I am new here and thought I would make a post as I am a bit stuck on what to do. I am a nineteen year old woman and I know something is wrong with my body I can feel it and I feel so silly saying that but hopefully some of you will understand. I started my period at age nine which already seemed unusual to me. Throughout my whole life I have dealt with extremely painful and heavy periods which made me cry but none of my friends had this during school so I brushed it off. I feel like period pain has been so normalised it is difficult to know what is normal. However, with starting university I have had conversations with friends and none of them describe the intense throbbing pain I have. I had a conversation with a friend who is diagnosed with endometriosis and we have exactly the same symptoms. On a daily basis I experience sickness and sharp shooting pains in my lower abdomen and I can't deal with it anymore.
About two years ago I was sent to hospital with intense pain on my left side in my abdomen. They told me it could be a number of things such as my appendix or an ovarian cyst but nothing was done and I was sent home. Recently after doing lots of research on endometriosis I decided I needed to do something about it so I made a doctors appointment where they weren't so helpful (I went to the appointment with a list of my symptoms). They did however, schedule me for a blood test which happened but the results came back clear so it's kind of been left now and I'm stuck with what to do.
Any help is very appreciated, Thank you.
Written by
mwhitee
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Hello sorry to hear you are suffering, unfortunately it’s all too common for doctors to just shrug things off as they don’t know what to do! Just keep persisting keep going back to the doctors maybe with a different GP you know your body and know things aren’t right, it took me over 13 years of trying before I was finally listened to and given a laparoscopy, here if you need to talk x
Hi, thank you for your reply! It's so difficult because obviously you are meant to trust doctors but when you feel like they aren't listening it leaves you stuck. I'm so glad you were finally listened to. I will keep persisting with the doctors thank you so much! x
Welcome to the community! It's lovely to hear from you 😊
You absolutely do know if there is something wrong with your body. Nobody knows your body better than you! I'm sorry that you've been dealing with horrible periods all of this time and without proper treatment.
You must definitely book another appointment with your GP. Endometriosis UK have some excellent resources with advice on how best to approach the appointment. You can read info on Getting Diagnosed here: endometriosis-uk.org/gettin...
I would really recommend reading these tips, they helped me so I hope they will help you too.
Remember that experiencing period pain that prevents you from carrying out your usual activities is NOT normal. It's important to note that endometriosis cannot be diagnosed by a blood test or a scan, it can only be confirmed by having key-hole surgery. Please keep going until you find a doctor who takes your symptoms seriously and performs the necessary investigations to get to the route of the problem.
You're not alone, the community is here for you. Feel free to check in if you'd like more advice 💛
Hello, thank you so much for your response. I have now been referred for an ultrasound but I will keep persisting for help. I really appreciate your advice x
Trust yourself, and period pain isn’t normal even though it’s been normalised. Your level of discomfort isn’t right . Symptom diary really helps both you and your Dr see it laid out and will get it out of your head too. It’s hard to keep track of the shifting sands that can be endometriosis or other gynaecologic issues.
Hi, thank you for your reply! a symptom diary sounds like a very good idea I will be doing that so I can track it but also like you said a Doctor can see it all laid out. I appreciate your help x
Hi I am in a very similar situation myself, I am 18 (soon 19) and although I started my period when I was 14 they have been very painful ever since the begining and only getting worse every time. A few months ago I scheduled an appointment with my GP and talked about all of my symptoms but all she offered me was the contraceptive pill and said it might just be that my periods are more painful than others. This was very discouraging since I don't know anyone else who has had their periods like this and it felt like she didn't even care about checking the reason for my symptoms. I would have thought that at least they would offer a referral to a gynecologist or an ultrasound. Now after a few months on the pill I have even more side effects and am getting period like pain every single day. I am hoping they finally take me seriously on the next appointment and try to work out what's wrong without prescribing hormones without knowing the real cause for the problem. I hope you get the answers that you deserve, keep pushing and stay strong and I hope you find a doctor who takes your symptoms seriously xx
Hi, thank you for replying! Now we know we are not alone and in very similar situations. I got the implant (which I am getting removed on monday) to deal with the heaviness and pains for my period it did help for a short amount of time but now it just seems to be getting worse. We have to keep pushing our GPs to help us and actually investigate what is going on. I hope you find a doctor who listens to you as well xx
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