The Silent Killer - A Personal Story of Endometriosis
I don't share a lot of personal stories or struggles on social media often. However, in the spirit of Endometriosis Awareness Month, I wanted to share my story in an effort to shed some light on a condition that affects me personally and so many women every day around the world. I want to share my struggles and triumphs with this condition as a way to bring awareness, insight, and hope.
My story begins two years ago ...
After teaching one of my yoga classes I had a pain that came on so strong it shot up from my low belly into my shoulder and felt like someone was kicking me in the stomach while ripping my shoulder off. This was a pain I have never experienced before!
I went to the emergency room and two days later had abdominal surgery to remove 4 lemon size cysts from my ovaries (your ovaries are about the size of an almond FYI). This surgery is classified as non-invasive but let’s be real any surgery is fucking invasive! I was put under, totally unconscious as they put thin metal wands through the layers of my stomach to access the cysts and remove them. The surgery went longer than expected but it was a success... or so I thought.
Now you would think I would have had symptoms leading up to such pain but I have what they call "Silent Endometriosis". So it is present in my body but I don't have any symptoms other than the one leading up to my hospitalization.
My recovery was fairly easy physically, however mentally I was crushed. I considered myself healthy, strong, and vibrant from the inside out but this condition said otherwise. Shortly after surgery I started acupuncture and researching supplements I could take to support hormonal balance, inflammation, and circulation in my uterus and ovaries. I wanted to get my body into the best possible condition for my sake because my husband and I decided to start trying for a baby.
Fast forward a year later I had another similar sharp shooting pain, not as bad as the first time but enough to raise concern and ask for a pelvic ultrasound. My results came back and my cysts had returned. I was HEARTBROKEN! My body was not responding and my dream of being a mother felt as if it were slipping away.
So, naturally, I dove deeper into figuring out what I needed to do to heal my Endo and get to the "ROOT" cause.
I researched day in and day out. I finally found an incredible Acupuncturist and Mayan Abdominal specialist to work with helping me bring balance to my hormones, help break up the scar tissue and restore homeostasis in my body. I cut out alcohol, dairy, and most gluten and started my morning with a smoothie, packed with incredible fruits and greens!
In February I had another ultrasound: the cysts on my right side had SHRUNK significantly and the cyst on my left has stayed the same. What I was doing was working! Despite not being pregnant after a year of trying, my body was responding to all my efforts and healing at its own pace. Although this is a hard pill to swallow I know my journey to becoming a mother and healing is not over. My Endometriosis has been a hard lesson physically and mentally but I have learned so much in the process and when my baby comes my body will be in the best condition to receive that life.
My story is not unique and unfortunately, many women suffer from Endometriosis and peg it as just having a horrible period or undiagnosed infertility.
Endometriosis is a deeply complex condition and affects each woman differently. We are learning and discovering more about it and figuring out ways to heal!
Now I'm not a doctor but through my research, I have come across many incredible doctors, nutritionists, acupuncturists, and healers that have dedicated their lives to solving Endo. They have helped me tremendously on this journey.
Here are the practices and changes that have helped me:
Eliminating dairy and soy
Castor oil packs ( for circulation and scar tissue break down)
Acupuncture
Mayan Abdominal Massage
Specific Vitamins (happy to share what these are)
Progesterone cream
Balancing hormones (think of your hormones as a web, when one thing is out of balance it affects all the others)
This journey is not easy, frankly is really fucking hard. However, I hope my story has opened your eyes to this condition. Please reach out if you would like to chat or would like me to share the practitioners that have helped me so much, some of them you can access online and some of them are only local to the Bay Area.
