Tuesday 29 April 2014

Endo Complications; Bowels

There are numerous symptoms and side effects –aside from pain associated with endometriosis and they can individually or all at the same time cause extreme discomfort and pain.

One of those side effects is bowel complications.

Though endometriosis is predominantly concentrated in the pelvis, it can also spread to other areas around the body from the bladder to the brain – though this is very rare. The most common areas it spreads to that cause the most complications include the bowels.

When endo occurs on or around the bowels, it generally happens in two ways. It either appears on the outside of the bowel and attaches it to a different organ or the pelvic wall, which alters the natural shape and movement of the bowels or it constricts the bowel itself so that the space becomes too small for waste to pass through comfortably. It also causes complications by infiltrating the bowel, thereby creating problems inside the bowel passage. These issues can go from being uncomfortable to downright painful so having suffered from some of these complications, I have written out my coping methods below.

Water
Along with regular exercise, I think this has been the most important factor in regulating and removing pain from bowel movements. I drink at least 2lts of water a day, along with numerous cups of tea. I have found that it has helped to soften stool and make the process a lot less painful, if you have bowel problems then you probably get those involuntary cramps in your stomach and pelvis when you go to use the bathroom. Water has greatly helped e with these cramps as I now don’t get them as often and they are a lot less painful when I do.

Fibre
I’m sure anyone with any kind of bowel problems has heard that fiber is the great cure for constipation or blockages. What they often forget to mention is that eating too much fiber can cause exactly the same problems and exacerbate a pre-existing condition, especially if you have a sedentary lifestyle, like a lot of endo sufferers do due to pain. Fibre is obviously a necessary part of regular bowel movements and helps to reduce pain associated with constipation due to endo in/on the bowel however this is only if it is taken with a lot of water which it can then absorb to make it easier to pass through the bowel with other foods.

Exercise
Though this might be the toughest part in trying to manage bowel complications. I find that it really helps with regular movements, which will help reduce long-term pain. Even a walk a day, anything from 10 minutes to an hour makes a difference as long as you work your lower half as it helps to physically move the waste through your system instead of relying only on peristalsis. This also helps to strengthen your internal muscles, which helps when passing food.

.        Exercises for your bottom half – squats, lunges, yoga, walking, jogging.

Aloe vera and Green Tea
This is a personal favorite of mine. My mother suggested this for months on end literally when I started complaining about the constant pain I had due to my difficulties using the bathroom but the taste, goodness the taste! I couldn’t face it because the experimental sip I had had in the past made me gag and worked facial muscles I had never felt before.  I find that it helps settle my stomach and subsequently the pain in my pelvis. I have read up on it a little and apparently the polyphenols in green tea and aloe vera help to reduce inflammation- one of the main causes of endo related pain, this in turn I presume reduces inflammation around the bowels and makes it easier for waste to pass through.

This can be a little difficult to fins, so click here to see a link I found on amazon

Saturday 26 April 2014

Hang in there

When you have endometriosis, it's amazing how quickly your body can turn on you. How quickly you can go from having a great morning to a pain filled afternoon.  I’ve found that on those days it’s better to take a second, an hour, whatever you need and let it be. Getting frustrated somehow just seems to aggravate the pain, so if you’ve had or are having a tough time – especially after all the Easter celebrations. Take a breath, you’ve probably earned it.

Wednesday 16 April 2014

The 5 (or 6) stages of Endometriosis

Receiving a diagnosis for endometriosis will generally cause a flurry of emotions, running the gambit from mild confusion to eerie calm or mild hysteria.

I had spent the majority of my life as an athlete, eating healthily and staying fit were priorities for me and in one afternoon, I was informed that it hadn’t mattered at all. The body I had worked to keep fit had let me down and was falling apart and I came to know it intimately.

It was only after I abstractedly reached the end of the process that I realized that my process for coming to terms with the situation had closely mirrored the stages of grief.


Disappointment
While this is not generally part of the recognized stages of grief, it was a distinct and momentarily crushing part of my process. I had researched endometriosis amongst other possibilities for my symptoms and while cancer is infinitely scarier and more serious, the confirmation of endometriosis after finding a cyst was the most likely and as a result the most dreaded.

Denial
Despite hours of research and despite the fact that endometriosis was by all accounts the least life threatening- in an end your life kind of way, not make your life miserable kind of way. I still couldn’t process it. I decided that while I had endometriosis, it couldn’t be that bad. They would go in, drain the cyst, cut out the endo tissue and I would be done. Finished. Healed. Back to normal… Lets just say I spent a while on this part.

Anger/Fear
There is no cure. There is no cure? There is no cure! Seriously? Seriously! What do they mean there is no cure? Of course there is no cure they don’t care. I mean seriously? There’s no cure? And so it went, over and over and round and round. In truth I knew the anger masked the fear slithering through me. Would I be a weaker person now that I had a condition? I worked in a fast paced industry and even if I didn’t, being in pain and on constant medication was incomprehensible.

Bargaining

I didn’t bargain.

I don’t know why.

Maybe I was too busy being angry and afraid.

Depression
It felt like punishment. Rationality and logic lived on another planet and the feeling of helplessness was insidious and for a few weeks I wallowed. This particular stage hit me at different times, right at the beginning, when I was in denial and even after acceptance. It comes and goes albeit to a much lesser extent and I have learnt to treat it as good days and bad days. On bad days I try a little harder.

Acceptance
And here I am. Acceptance. Accepting… with the nuanced and evolving – if untreated, nature of endometriosis. I’m sure I’ll be dealing with this stage for at least the rest of my pre-menopausal life.


Bringing me to the first stage of the pain toolkit by Pete Moore, which gives an action plan for living with chronic pain. I will post about this next week, if you would like to check it out in the meantime click here.


What process did you use or are you currently using to accept that you have endometriosis?


x

Monday 14 April 2014

Downtime: Websites for when you're stuck in bed

Now while having chronic pain does not necessarily mean being stuck in bed all the time, indeed on a beautiful day like today, I hope no-one is stuck in bed. I thought I would put together some websites that are quite entertaining for those especially tough days when you are.

Buzzfeed





This website is great for distractions, it's one of those places where you can easily spend hours without realising it.

Great for: Quizzes such as Which U.S. President Are You? and Who Said It: Kanye West Or A Teenage Girl On Twitter that will keep you going for a while.


Hellogiggles



Written predominantly by women, Hellogiggles has everything from articles on body-image to nail tutorials to opinion pieces on war torn areas.

Great for: Smart tongue-in-cheek articles on everything...literally.


 Netflix




While this is the only paid website on the list, I really do think it's worth it for the amount of movies and TV shows - both cancelled and ongoing that are available to watch. If you're not sure where to start Fringe and House of Cards are my top two.

Great for: Cancelled or finished shows as most seasons from the beginning will be available. Also great for watching the first film in a trilogy when you are about to see the sequel at the cinema!

What are some of your favourite sites when you need downtime?

Friday 11 April 2014

Downtime : Pain Management


Downtime: Pain Management

Hello! I hope you are enjoying a pain free day, but for those days when you aren’t. Here are three ideas that might help ease the pain a little.

1.     Walking
The idea of getting out of bed when you suffer from chronic pain can sometimes be quite daunting, but if you can manage to do it, taking a little walk – even just around the house can really lift your mood and help make your body stronger.  If you aren’t up for a walk however, then it might be easier to try my next suggestion in the comfort of your bedroom.

2.     Stretching/ Yoga
I find that if I do some stretches first thing in the morning, I feel a lot better during the day with a lot more energy and with a lot less sharp pains in my pelvic area where my endo is the worst.

Here are some regular poses in my routines:

Cobra Pose



  
Click on this link for step-by-step directions

Reclined Hero Pose


Click on this link for step-by-step directions
* when following the guide, stop at step 4 if carrying on is too difficult.

Seated Wide Legged Straddle



Click on this link for step-by-step directions



Joy Thru Yoga has some more great poses for endometriosis as well as in-depth information about each pose and its effects. Click here to see more.

What are some of your options for dealing with chronic pain? 

Monday 7 April 2014

Errm... What?


Well it looks like you might have endometriosis…

If you’ve just heard those words from your doctor, here are some pointers we hope will help.

First off, don’t be scared, be attentive - in all doctors’ appointments and then be proactive. Endometriosis is an extremely individual condition and there is so much to learn about it, so start finding out as much as you can; go online, make notes about your symptoms and ask your doctors as many questions as you can think of about anything you want to know regarding the condition.

Next thing to do is to join as many communities as you deem worthy and necessary for support because even with the best family and friends in the world, sometimes you’ll need people that actually understand. Failing that sometimes you just won’t want to tell your parents, siblings, significant other, friends etc… that yes, you are in pain again and that none of the usual things are working and you feel like crap. The people you meet in these forums will give you advice, support and information you just can’t get anywhere else. 

After this, you have to become confident. You will go to appointments where they will make you feel stupid… One of the first doctors I saw tried to refer me to a psychiatrist because ‘there was nothing wrong with my body’, so it will be up to you to convince them that you know your body so you know when something is wrong. They might have studied anatomy but your body belongs to you, you’ve had it your whole life…you know it better than they do.

Finally, find some hope, because when you go online after hearing the word endometriosis yours is going to be in very short supply. Some days will suck and beat you down, you might spend some days on so much medication you won’t know your own name and then some days you’ll be so pissed off and in pain you’ll wonder what you did to deserve this. The answer is nothing, you didn’t cause this and it isn’t punishment.  If you have any of those types of days or any kind of day really, feel free to come hang out here because endo sucks, but life doesn’t have to. 

What kind of day are you having?