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After having physiotherapy she had no difference in her pain.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cLast year in a job I had too much time off while I was going through my diagnosis and was penalised. I left in the end. It is exhausting having to explain myself to other people who don\u2019t understand.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n Her Gynaecologist recommended the zoladex injection which is a hormone replacement therapy alongside mefenamic acid and tranexamic acid tablets for managing the pain.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Karen Louise, 45, a lecturer from Leeds has suffered since the age of 10.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI have lost my uterus, ovaries, had a stent put between my kidney and my bladder, my bladder is damaged. I frequently pass blood in my urine and it is incredibly painful to empty my bladder, my bowels are scarred and stuck together with adhesions.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Karen was admitted to hospital previously for suspected appendicitis, it was later found to be endometriosis. <\/p>\n\n\n\n She told ShefNews that she was called \u2018dramatic\u2019 and \u2018time wasting\u2019 by doctors which made her believe her pain was normal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI believed the pain I was experiencing was normal, that all women had this pain. This was the mental impact the dismissal of my pain by the medical profession had had on me. I had very little confidence in myself & was so unhappy for a lot of my life.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n After contraceptives did not work as treatment, Karen underwent laparoscopic surgery which is the only definitive way to diagnose endometriosis. <\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI was left on waiting lists for months on end, only to find that the surgery would be done by another surgeon, who wouldn\u2019t manage to get all the endometriosis, because they weren\u2019t comfortable working with bowels\/kidneys\/bladders\/livers\/diaphragms\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n After waking up from surgery she was told they had managed to remove some of the endometriosis and that hopefully it would be enough to see some improvement, she said it ‘never was’.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Karen then lost her fertility due to the damage caused by endometriosis. <\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI was told there was no way I would ever be able to have children, as my body was so ruined by endometriosis.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Endometriosis is the number one cause of infertility. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Endometriosis UK said: \u201cThe hormones released when pregnant temporarily suppress the menstrual cycle \u2013 which can alleviate symptoms. Often symptoms return after giving birth and their menstrual cycle has returned.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/shefnews.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/IMG_4782-1024x822.jpg\")
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