Hello, My name is Joan and I am 39 years old. I, like many other women had to endure surgical menopause due to endometriosis.

When I was younger, my mother says that I had very bad cramps when I menstruated. When I was 24 years old, divorced with one daughter in 1989, I had the worst pain that I have ever endured and it went away for about a year or so. Then it was there again and came back faster and faster. What started out only happening once or twice a year, came faster and faster as the years went by, I went to two different GYN's that told me that it was "PMS" and the other one told me that I had "cysts" on my ovaries and that I should take " the pill" to help. He said that the cysts would go away in time. In the twelfth year, it was hitting me at least once or twice a month. I thought that something was wrong with my intestines because the pain was in my lower back on down into my buttocks. It was so debilitating that I could not move, I sweat and felt as though I was going to vomit and often felt like I would faint.

I went to a gastroenterologist and he did those "awful" tests on me and came to the conclusion that it was in my "female organs" and that I should go to a GYN that he suggested. That was an enlightening experience for me. After going to the GYN's that I had been to, QUACKS IN MY ESTIMATION, I thought to myself "here we go". I made the appointment and I was totally amazed at the knowledge and caring that he showed me. He told me that I either had fibroids or endometriosis and that he would like to do a laparoscopy. In 1999, I had that surgery done and he found that I was covered in endometriosis.

About 7 or 8 months went by and I started to feel like "lava" was oozing through my stomach so I called him back and he had me come in for a sonogram. It was back and it covered my ovaries and uterus. It was everywhere. We talked about having a hysterectomy and since I was not married anymore and wasn’t in a committed relationship and that I was not going to have any more children, he said that he thought a hysterectomy was the only option. Not being well informed about the whole procedure, I agreed, thinking "well, I won't need to worry about getting pregnant again if I do get married". He told me that I would not even know that I had a hysterectomy. HA!! I must be the one in a million. I am glad that I did have it but, boy, I KNOW I had one!!

He kept me off of anything for three months to ensure that the endometriosis was" dead". My family suffered along with me. I live in the same home with my mother, sister and her son and of course my daughter. The whole time I did not have any hormones I was not myself. I was a maniac!! My doctor finally gave me some estrogen pills. They didn’t work. He gave me like seven or eight different ones and none of them worked. I had hot flashes every night, sleeplessness, I almost had a breakdown. I was mean to everyone, even strangers and that was not me.

Finally, he said that I might get better effectiveness off of a patch. So he gave me two different patches and because they were so big, I didn’t really like them. Finally, he told me about the Estraderm patch. It is smaller and stays stuck onto where I place it and I CAN SLEEP THE NIGHT THROUGH! Most nights anyways.

I still have pains but after going and having sonograms done a few times, he came to the conclusion that it must be the scar tissue that I have. I am just thankful that I am better, so to say, since I did have the hysterectomy and that the people that I was so mean to love me , still.................I hope that my story will help to enlighten some of you as to your choices.

 

Date of Posting: 20 May 2010
Posted By: Joan 39
El Paso, Texas

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