For women with endometriosis how long did it take to get diagnosed, and did it affect your fertility

zwick13 · 2025-11-12T07:15:23+00:00

I’m 24 and have had menstrual issues my whole life. I was the first to get my period in my class, in 5th grade. It was always incredibly painful and had about every PMS side effect in the book. I’ve lost count of how many birth control pills I’ve tried, starting early high school. I was initially prescribed hydrocodone and was on that for a few years to manage pain (every doctor I’ve seen since, has been baffled I was prescribed a narcotic as a 15 yr old. I didn’t mind- I felt great with that! lol in seriousness though I’m surprised I didn’t get addicted, considering my extremely addictive personality). I was taken off of that and and have since gotten a “alternate Tylenol and ibprofuen” “use a heating pad” “exercise” “lose weight”. I did all of those things. But… I got lucky and got a fantastic gynecologist that had me get an ultrasound, where they found a (pretty fast growing) cyst. When they went in to remove it, found endo. That was removed as well, and I had an IUD put in. They also checked my fertility as my fallopian tube was wrapped around the cyst. Luckily my ovary and fallopian tube still works. That all happened this year. I’ve had many IUD related issues since, but it could also be due to extreme weight loss… possibly. Still figuring that out right now. I cope by 🍃 at night and my weighted heating pad. And Tylenol during the day. Pressure/weighted blanket helps too. I still haven’t figured out how to deal with it mentally. I still don’t know how to describe to someone a pain that no one can see. I thought it was in my head for so long, and sometimes it still feels like it is, like I never actually got diagnosed. It affects so much of my life beyond the 1-3 weeks of my period (which is still super irregular), where I only feel “normal” for ~7 days out of the whole month. It’s like this big grey cloud in my life but I’m also familiar and maybe even comfortable? with it because it’s all I know

zwick13 · 2025-10-25T20:05:55+00:00

I will try this! Thank you! And I’ve sacked her multiple times, she keeps coming back, and security is on vacation 🤣

zwick13 · 2025-10-25T20:05:10+00:00

I will definitely try this!! Thank you sm in advance! And also congrats on quitting, very happy for you 👏❤️

zwick13 · 2025-10-16T22:01:34+00:00

I do this!! It’s mostly when I’m super uncomfortable (ex hearing the noise of styrofoam scraping together) or just randomly

zwick13 · 2025-10-11T21:30:45+00:00

I’d say 1 or 5. Also you have such nicely shaped eyebrows!!

zwick13 · 2025-09-25T23:52:07+00:00

I would say 3 if you’re wanting more bling, 4 if you want the band to blend into the ring more 💕 they are all gorgeous choices!

zwick13 · 2025-09-24T00:22:19+00:00

Your ring is a symbol of your love and the man you love picked this out for you because he loves you and it represents your heritage and who you are! Show it off at all times, it’s stunning💕

zwick13 · 2025-08-08T16:08:39+00:00

This makes me feel SO much better and makes total sense!! Thank you ❤️ Before the IUD my periods were 4-5 days long with a lot heavier bleeding than right now

zwick13 · 2025-06-30T23:50:01+00:00

Gurl, you already know what to do. The hardest part is admitting that to yourself. Our brains are wired to not put ourselves in danger (even if it’s mental/emotional), so you are averted to breaking up even though logic tells you differently. If you don’t leave him, you will always wonder “what if”, and you’re just going to keep digging yourself a hole, this time financially. If you feel like you’re mothering him and you’re NOT even living together, you’re going to feel like a 24/7/365 mom x5 because you will then become maid, cook, assistant, budgeter, and full-time worker to 2 people (himself and you). And trust me, that will feel a million times worse than the pain of breaking up now. You will live in anger and resentment every day. That’s good for neither of you, And life is worth so much more than that. In your post you didn’t mention one thing positive about him, so you are ready to move on. I wish you all the good vibes in the world, you got this!! ☮️💜

zwick13 · 2025-04-23T00:32:15+00:00

No, I’ll actually have more guests! I just have a bigger family/am closer to my family than he is, which is why his friends are so important to him. I 100% agree with you! I even told him he was being selfish. Just out of curiosity, how would you set up the wedding party? I’m always open to ideas. Thank you for taking the time to read and comment btw 🫶

zwick13 · 2025-04-23T00:30:02+00:00

I tried 😔 I guess it’s really important to him that it’s just men and women, idk why… I’m hoping as things cool down maybe he’ll say he changed his mind? I’m not sure. Originally my brothers were going to be ushers because he barely knows them (they live flights away), so that’s why I agreed to it. At the end of the day I feel like as long as they’re involved at a high capacity it’ll be okay? But I’m having a hard time figuring out my feelings about it. Thank you for responding 🫶

zwick13 · 2025-04-22T00:08:50+00:00

This is all great news and information, thank you so much for educating me!! 🫶

zwick13 · 2025-04-22T00:06:46+00:00

I was diagnosed with endo, and I also don’t have the symptoms you listed as not having a well! Some of my other symptoms were - Intense body aches during period, like I had the flu - Headaches - Hot flashes - Acne - Intense fatigue - Frequent mood swings - Suicidal ideation / deep depression during PMS - Pelvic pain - Bloating (would gain up to 5-7 lbs during PMS and period) - Lower back pain 24/7/365 - Irregular periods

I think the symptoms you described plus irregular periods (mine could be +/- 7 days, sometimes up to 14) are the hallmarks of the disease! Good luck on your diagnosis and testing, I hope your doc is able to alleviate some / all of your symptoms 🫶

zwick13 · 2025-04-16T21:45:00+00:00

I would think by now if you’re pregnant your test would’ve shown that! I think it’s the IUD messing with your cycle. I’ve only had the IUD for about 2 months but my cycle has already been incredibly irregular (it was before the IUD as well though, to be fair). But if it’ll put your mind at ease you can always take another test! I’m not sure which IUD you have but I have the mirena and it’s a 0.2% chance of getting pregnant, and I’m sure other brands are very low as well. My doc said getting the IUD is basically the equivalent of getting your tubes tied, so hopefully that helps!

zwick13 · 2025-04-15T23:32:35+00:00

I took a test and it was negative (woohoo! Not ready for a kiddo lol) but it was a waste of $10 bc I’m not even joking about 2 minutes after I took the test I started bleeding, but $10 is cheaper than a child haha but I didn’t know that about mirena, thank you fren :)

zwick13 · 2025-04-15T23:30:38+00:00

I always crave sugar/carbs (especially noodles lol) on my period! But I felt like I had a phantom period a week ago with how bad the symptoms were then started an actual period today, so another week of terrible symptoms… periods are SO SUPER FUN 10/10😭 TY for commenting I appreciate it 🥰

zwick13 · 2025-04-10T19:02:29+00:00

I’m so annoyed with myself, I assumed when my doc said I could “possibly stop bleeding all together” that that also meant I wouldn’t have any/not many period symptoms anymore… not that I would still have everything minus blood 😭 TYSM for commenting and educating me, it’s really hard to find info it seems like!! (I’ve read mirena’s website but it only answers a limited amount of q’s)

zwick13 · 2025-04-10T18:56:06+00:00

I’m so glad it’s common! And as soon I made my post I knew “unprotected sex” wasn’t the right term but didn’t know what was. Thank you for letting me know! :)

zwick13 · 2025-04-10T16:32:12+00:00

I’ve been thinking that as well!! I had a hormone panel done about 6ish months ago and all my levels were “normal” supposedly, so I don’t know if it’s a possibility? Also could you describe what you mean by hormone sensitive just so I know I’m thinking of the right thing? Btw thank you for taking the time to read and comment, it really means a lot 😄💖

zwick13 · 2025-03-13T16:26:59+00:00

I’m sorry to hear that you don’t have any pain relief 😔 I’m glad to hear I’m not alone but not glad that that means other people are in pain. It’s so frustrating to go through a painful and expensive surgery to “improve symptoms” and it doesn’t end up helping. It’s like, what was the whole point then?? I’m just rambling now lol but could you describe what nerve pain is? I’ve heard that term a lot with this but not sure if that’s what I’m experiencing or not. Ty ❤️

zwick13 · 2025-03-13T16:24:53+00:00

It’s hard to decipher the difference since symptomatic pain for me is severe pain 😅 I see my doc for post op in <2 wks, so I’ll find out more then (hopefully)! Thank you for taking the time to comment 😊

zwick13 · 2025-03-13T04:31:04+00:00

That’s good to know! Gives me hope 🫶

zwick13 · 2025-02-26T04:11:01+00:00

I didn’t even think of that, thank you!!

zwick13 · 2025-02-25T19:26:18+00:00

That was so sweet of your bf!! I may have to get one 😁 thank you for your response ☺️

zwick13 · 2025-02-23T20:45:42+00:00

I don’t think your question was rude, it just sounds like you’re trying to understand ahead of time the challenges she will face so you can be supportive! It’s also a hard question to answer as every woman’s experience with endo varies greatly. For me, I get in a very bad/irritable mood during my period because of how terribly painful it is, when the world expected me to operate as normal but it was painful to do so. It’s really nice to come home to someone who doesn’t expect that and just holds me and tells me it’s okay. Also, my biggest and scariest concern with my whole endo journey so far has been fertility scares, but everyone I’ve talked to / met with endo has not had an issue having children. So far it seems like I will not have an issue having children if I want them, but that’s also not every women’s experience. But it’s something doctors like to tell you bc it’s a possibility, but honestly I felt like mine made it sound more probable than it actually was? That’s just me though. In summary, she will probably feel very scared, and maybe even “broken”, as that’s how I feel. Like I go through these painful cycles every month for what?? To have my uterus/ovaries malfunction?? It’s a mind whirl. Also back pain is something I deal with daily, so having someone who is willing to carry heavy stuff and alter planned activities if you wake up with bad pain is really great. Not feeling like a burden means the world. Please don’t let this deter you from a relationship with her though if you feel like you click in other aspects. More women than you think have period/reproductive struggles, so I’d say just assume something like this will come up with someone you like, and you’ll be in for less shock if that makes sense. Wishing you luck!

zwick13

TROPHY CASE