Helppp

[Tarac21]

Hi,I suffered with pelvic pain for 4years in and out of hospital with no explanation. I was filled up with high medication from the doctors. Then 12 months ago I was in hospital and they finally said I had endo. I then fell pregnant, the pain then subsided for a while. As soon as I had the baby 2 months later the pain came straight back. The doctor has put me back on morphine and tramadol but looking after a baby all day everyday it’s impossible to take :(. I just wonder if anyone else is in my situation and can give me some advice?

[MMary-Moderator]

Hi Tarac21,

I am sorry to hear you are suffering. In addition to the forum we also have our helpline and support groups if you ever need anyone to talk to: endometriosis-uk.org/get-su...

Best Wishes,

M Mary

Volunteer Moderator

Endometriosis UK

[KimPV]

Are you on the pill ? Or coil? These can help symptoms as it turns the ovaries off .

[applebird]

Hi there,

So sorry you're going through this, I'm going through a similar situation now, though the pain didn't come back really bad for about a year after the birth as I breast fed. In saying that I had caesarean recovery, some continued pain from endo and had a blocked bile duct as my gall bladder backed up once he was born. I was at times in excruciating pain (trying not to throw up/pass out) while lying on a bed feeding him, remember having to go down to the kitchen, closing the door and quite literally screaming, it was worse than labour. Had the mega drama of being rushed to hospital twice when he wasn't weaned and was refusing formula!! (then had day surgery, nightmare) Couldn't take any pain killers obviously beyond paracetamol as it could have been passed to him and as you say it makes you even more of a zombie... So I really get where you're coming from.

If you're on morphine it sounds like you should be booked for surgery? Aside from that I think the main thing you need is to stop your periods and let your body have a rest from the pain, either with back to back pill or something like prostap to induce a temporary menopause (don't worry it is totally reversible and if side effects are bad just stop taking it, most likely it will be much less hassle than you're having with the pain and provided you're bottle feeding you can take it ok). Lots of info on potential treatments here endo-resolved.com/treatment...

Just explain to your gp the issues you're having with taking pain meds and push for something to shut it all off if it is causing you this much pain.

Secondly there are a whole bunch of things that can make life easier in relation to handling pain and a newborn. Not advertising but will tell you the stuff that helped me (you may know a lot of this anyway).

* *Enlist lots of help* from family/partner, including batch cooking for yourselves and the baby, freezing stuff (I had my hubby doing this at night and wkends to keep on top of things especially when my son started eating solids; cooked once a week and then just defrosted the little pots to feed him most of the time until he was eating the same as us). We got a cleaner for 3hrs a wk (£20) on a short term basis to help with cleaning bathroom/kitchen/ironing as I wasn't well enough to stand for long periods.

* Despite all of this you will probably still be living in a semi bombsite, be in pain, exhausted and frustrated - so advice no. 2 is *leave the house*, do something relaxing, there are lots of mum and baby activities on throughout the week (maybe yoga?), so when you are up to it, abandon the house, go out talk to people and chill out as it will help your pain level - you'll be distracted and mentally will feel better.

* *Rest* all you can and don't overdo it with the baby - sleep when they sleep. My mum bought me a miraculous thing called a cacoonababy that settled my son for longer sleeps (he had been sleeping 20-30 mins at a time with reflux, he then slept for 3-7hrs at a time, they grow out of it at about 4 months but a sleepyhead might be an idea if your baby isn't settling, just to give you more rest. If you are bottle feeding and your partner is happy to, let him take over on alternate nights (or every night if you are in a lot of pain) and take as strong pain relief as you can before going to bed so you get a decent sleep. Another thing I found transformative was finding the perfect chair for my son (we tried 3-4 of them.... swinging, vibrating, all dancing) the one he was happiest in was the baby bjorn bouncer, he happily sat in that for 30-40 mins; I would set the chair in the bathroom and put him in it so I could shower and we'd chat and giggle; it was painful for me to carry him and the hot water and being refreshed helped me a lot.

If I think of anything else I will let you know, on the plus side you are almost at 3 months post birth so baba should begin to be less tiring beyond that. Really hope you get sorted with better treatment and begin to feel better. x