The first time I knew something was wrong...

[Tomato_Stalk]

Hi everyone!

I wanted to share with you all the story of my first experience with my endometriosis (un-diagnosed but hopefully rectifying that in the next couple of weeks!).

I was only about 13 years old when the worst period of my life hit me mid week at home while I was helping my mum cook dinner for the family. I remember getting my usual unpleasant left-side-centric (isn't the English language amazing you can just make up words and people know what you mean! Haha) cramps and thinking 'ach you bloody little shites' while I just got on with chopping the veg and setting the table. No pun intended.

Anyway, my cramps just got... worse. And worse. I ended up pacing the kitchen floor and my mum eventually told me to go upstairs and lie down - essentially sleep it off. I crawled into bed, but had to push the covers off because I began sweating so much. Before I knew it I was writhing in pain, this sickening, nauseating pain. If I didn't know better I would have said I was having contractions on top of it all. It came in excruciating waves, and in between the waves I would have a precious few seconds of relief where I would try and recover and calm myself as much as possible. I had hot sweats then I had cold sweats. Eventually I didn't have the energy to cope, and passed out from the pain. I actually lost consciousness! Never in my life had I experience pain so bad that I literally passed out from it.

I've had this experience about 6 - 10 times in my life, thankfully no more and none since I received the Mirena as it halted my periods for about 5 years, to 'save my uterus and keep my fertility'. I have pain during sex, but it's not dreadful, and only occasionally does sex trigger bleeding and cramps.

One question I'd like to ask anyone reading this who also has endo - after horrendous cramps and when they finally subside, do you feel an overwhelming sense of happiness and relief? I get it almost every time, and once I'm pain free I usually feel so ecstatic that it's gone I usually do some baking or hang out with my family. Haha.

Anyway, that's my story.