Update

Hello lovelies!

Yes, it has been a while since I have written a post - life has been pretty hectic until a few days ago. Study was full on but now that my exam is done and over with I am free until next year!

So, what am I going to be doing for the next collation of months coming up until I start study again? Well, well, well. The most exciting of times - new experiences! In the next couple of weeks I will be travelling to Fiji to stay for a week with my father, step mum and little brothers. Of course, I have to factor endo into this. To cover all my bases, I’m taking my medicine in their original packaging which has my name on it to prove they are mine and also a doctors note verifying this just in case I get questioned on it. Better to be safe than sorry! Also need to check if I can take my wheat pack into the country. Would like to have all necessities just in case I have an endo attack as I’m sure all endo ladies could agree with.

I am also working at the moment in a small local law office which I love so much. The people that I work with are amazing and are so great at giving advice, teaching me new things about the law and generally showing me the ropes of how a law office runs. What I mainly do is scan documents, man the reception desk and go on general errands like getting mail and food (who could forget the food). My contract is for a limited time, so I may also soon be on the lookout for full time work to save up that money for university. Plus it would be nice to do some more room renovations!

In terms of endo, I’ve been handed a pretty good stick at the moment. Last night I got a decent amount of pain and nausea which cleared by this morning in time for work, which was very lucky. It may sound strange, but I can tell that my endo is growing back, especially on my bowels. It’s the same pain I felt for years before my surgery and has only just started to come back in full force, whenever it decides to cause me discomfort. It sucks knowing that I will need to have another surgery in the near future, especially since I want to study and travel and have nothing holding me back any more than it already has. But I am doing the best that I can with what I have at the moment and all that I’m doing now is preparing me for the moment when my specialist tells me I need another surgery.

Hope this quick update will suffice for now! Until next time (and a much longer and better written post) keep smiling lovely people and catch you later! 

Love Brie xx

Medication For Endometriosis

Hello lovelies,

There are so many options to attempt decreasing the pain that endometriosis can bring to you everyday. Natural or pharmaceutical, trying multiple things lift your chance of finding a solution to live as pain free as possible. Now, in terms of what to discuss with your doctor, I would air caution around this one. Unless you have acquired yourself an alternative doctor, stick strictly to the pharmaceutical side of things with your GP. From my experience, that’s the side that they stick to and are familiar with, the rest like your diet, natural remedies etc are left up to you. They don’t really have much to say on that side of things. Of course you can tell them if you are on a new endo diet, they will choose wether to listen or not. It can be frustrating when they don’t exactly listen and take notice to it, but always consider it a bonus when they type it out in your medical notes. Going on the alternative treatments is something that you will have to monitor yourself. 

In terms of pharmaceuticals, I say this; question everything. From my experience, there can be way more side effects than what a drug can actually fix. Do your research and despite popular opinion, do search google - but get your information from reliable sources. I cannot count how many times I have been told not to trust the internet but for myself, most times it has been correct. Except Web MD, I don’t like that website at all. A slight side effect and all of a sudden I have 2 months to live. Not good. Remember that doctors are heavily influenced by drug reps, so always be speculative and always get an answer on what a drug is, what it does, and what to do in case of an emergency after you take it. After all, you are putting more chemicals into your body. You need to know exactly what is going on. And document it! Have a diary where you write down what drugs you take and what day and time you took them. It takes a lot of effort to do, especially when you’re feeling quite under the weather but it is so important.

For myself in terms of pain relief that helps relieve whatever endo decides to throw at me, I have the Mirena IUD, am on the pill (contraceptive), amitriptyline, panadol and ibuprofen. At first the Mirena caused me some pain, I’d say around a couple of months and I had contraction like pain as one would experience going through labour. Now it’s just the matter of keeping the pain at bay with the Mirena, contraceptive and pain killers.

Finding what works for you really is a process of elimination and it can be a very very long process but it is worth it when you feel the pain lifting from your pelvis and anywhere else the pain may be lingering. Going to your doctor is worth the money to figure out what will be the best pain relief.

Much love,

Brie xx