Too young for laparoscopy? (22)

[Hermi_t]

Hello everyone, i have been suffering from painful (agonising) periods since i was 18. I am now 22. After multiple doctors appointments and a few trips to A&E i have been diagnosed with Crohn’s disease by a gastroenterologist. I was never fully convinced my pain was gastro related so pursued the gyne route aswell. I have now finally found a gynaecologist who is taking me seriously and is convinced from my symptoms that i have endometriosis, either aswell as crohn’s or instead of. She has not actually examined me herself yet as due to previous gynaecologists changing my pill 3 times in 5 months i had been bleeding for 2 months straight when i saw her! So she wanted to get my period under control beforehand so that i could be as “comfortable” as possible. I have an appointment with her at the end of November to do her examination. However she has already said that she doesn’t want to do a laparoscopy as apparently very often in young women my age nothing shows up as the endo is not “advanced” enough and then you’ve had a surgery for nothing. Has anyone else been told this? Should i push for a laparoscopy asap or should i take the doctors advice and wait?

Any help or advice would be so appreciated! Thank you ☺️

[Dee_EndoUK Moderator Endometriosis UK]

Hi Hermi_t

We're pleased to hear that you have found a gynaecologist who is now taking you seriously. At the appointment in November, it would be well worth taking along a pain and symptoms diary, and how it's affecting your life, to build upon everything you've discussed with your gynaecologist previously.

If you're not satisfied with the treatment path offered, push for your rights to further investigation. This could involve a referral to a different gynaecologist for a second opinion. Your age should not be a barrier and many younger women have been put forward for laparoscopies. A laparoscopy is a vital procedure in the diagnosis of endometriosis and can also be used to treat endometriosis. If you want to find out more about what this surgery involves, you can find out more here: endometriosis-uk.org/your-l...

Wishing you all the best x

[ZiggyandBC]

Hey, I had a laparoscopy last year when I was 22 and I was diagnosed with endo, had a large cyst (endometiroma) removed and it was found both of my tubes were blocked. I don’t think age plays a major role so not sure why she said that. For me, the pain was a lot so I wanted the surgery to remove all the endo that they found which has helped with the pain

[Kazh1209]

hi lovely,

I would say to follow your gut. I was diagnosed at 22 and these days it’s not young. Log all your symptoms and go in prepared

[Luna-24]

I had my first lap and diagnosed at 19, my second lap is scheduled in December and I’ll be 24

[Moonglo]

Hello, I had an emergency lap at 17 due to a burst endometrioma. Believe me, endometriosis doesn’t care how old you are!

[Frieda_3287]

Hi Hermi_t, I'm really sorry to hear about your situation. I was in the exact situation a few years ago when I was about the same age. I was refused over and over again on the basis that I was too young and I had no plans for children so I would be wasting their resources. I eventually had to go private as my symptoms got way worse over time and I needed that surgery. Age has no relevance to severity and it is your right to seek help.

Definitely check with your surgeon as well to see what kind of laparoscopy they can offer. Is it a purely diagnostic laparoscopy or laparoscopic ablation/excision? Some may not be qualified/experienced enough to do the latter to actually remove endo. In a purely diagnostic lap, the surgeon will literally just check for endo but not remove any even if they found it. It will however still provide you with a surgical diagnosis if they do find endo.

Echoing what Dee_EndoUK said, it is well within your right to ask for a second opinion elsewhere if you are not satisfied with your care. Age and plans for children should not stop you from accessing the healthcare you need. Bottom line is, you know your body the best so do what feels right to you.

Wishing you the best of luck with this

[Endosufferer1]

Go see someone else!!! I went to find a good specialist at 23 (same story as you at 18), took for a year the pill to stop my periods. Wish I had been taken more seriously. Now what are the results???!!!!!??? Thoracic endometriosis. You certainly don't want to end up like me. Take noni juice, please, it helps! (I'm now 24)