lots of doctors, and lots of pain!

I was given an antibiotic and sent home with pain meds and told to see my Ob-gyn for possible PID. I had numerous ultrasounds because I had large cysts on my ovaries.

Finally my Gyn did a lap surgery and discovered that I had Stage 4 endometriosis. She asked if I had painful periods and cramping. I asked, define pain? When cramps may be debilitating to some, they weren't to me.

I was an athlete and have a high tolerance for pain. After much research, I had all of the signs that led up to the event of the cyst rupture. Five months earlier I had severe sciatica and couldn't even sit or lay without crying from pain.

One month my cycle would be horribly painful where I felt sick and the next month I would be fine (different ovary). After my lap surgery, I was put on Lupron injections with add back therapy for 6 months! I was counting down the days until it was over and then when it was finally over, my gyno wanted me to give it another 6 months! I disagreed!

The Lupron changed my life in the following ways: severe moodiness, severe irritability, became a loner, wanted to do nothing, ruined relationships with people, acted out in public, craved nothing but sweets for breakfast, lunch, and dinner!

Three months after going off the Lupron I went back to my gyno and she barely recognized me! I lost almost 30 pounds! I went from 180 pounds to 150 pounds! The hell was not over! Even though I did not experience pain during my cycle, my gyno insisted on BC pills.

I went through several BC pills and none of them worked for me. I either wanted to kill everyone around me or myself! I couldn't take myself and had very little patience. I was very depressed. I went through several months of trial packs of BC and it has all been very negative.

My mother is surprised that I am still alive because she has seen the way endometriosis has taken my life away with the tests and hormones. Not once did anyone test my current hormone levels to see what BC might be best or what hormone I lacked or had too much of in my body.

Right now I am in my first week of not taking any BC pills after two years and I found this site while looking for alternative ways of dealing with this endo. In a way I don't want to do anything about it, because I don't feel like I suffer from it, but I know that I have Stage 4 and my Gyno says that if I don't take preventative measures, I will end up in the ER again with an emergency hysterectomy.

My next step is to start a progesterone cream or a compound formula. It's really hard to stick to an all organic, all fruits and vegetables diet. I don't know what causes the endometriosis? There are many theories and most of them apply to me... childhood traumas, high stress, depression, anxiety..

Sometimes I wonder if it is an STD that was left untreated and this is what it became.. Endometriosis! I want to change my life, but it's not that easy to do. I feel sorry for drug addicts, because I can't imagine how difficult it must be. This is one of the most difficult things in my life and it has made me into a miserable, sad, lonely, depressed, and unhappy person.