PCOS or Endometriosis?

Well good afternoon I have been up since two this beautiful morning and I am so tired I can't stand myself but I promised a blog and here it is.

Oh Friday what a day let me tell ya I had to make an emergency appointment to see my dentist. Emergency because I couldn't wait another week I was in so much pain and if I didn't see him Friday I wouldn't be able to see him till my vacation started.  I will be out of town seeing my Mommy and I ain't going to be in no pain. So I had a root canal done at 10 am that morning. Tried to eat a salad with my mouth still half numb it was fun NOT! I sat around the house and went through more of my oversized clothes which I think I will be doing this forever it's hard to give them up. I keep thinking dang I just bought that ugh! But anywho I was very impressed by the staff at Emerald Coast OBGYN. I was seen very quickly I sat maybe ten minutes if that and I was wisked back to the room. But my time with Dr. Ramey wasn't quick I was able to ask him almost all  my questions and a few I didn't even think of just came to me. He is very easy to talk with even though he is a man. I was a bit uneasy at first but quickly realized my shyness needed to beat it. I got to show him how much I have lost and why. He was shocked at my success and told me to keep at it. But he told me that I do in fact ovulate. If you have a period every month you ovulate. After discussing my problem periods with him he thinks I may have a blockage in my tubes. He didn't want to rule out PCOS but he was almost sure I have Endometriosis. To those who don't know what Endometriosis and PCOS is let me educate you the best way I can without confusing you.

Polycystic ovary syndrome  is a problem in which a woman’s hormones are out of balance. It can cause problems with your periods and make it difficult to get pregnant. PCOS may also cause unwanted changes in the way you look. If it is not treated, over time it can lead to serious health problems, such as diabetes and heart disease.
Hormones are chemical messengers that trigger many different processes, including growth and energy production. Often, the job of one hormone is to signal the release of another hormone.
For reasons that are not well understood, in PCOS the hormones get out of balance. One hormone change triggers another, which changes another. For example:

• The sex hormones get out of balance. Normally, the ovaries make a tiny amount of male sex hormones (androgens). In PCOS, they start making slightly more androgens. This may cause you to stop ovulating, get acne, and grow extra facial and body hair.
• The body may have a problem using insulin, called insulin resistance. When the body doesn't use insulin well, blood sugar levels go up. Over time, this increases your chance of getting diabetes.

Symptoms tend to be mild at first. You may have only a few symptoms or a lot of them. The most common symptoms are:

• Acne.
• Weight gain and trouble losing weight.
• Extra hair on the face and body. Often women get thicker and darker facial hair and more hair on the chest, belly, and back.
• Thinning hair on the scalp.
• Irregular periods. Often women with PCOS have fewer than nine periods a year. Some women have no periods. Others have very heavy bleeding.
• Fertility problems. Many women who have PCOS have trouble getting pregnant (infertility).
• Depression.

Most women with PCOS grow many small cysts on their ovaries. That is why it is called polycystic ovary syndrome. The cysts are not harmful but lead to hormone imbalances
The symptoms of PCOS are caused by changes in hormone levels. There may be one or more causes for the hormone level changes.
PCOS seems to run in families, so your chance of having it is higher if other women in your family have PCOS, irregular periods, or diabetes. PCOS can be passed down from either your mother's or father's side.

On Monday I will go in for a test to see if PCOS is in fact my problem. Now onto what Endometriosis is.
Endometriosis is the development of uterine-lining tissue outside the uterus. Symptoms include abdominal pain, heavy periods, and infertility. Treatments include pain relievers, birth control pills, and surgery.

Endometriosis is usually a long-lasting (chronic) disease. When you have endometriosis, the type of tissue that lines your uterus is also growing outside your uterus. The clumps of tissue (called implants) may have grown on your ovaries or fallopian tubes, the outer wall of the uterus, the intestines, or other organs in the belly. In rare cases they spread to areas beyond the belly.

With each menstrual cycle, the implants go through the same growing, breaking down, and bleeding that the uterine lining (endometrium) goes through. This is why endometriosis pain may start as mild discomfort a few days before the menstrual period and then usually is gone by the time the period ends. But if an implant grows in a sensitive area, it can cause constant pain or pain during certain activities, such as sex, exercise, or bowel movements.

BOWEL MOVEMENTS??? Seriously this explains lots of things.

Some women have no symptoms or problems. Others have mild to severe symptoms or infertility. There is no way to predict whether endometriosis will get worse, will improve, or will stay the same until menopause.
Between 20% and 40% of women who are infertile have endometriosis (some have more than one possible cause of infertility).¹ Experts don't fully understand how endometriosis causes infertility. It could be that:²

• Scar tissue (adhesions) may form at the sites of implants and change the shape or function of the ovaries, fallopian tubes, or uterus.
• The endometrial implants may change the chemical and hormonal makeup in the fluid that surrounds the organs in the abdominal cavity (peritoneal fluid). This may change the menstrual cycle or prevent a pregnancy

Thank you Web MD for that info. Now you know what I may have I am leaning more to the Endometriosis because of my horrible periods. Every month is different some worse than others and if I didn't take Alieve I would be in a world of hurt and sometimes it doesn't work for me at all and I end up in the fetal position waiting for it too stop. Dr. Ramey asked me if I have clots and when I told him yes for like the first three days I have large clots that cause very bad cramps while I pass them. I told him about my periods when I was younger and how the only reason I went to the gyno at 14 was because I was passsing out at school every month from the cramps. I am now more than ever scared. Everything that Dr. Bullard said is crap and now I feel more lost. I realize this is just the beginning of finding out what is TRUELY wrong with me but I am afraid. I try hard not to be but I may end up having surgery to fix this and what if after the surgery I find out my eggs aren't good enough there are so many factors that are bouncing around in my head. Satan putting that doubt in me. I trust in the Lord and I lean not on my own understanding.
So I need everyone to pray for me this week as I go in to do the first test. I am asking for strength and for all my doubts to disappear. I know I will soon be pregnant if God wills it. IT WILL BE DONE. I love ya thanks for reading. Any questions post them on facebook I am more than willing to answer them.