Anybody else developed Endo after C Difficile?

[Lizbot79]

Hi all

I’m new to this and fear I’m at the beginning of my Endo journey!

I’m 38 and have always had painful and heavy periods.

Around 14 months ago, I was flooding and in a lot of pain and a smear test showed that I had a cervical polyp. I had this removed and things went okay for a while.

I was diagnosed with C Diff in July and since August, have horrendous pain and flatuence from the first day of my period for around 10 days.

The pain isn’t period cramps - it’s a sharp pain in my left side and reaches to the top of my leg. I’m finding it quite debilitating

We’ve been TTC for 14 months with no joy so my GP is now referring me to gynae and told me he suspects Endo (I’ve had 2 x scans on ovaries and all clear)

I’m petrified; firstly that I’m going to be infertile and secondly, all of the medical procedures that I’ll face

Just wondering what others’ experiences are, both with regards to fertility and the medical procedures to determine what’s wrong. I’d also be interested to know whether anybody else has developed Endo after C Diff

Thanks for listening!

[andie1307]

Hi Lizbot79, I just had to reply to your post as I too had cdiff(over 3 years ago now) and I am also an endo sufferer. First of all well done for recovering from cdiff, that is one nasty bug and can mess up your system for a long time after(it did mine!).

I’ll try and make my story short. I have always had excruciating and heavy periods(I missed a lot of school, was sent home from work as an adult etc.) But somehow I dealt with it. Scans were always clear so.. I thought it is just the way it is for me. I first fell pregnant at 30(no problems concieving) and had to have a csection (big baby not in an ideal position). That is when it all went wrong for me. Once periods came back, they were much worse. I had to have a lot of antibiotics post csection(hence the cdiff). I lost lots of weight, became very run down, the periods were still horrendous( at this point I bled about half of each month). My gyn finally decided to do a laparoscopy and hysteroscopy to chceck what is causing my pain and bleeding. And they found endo and lots of adhesions. My endo is in POD(pouch of Douglas) and uterosacral ligaments. (All behind the uterus). My ovaries were fine, that is why nothing was ever seen on the scans.

So in my case I think I have always had endo, it just became much worse after the pregnancy/section and possibly cdiff. I have not heard of cdiff causing endo as such, however it is a very serious infection which takes a toll on the immune system, so could maybe make preexisting conditions worse?

Your GYN will probably first do some scans / MRI to see what is going on. Endo can only be officially diagnosed with a look inside (laparoscopy). It is a good sign that your ovaries a clear ( no visible cysts).

You mention the pain is on the left hand side - that is also where the descending colon / sigmoid is. This can still be inflamed after the cdiff and can be pushing on nerves/organs close to it. Maybe you could have that investigated too? Inflammation can be checked with a simple blood test and bowel with a sigmoidoscopy ( I had to have that too - 5 min procedure, it was not painful).

I wish you all the best and I hope doctors can sort you out ASAP so that you can have your family

My endo did not cause me any fertility issues due to its location, I think. I fell pregnant the second time with no problems either (and this time with one blocked tube etc.) . There is always hope! Good luck !

( sorry this is so long but hope it helps a bit...)

[Lizbot79 in reply to andie1307]

Thank you, this is really informative. I ended up ringing 111 in the early hours of this morning and saw an out of hours GP. I tested positive for a uti so I’m now on antibiotics (making sure I take probiotics at the same time!). Still in agony but hopefully this is more to do with the UTI. Thank you for taking the time to reply

[foursimplewords]

Interesting. I previously had GI test run and it showed C diff genes were present. I'm awaiting a lap re. suspected endo.

[AJJ123]

I went to Eastern Europe a few years back and came home, I was bedridden for three weeks with what I believe could have been this. I never had a period for three months after and I was diagnosed with stage three endo in August - I was never the same after then. Could this have been c diff?xx

[Rdb322]

Hi my name is rachel. I myself have had cdiff twice. First time when I was 29 then again a yr later. Ever since then my body has not been the same. Especially my periods. I just now started looking for answers to why my cramps hurt so bad while trying to go number 2 during menstruation. The pain is so severe I feel like I'm either going to puke or pass out. I have always wondered if it was associated with having cdiff. But I have not gone to a dr to see what's wrong. I have been summing it up my painful periods to my body changing because I'm getting older. But in the last year I have notice weight gain, severe breakouts and not just my face but my back. And lower back pain that never goes away. I am going to call my dr and se if they can give me some answers. But I really think I have endometriosis. And I strongly think the cdiff is what started all of this. Please message me back. I see this post was from 3yrs ago. Bit I had a breakdown today. The pain was so back I almost called 911. But I'm laying down with a heating pad and took some advil. The pain has subsided a little. But I'm trying to find answers online. I feel alone and lost. My boyfriend doesn't understand the pain. He thinks I have a low tolerance for pain or that I'm dramatic. But the pain is almost debilitating at times.