Irritable Bowel Syndrome Message Boards | Re: Endometriosis question

That gyno you saw sounds horrible! Sorry that you had to deal with such a stupid doctor.

First of all, I have endometriosis and have done a lot of research on it, and the general consensus is that painful peroids like the ones you described are absolutely not normal, and that any doc who suggests that doesn't know what he's talking about! If your periods are that painful, I would say there's a good chance that you have endo.

Now, just so you know, the only way to officially diagnose endo is via surgery (a laparoscopy). The doctor can't tell just by an exam. However, if you're exhibiting all of the classic symptoms, some docs will try treating you for endo under the assumption that you have it without surgery. I personally would recommend the surgery first, just because alot of the treatments can be pretty severe, and wouldn't be worth going through if you didn't have the problem. Plus, during surgery they can remove the endo lesions which often results in people feeling a lot better.

Endo symptoms can definately be confused with IBS. To be honest, I still cant' really say whether I have IBS or whether my problems are just from the endo, it's just so darn hard to tell. The only treatment I've had (so far) has been to be on BC pills continuously so I don't have a period (I'll let myself have one ever six months or so). It's helped a little in that I don't have to suffer through terrible pain monthly, but hasn't had much of an effect on the GI symptoms. From what I've read, you need to have the endo removed in order to have GI improvement.

Here are a few sites you might want to check out:
http://www.endometriosistreatment.org/html/reprint15.html
http://www.vitalcareinstitute.com/

Hope that info help! Let us know how your appointment goes!
Kelly

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