My son was graduating kindergarten and we had family in town. I was singing to the new baby, thinking about names, and pulling out all my son's old baby things. My husband and I told our employers, our extended families, probably even strangers at the grocery store-we were that excited. The lines on the at-home pregnancy test were not as strong as they were when I had my son, but I didn't think too much about it because each pregnancy is different. We told everyone, including our son who constantly pined for a sibling. Then when my husband and I had pretty much given up hope, we conceived again six years after our first child was born. And each month, days spent doubled over in pain from endometriosis. Month after month we hoped that each day I was late on my period could mean we were pregnant again, but we were heartbroken each month. My husband and I discussed other medical alternatives but we didn't have the money for IUI or IVF. I also religiously started tracking my periods in hopes of hitting my ovulation windows. After dealing with several more cysts on my ovaries, I had another laparoscopy. As the months ticked by, each period held deep disappointment not only because the pain returned but also because we weren't pregnant. I decided to continue to see him for the next few years as my husband and I hoped to conceive again.

My new doctor was off at the time my son was born so I had a completely different doctor during delivery. The pregnancy progressed perfectly and my son was born on New Year's Eve. Since he was a gynecologist and was no longer practicing obstetrics, he referred me to another doctor. My doctor followed up with a few more ultrasounds to make sure the baby was developing I even got to see a heartbeat and little feet wiggling. My husband and I were so surprised and excited. Seeing my little embryo for the first time, my little peanut, I couldn't stop crying. Just a few weeks later, I walked into his office with three positive at-home pregnancy tests. He told me most likely I would have to have another laparoscopy before I could even think about conceiving. My doctor said to look on the bright side: I would know what to expect when menopause happens for real. Following the procedures, my doctor suggested a six-month medically-induced menopause by taking Lupron to reset my reproductive system. I was shocked at the extent of the scar tissue, the size of the cysts on my ovaries, and the overall impact of what this disease had done to my body. When the doctor showed me the photos from the laparoscopy, I almost passed out. In the course of a few months I had a D&C, a seven-hour laparoscopy, and a hysterosalpingogram. My doctor suggested a series of procedures and tests right away to ensure there was nothing cancerous and assess the extent of the damage from the endometriosis, especially since I still had hopes of possibly getting pregnant. My ovaries were encased and my Fallopian tubes were completely closed. There was so much scar tissue and endometriosis that my uterus had completely tipped backwards. My doctor discovered both my ovaries had very large chocolate cysts. But she wouldn't tell me anything she just kept saying 'well you will have to get the doctor to give you more information.' A vaginal ultrasound was ordered and you know things aren’t good when the sonographer says, 'Oh god,' and gasps. After physically being unable to get out of bed one morning I finally made an appointment to see a doctor. I wasn't sleeping or taking care of myself, so when my periods became more painful and I was totally drained all the time, I just assumed it was because of my work schedule. In my mid 20's, I had just moved to a new state and started a new job. I tried birth control in college to try to help ease the pain, but after a while I decided to stop using the pills. A heating pad cranked as high as possible and a few Midol are all that seems to somewhat relieve the pain temporarily. The pain begins about a week before my period and lasts about a week after, so any given month I am only pain free for about a week. My periods have always been heavy and painful, with cramps and gastrointestinal pain that have me doubled over and barely able to walk some days. I distinctly remember the day I started my period as a preteen because of the extreme pain. I was diagnosed in college and was told then by my doctors that it was so severe I would never have children. Endometriosis is a cruel disease that I have battled most of my life.

Endo pain help