Coping with severe period pain at work

[Sweetcandles12]

Hi all

I work full time and my job role is quite active and in the NHS so I’m not able to sit down much. I’ve recently been suffering awful cramps since my coil was fitted a few months ago and now no pain relief will work. I’m worried that my issues and sickness are so bad that they are going to fire me. So at the moment I can’t keep track of when the pain will come on, it’s totally random, period type pain through the month and then even worse in the months where a period is actually due. Im sitting here at the moment with my hot water bottle having taken 2 types of pain relief (I know they don’t even work but thought I would try). Please can someone help me get through my 8 hour shifts daily. I get a 30 minute lunch break per day but I can’t just run off in pain without someone noticing. I’ve been crying in the staff room, hiding in the toilets etc. Occupational health know about my gynaecology issues as I’ve had a lot of sickness. Should I expect to be fired soon? What are my rights? My manager is not very helpful as she is so busy and to be fair I don’t even know what I’m asking for. If pain relief doesn’t work then I don’t know how they could help. Should I have the coil removed? I’ve had it for 2 months. I originally had it for painful periods because I can’t take the pill or any other method due to bleeding all the time as a side effect. Will the coil pain settle down soon? Please tell me some positive stories...thank you

You need to see a gynaecologist because this type of problem can be due to endometriosis. It is a common cause of both severe and ongoing period pain.

In the message keep a daily pain and symptoms diary noting everything.

Are you in Unison?.

The gynaecologist put the coil in under general anaesthetic. She told me that she didn’t think it was endometriosis but even if it was she would just recommend a coil anyway to treat it. I’ve spoken to my GP who was lovely, she’s written a letter to the gynaecologist and she said we will see what she says back. Unfortunately the pain tablets she gave me also haven’t worked. Im dreading work tomorrow 😞. No I’m not with a union at the moment. I don’t even know what I would be asking from my employer, it’s not like I know when the pain is going to come on. The thing is they hired me to work 8 hours per day 5 days per week, if I’m not able to do that without going home sick then the only option they will have once I breach the trigger points is to sack me. I feel so awkward as well, some of my colleagues have been a bit annoyed about me being off. I have had an operation too and was off, just makes me feel awful going back because to be honest no one cares. They don’t care if you were just in hospital they just want you to do your work.

Have you tried a high concentrate cbd oil?

It's the only thing that works for me.

I know just what this is like. My pain was eventually diagnosed as endometriosis.

There is no answer other than to get it diagnosed. I used to take far more painkillers than was good for me just to get through the day. I'd wake at 4am in pain so was coping with lack of sleep. The pain sometimes almost made me pass out.

Don't let them fob you off with a coil. Keep going back.

@cataline no I’ve never heard of it. How do you take it? I could give it a try

[quote Sweetcandles12]@cataline no I’ve never heard of it. How do you take it? I could give it a try[/quote]
It's an oil in a dropper bottle and you put a few drops under your tongue. It's like a miracle cure for me.

I use the 30% one from the cbd guru U.K. website. It's not cheap but it's the only thing that touches the pain and utter misery.

Which coil did you have fitted?

@Anordinarymum it was the mirena coil

I'm shocked. I have it and it changed my life. I'm sorry it is causing you pain. Do you think it needs some time to settle in?

I have heard that after the settling in period it is great for a lot of women. My friend just had one and she said she had no pain. I’m just waiting for this settling in period to stop and I’m hoping it will be good to me over the next few years. Just need to find a way to cope with the pain until then but my plan is to try it for 6 months and if I’m still in pain I’ll have it removed.

I work in HR for an NHS trust - would recommend you ask for an up to date OCC Health referral for advice on whether your condition would be considered a disability, and any recommendations for reasonable adjustments. You might want to check your employer's absence policy as they would likely have a trigger point where you would be invited for a sickness meeting, if this is formal you can have a union rep or colleague with you. You might also want to think about what kind of adjustments might help you to remain in work/improve your attendance if possible - this could be flexibility with working hours/duties, reduction in hours, additional breaks etc. Your employer needs to make reasonable adjustments if you have a disability but ultimately they can dismiss you for poor attendance. They can dismiss you for any reason (unless discriminatory) if you have less than 2 years service as well but IME most trusts are reluctant to do this. HTH

I'm sorry you're suffering.

Your gynaecologist doesn't sound impressive, I'm afraid. On what basis does she think it isn't endometriosis? On the information you've given it sounds like a good contender, and it can't be ruled out without a laparoscopy.

If it is endometriosis, the coil isn't the gold standard treatment. The treatment with the best success rate is currently excision performed by a specialist, i.e. somebody at one of the centres accredited by the BSGE. As it seems your job is at risk, it would be worth getting a referral to one of these for a second opinion as quickly as you can - I don't think they would take the line your gynaecologist is taking, and it may be that good surgery would give you more relief.

If you can stretch to it, it might be worth a private appointment to speed things up.

Good luck.

@Bedraggled2020 thank you for the advice was very helpful

@AreYouCursed thank you for the reply. This is the thing she’s under the impression that endometriosis only starts in adulthood. I told her that I’ve always had bad periods. This is untrue as afterwards I was thinking about it and the severe period and ovulation pain only started in my late teens, so around 19. My period started when I was 11. I felt put on the spot when she was asking me questions. I meant that as long as I remember I’ve always had bad period pain but I don’t remember having bad pain at school. I don’t know whether to go back and explain this or to get a referral to a new gynaecologist. Anyway any referral will probably take months. I’ve heard that the coil helps with period pain. I’m just waiting I suppose to see if it does eventually help.

I have a mirena coil and had the same for the first few months. I would recommend trying to cope with it for a bit longer as it made a huge difference to my quality of life once it had settled down. I had it for heavy periods and they almost completely stopped. My periods were heavy and lasting two weeks and reduced to just a little bit of spotting every couple of months.

Oh dear, that's completely incorrect. It shouldn't make a difference what you answer to that question - it could be endometriosis either way.
I wouldn't stick with that gynaecologist. She clearly isn't a specialist and doesn't know much about the condition. She's unlikely to have the necessary surgical skills for a type of surgery that can be complex. There are big differences between outcomes between surgeons, so you want a specialist.
If I were worried my job might be at risk, I would be pushing for a a referral to one of these places: www.bsge.org.uk/centre/

Sorry to hear you are suffering like this. Somewhat depressing to hear your gynaecologist is so badly informed. Endometriosis can definitely start in your teens. I was first investigated for it at about 20, but I noticed I seemed to be coping worse with period pain than contemporaries by 16. Paracetamol fixed them but didn't touch what I was feeling. I was 35 before endometriosis was diagnosed and treated - golly that made a difference. It sounds like your GP is on your side, getting an endo diagnosis can be hard and you have to keep pushing - far too many doctors are not well informed. Good luck!