Re: young woman with mysterious pelvic pain
From: frenchie (anonymous@obgyn.net)
Sat Feb 28 15:13:34 2004
Julia:
Hi there. You can be fertile and still have endometriosis - it depends
on where it is in your body. So I wouldn't rule it out. I've been
pregnant twice - once a miscarriage, and another healthy baby boy. So,
basically, sometimes miscarriage causes infertility, but fertility
doesn't rule out endometriosis.
Another thought is that since you've had several operations in your
pelvic region, it might have created adhesions (scar tissue) that feel
like endometriosis; in fact, endometriosis sometimes causes adhesions. I
don't know if D&C (abortion) would do it, but I bet it could. Even a
bad car accident when you are wearing a seat belt can cause adhesions.
Unfortunately, endometriosis can only be diagnosed with minor surgery
(laparoscopy), but they can remove it then and there. I had horrible,
sudden cramping that incapacitated me and I felt like I was dying. I
never knew when they would hit but when they did, they would leave my
writhing with pain, hunched over in the fetal position - and it didn't
matter where I was (the mall; a gas station) - finally when someone
called an ambulance I decided it was time to see a doctor. They found
and removed endo with laparoscopy/laparotomy, and the cramps are gone.
(Adhesions can be removed during this surgery, too.)
Your symptoms sound like endo to me. Let us know what you find out if
you go to your doctor.
KristinaAt Fri, 27 Feb 2004, Julia wrote:
>
>I've been sufferring from severe menstrual cramps since the age of 16 (3
>years after I started menstruating). I am now almost 23. The pain has
>gradually intensified over the years, and also gone from lasting only a
>day to 2-3 days. In fact the pain is so bad now that I take several
>vicodin a day on my period or I am literally unable to function. NOTHING
>else works at all other than opiate painkillers which I detest as they
>make me really sleepy and nauseous.
>
>My periods are extremely regular, every 28 days, and although I am quite
>small (110 lbs, 5"5') and have suffered from occasional anorexia, I have
>never missed a period. I would say the blood flow is moderate -- not
>light, but generally not extremely heavy, though it has become heavier
>in the past couple of years.
>
>I have tried all NSAIds (ibuprofen, naprosen etc) and several types of
>hormonal birth control. The former do nothing to help me at all. The
>latter don't either, and some pills have made my cramps worse, and/or
>made me have cramping at times other than when I was menstruating. They
>do make my periods lighter, but again no relief of the cramping.
>Normally I do not have any pain during the rest of my cycle, except
>about half the time during ovulation. I never bleed at other times in
>my cycle.
>
>I am not currently able to take any type of hormones, as I am very
>sensitive to most progestins, which cause me to have continuous month
>long mild cramping and intensified menstrual cramps, and/or I become a
>psychotic bitch (to the point of dysfunction). Also, the last time I
>took the combined pill, the estrogen caused me to have daily severe
>migraines, so apparently I am at risk for a stroke and should not take
>estrogen.
>
>In addition to all this, I am EXTREMELY fertile...I have gotten pregnant
>5 times using condoms religiously, though I have never had one break! I
>have had 4 abortions as a result, very traumatic for me. Currently my
>fiance and I are abstinent simply because we have no other options. I
>am allergic to spermicide and my uterus is too small for an IUD.
>
>The fertility seems to rule out endometriosis, but someone suggested to
>me that I might have adenomyosis. I've been to a gazillion ob-gyn's and
>none have any clue what is wrong with me.
>
>Any thoughts on what my problem is?
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