Endometriosis

I suffered for endometriosis for years not knowing why I was in so much pain. I wasn't diagnosed with it until my laparoscopy in 2012. Because we were trying to get pregnant at that time I couldn't take any of the medications that help it. The goal was to get pregnant and that would help the endometriosis. It was really frustrating because I couldn't get pregnant and that is what was going to help my pain AND I was suffering from the pain of not having a baby. I just want other girls that suffer from endometriosis to know there is hope out there. If you aren't trying to get pregnant you can get on medications. If you are trying to get pregnant just try to be patient(trust me I KNOW this is very very difficult) as you work with your doctors. I also suggest that you find a doctor you completely trust and feel confident in. I switched doctors after about a year and now I am free of my endometriosis pains and going through an IVF cycle. Dr. Foulk is a very good doctor. He is also in the process of bringing IVF to St.George which will be a blessing for those of you in southern Utah. We have been able to do ultrasounds and blood work in St. George but travel to Utah Fertility Center in Pleasant Grove for everything else. Here is a post from their website on Endometriosis.
http://utahfertility.com/2012/12/06/endometriosis-salt-lake-city-utah/

Endometriosis is a condition where tissue from the lining of the uterus is found in other locations such as the pelvis. This endometrial tissue can be found most commonly around the outside of the uterus, surrounding the tubes, or even within the ovaries. In rare circumstances, the tissue has been found in the chest cavity or even within an abdominal scar.

There are several theories as to how the endometrial tissue gets to the abnormal locations causingendometriosis. The oldest and most accepted theory is by Sampson in which he hypothesized that some of the menstrual fluid travels through the fallopian tubes and into the pelvis. The fluid then begins to grow in the new location in response to hormones each month. Other common theories include the movement of the tissue from the uterus via the blood or lymphatic system to distant sites; another theory is the transition of normal tissues to resemble the abnormal endometrial tissue. Current areas of investigation include the roll of the immune system in the development of endometriosis.

Endometriosis can cause pain, inflammation, and infertility. The location of pain from endometriosis depends on where the abnormal tissue implants are. Some women will experience pain with their menses and others experience pain all of the time. Endometriosis causes infertility by two ways. First, it causes an immunological response that promotes a hostile environment for the egg, sperm, and embryos in the pelvis. Secondly, endometriosis is an inflammatory condition, which can destroy the normal pelvic architecture that facilitates egg pick up by the fallopian tube.

Endometriosis symptoms can be treated with either medications or surgical treatment. If you are trying to become pregnant, than you are not able to use the medications used to treat endometriosis and therefore only surgical treatment would be used to treat severe pain. Even surgical treatment has a very limited roll in the treatment of infertility associated with endometriosis. If you are not trying to become pregnant, there are many effective medications that can be used to control the pain and inflammation associated with endometriosis. Surgery would only be used when your symptoms are refractory to the medications.

If a woman has mild endometriosis, often she is successful in achieving pregnancy with controlled ovarian hyperstimulation along with inseminations. Women with severe endometriosis achieve the greatest success with in-vitro fertilization.