Endometriosis won't run my life
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Last summer we had taken a month long trip to see family and friends. It was such a great time but I felt like 90% of the trip I was cramping. This was so strange and weird for me. I also felt like by the end of most days I was looking like I was 3 months pregnant. I felt bloated, tired and in so much pain most days, all I could do was crawl into bed and put my heat pack on. Plus I was consistently breaking out around my chin. After doing TONS of research I came to find out that I was suffering from “endo-belly,” the gluten and sugar, in combination with my endometriosis, was wreaking havoc on my body.
Let me explain what endometriosis is: it is “a condition resulting from the appearance of endometrial tissue outside the uterus and causing pelvic pain.” And because of this the tissue can also attach to the organs near the uterus. Not only were my periods excruciating but it was becoming a daily pain.
Growing up my periods were so erratic and unpredictable, I counted it as lucky and didn’t think anything of it. Ten years ago I had had laparoscopic surgery for a dermoid and found that I had a substantial amount of scar tissue from my endometriosis. The doctors lasered it all the endometriosis and 6 months later I was able to get pregnant plus two more pregnancies. I had never thought twice about my endometriosis returning or ever having so much pain in my body from it.
More research lead me to learn how gluten, dairy and sugar can really exacerbate the pain and symptoms of endometriosis. So I started to cut gluten and sugar. I had already learned from personal experience that my body does not handle dairy well. Any time I would have ice cream, even if it was a small scoop I could guarantee a huge zit the next day. As I started to eliminate the gluten I felt lighter and I didn’t have any stomach issues. I then was introduced to the book, Woman Code and this was an eye opening book as to how a woman’s body works with hormones and what happens when those hormones are out of wack. Alissa Vitta herself suffered from hormonal issues and many of her frustrations were my same frustrations. I too, suffered from facial hair and body hair, the irregular periods and the frustrations of wanting to fix the problem not just the symptom. This is a book that I will defiantly share with my girls when the time is right. My main takeaway was that if something in your body doesn’t feel right, do your research and find out everything you can about it. We are so lucky to have the internet to accessible now!
I had several appointments with my gynecologist and she was open to the discussion that my endometriosis could possibly be helped by diet. Her other suggestions were to switch my IUD and to do another laparoscopic surgery. I am not sure that I want to have to count on a surgery every ten years to clear up the endometriosis. So I decided to take the approach right now of sticking to a diet that is gluten, dairy and sugar free. I may in the future decide to have surgery. I am very wary of it because the surgery itself could cause more scar tissue.
My body is very susceptible to gluten and I can guarantee painful cramping if I eat too much. I am sure there are many other foods that my body is sensitive to but I will take it one day at a time and really notice how my body reacts to certain foods. That’s one of the main benefits I’ve found of being in sync with your body I know what happens when I eat certain foods. I can say though that by sticking to a diet free of sugar, gluten and dairy I feel so much better. My skin is clear, my body doesn’t ache and I am able to do what I want to. I’m not perfect but I do try very hard. Much like life, it is a journey and I will be mindful and deliberate with what I put into my body.
I am sharing my journey because I want to help others who may be suffering and not know where to start or what to do. I needed and still need to be pain free, for myself, for my husband and for my kids. Hope this helps!
I'll be sharing more tips along my journey!
Love and beauty,
Jaclyn