Endometriosis is considered an incurable disorder where endometrial tissue grows outside the uterus during the menstrual cycle. In a normal menstrual cycle, the endometrium grows tissue inside the uterus, and then it’s sloughed off during the period.
Endometriosis can be painful due to the tissue that builds up and does not have anywhere to go. Unfortunately, it can also form on the ovaries and cause cysts to build up. These cysts can irritate the surrounding tissue and organs and cause adhesions and scar tissue. This can also be another source of pain, sadly.
It used to be a condition that was only diagnosed by “exploratory surgery”. However, in today’s time, there are other methods of diagnosis being explored.
Common Symptoms of Endo can include:
You know what a lot of those symptoms fall under? Pelvic floor dysfunction symptoms. Yep. That’s how a pelvic floor therapist can help an individual with endometriosis! By treating those symptoms – we can help provide relief to some of the secondary reasons why you are experiencing pain. We may not be able to cue endometriosis, but we can help you manage your symptoms!
Unfortunately, there is a lot of symptom overlap with other conditions such as IBS, or pelvic inflammatory disease. Sadly sometimes women are just written off as having “bad periods”. Diagnosing endometriosis can be difficult and challenging, that is why it is important to talk to you OB/GYN about any concerns you have about pelvic pain, amount of bleeding, or menstrual related pain.
Women should not have to miss school or work because of a natural cycle – believe it or not, painful periods is not the norm. There are so many great resources for you to learn more about the menstrual cycle/period:
Province and Apothecary Article by Dr. Kaylee Alton – excellent article on holistic management of your period symptoms
Girlology – this is great for a younger age group trying to learn about puberty & periods!
Those are purely education podcasts, websites, and articles that are incredibly informative about different aspects of menstraution.
Are you interested in more education? Stay tuned on the blog as we dive into more topics on female anatomy and physiology and the WHY behind the symptoms!
Any specific questions or topics you want covered? Feel free to email me at ally@belleknoxville.com ☺️
