I have endo. I had classic symptoms from the onset of menses. But due to not having anybody to talk to (pre Internet days, abusive home) didn't know there was anything wrong with my periods until about a year in when I collapsed with anaemia at school.
Mum collected me and took me home and then a couple of days later to GP.
I now know the symptoms I told him of were textbook endo.
He put me on the pill. At the time I was grateful as it did reduce the symptoms.
A couple of years later the pill stopped working, saw a different GP, explained the issues (again much of this would have been describing text book endo symptoms - she put me on a different pill. Seemed to do help a little.
A few years later I fell pregnant while on the pill. The day after I poas I mc.
Even though I was young, it was unplanned I was still heartbroken. In all likelihood had I not mc I'd have kept the baby.
Mc was complete no hospital admission required according, again, to a GP.
After the symptoms of the mc settled I was back on by now my 3rd pill brand.
For the next 5 years the cycle repeated. X brand pill would help for a while, then symptoms would worsen, would go to GP and be put on a different brand.
Then I read a magazine article about period problems. The précis of endo was me to a T.
I took the article with me to the GP and said this exactly matches my symptoms. Could this be what's wrong with me?
I was laughed at and given benign reasons for each individual symptom, prescribed yet another brand of pill.
At this point I was planning my wedding and thinking forward to ttc.
The article has said endo can make conception and maintaining a pregnancy difficult.
My new husband and I a few years later decided to ttc.
Before stopping the pill I went to...my GP.
Where I was basically told
Again - that I was being ridiculous for thinking I had endo.
That the symptoms treated by the pill would likely return by my coming off it to ttc but that was just the way it was I'd have to hope I fell pregnant quickly and that would stop my periods and ovulation of course.
I fell pregnant fairly quickly, seemed to be going well until I was at a social event and had a severe sharp pain in my stomach that wouldn't go, I went to the loo to find I was bleeding.
My husband took me to the hospital where a scan revealed another mc and it was suspected it was a partially ectopic pregnancy.
I was admitted for surgery. During the surgery the ectopic pregnancy was removed and a d&c performed.
But the surgeon also found...endo.
They closed me for that surgery then talked to me about further surgery to try and remove as much of the endo as might be there as possible.
I cried and the surgeon mistakenly thought I was crying at perceived bad news, but mostly it was relief.
Relief that I finally had a diagnosis
Relief I wasn't going mad
Relief I could no longer be fobbed off on this issue
Relief I would finally get treatment
Relief that with treatment I may be able to become a mother (though I knew it wasn't guaranteed)
I went on to have 2 more surgeries and medical treatment and to be a mum.
I also had problems with symptoms again, but the difference in how I was treated both medically and as a person was huge.
I had 14 years of being fobbed off, looked at askance, laughed at, patronised, dismissed...
When what SHOULD have happened is just for ONE of those GP's to listen, to realise there WAS a problem there.
For them to refer me to a gynae who would have done the tests necessary and I would hope they'd have found what was wrong and treated it.
This would have avoided
The loss of 3 babies
14 years of (even while on the pill) painful heavy periods, nausea, back pain, diarrhoea, ovulation pain, migraine, anaemia, and painful sex.
What's been your experience of getting a diagnosis for
Endo
Pcos
Fibroids
ovarian cysts
and others?
Were you taken seriously and listened to or did you have to fight just for that?