| What are the symptoms of endometriosis?
Pain is one of the most common symptoms of endometriosis. Usually the pain is in the abdomen, lower back, and pelvis. The amount of pain a woman feels does not depend on how much endometriosis she has. Some women have no pain, even though their disease affects large areas. Other women with endometriosis have severe pain even though they have only a few small growths. Symptoms of endometriosis include:
Very painful menstrual cramps
Pain with periods that gets worse over time
Chronic pain in the lower back and pelvis
Pain during or after sex
Painful bowel movements or painful urination during menstrual periods
Heavy and/or long menstrual periods
Spotting or bleeding between periods
Infertility (not being able to get pregnant)
Women with endometriosis may also have gastrointestinal problems such as diarrhea, constipation, or bloating, especially during their periods.
Who usually gets endometriosis?
About five million women in the United States have endometriosis. This makes it one of the most common health problems for women.
In general, women with endometriosis:
get their monthly period
are 27-years-old on average
have symptoms for two to five years before finding out they have the disease
Women who have gone through menopause (when a woman stops having her period) rarely still have symptoms.
What can raise my chances of getting endometriosis?
You are more likely to develop endometriosis if you:
began getting your period at an early age
have heavy periods
have periods that last more than seven days
have a short monthly cycle (27 days or less)
have a close relative (mother, aunt, sister) with endometriosis
The only way to know for sure if you have endometriosis is to have a surgery called laparoscopy. In this procedure, a tiny cut is made in your abdomen. A thin tube with a light is placed inside to see growths from endometriosis. Sometimes doctors can diagnose endometriosis just by seeing the growths. Other times, they need to take a small sample of tissue, or a biopsy, and study it under a microscope.
That all said, speak up about the care you are receiving. If you are having problems, make noise. Let people know. You have to advocate for your own health.
|I talked with my primary care doctor today and after testing the free fluid he is scheduling an ultrasound and some other test to be done prior to my appointment with the OB/GYN. He said he wants to be able to have all results in for the doctor to read at that appointment. Either way, I am still confused about what is going on because they are not giving me too much information.|