By A happy Mom to be, S

Endometriosis is the diagnosis I became entitled to as a result of multiple hospital visits since I attained puberty. It has been a long painful journey since my first menstruation cycle. Fast forward, I am a success story of pregnancy in endometriosis. How did that happen? Well before I share my personal story with you, I would like to shed insights to readers particularly females to create awareness on such a condition.

Endometriosis is a clinical diagnosis that means the inner lining (endometrium) of the uterus (womb) is not just growing inside of the womb but elsewhere as well. This means that the cyclical hormonal change that happens to the lining inside the womb affects that which is outside too.

Some common areas in which the lining grows are at the fallopian tube, urinary bladder, large intestine, ovaries, surface of the uterus and inner lining of the abdomen. As a result, there is menstruation in all those linings!!!! The menstrual blood has no outlet and starts accumulating at different spots within the abdomen – pelvis space. The broken down blood clots cause inflammation all around it leading to symptoms such as severe pain in abdomen, pelvis and lower back nearing the time of ovulation.

On most days, I will be rolling in pain and can barely move out of bed during my menstruation. The pain drains my energy and I become disinterested in any activity for that day. My mood worsens and my first reaction is to shout at someone who “disturbs” me. I usually look pale and lack liveliness. There is barely any enthusiasm at all. Everything feels so blue, heavy and troublesome.

I learned to live with it, but I hated feeling that way. I tried a few herbs here and there, but usually the painkiller did the trick. I pulled through my teenage hood and early adulthood even though my menstrual cycles were irregular and there was weight gain. Nonetheless, that affected my self-esteem and my confidence.

On most days, I will be rolling in pain and can barely move out of bed during my menstruation. The pain drains my energy and I become disinterested in any activity for that day. My mood worsens and my first reaction is to shout at someone who “disturbs” me.

I usually look pale and lack liveliness. There is barely any enthusiasm at all. Everything feels so blue, heavy and troublesome.

I learned to live with it, but I hated feeling that way. I tried a few herbs here and there, but usually the painkiller did the trick. I pulled through my teenage hood and early adulthood even though my menstrual cycles were irregular and there was weight gain. Nonetheless, that affected my self-esteem and my confidence.

Soon I got married to a very loving and understanding man. He was aware of all the discomfort I went through during every menstruation, and he constantly stood by my side during rough times. However, I wanted to start a family, but I was told that with endometriosis, conception may be difficult. My mother, husband and I were dejected upon hearing that. While we agreed on the mainstream health approach that is, going on the hormonal pill, we surveyed for other options.

I was already in my second cycle of the pill when I met my wellness coach. I was recommended by a friend to go for consultation and verify if yoga could help with my condition. She explained to me that by enhancing blood circulation at the abdomen and pelvis area will most likely resolve the problem. The master hormonal gland – pituitary, is responsible in producing hormones that sets the reproductive cycles. A breakdown in communication between the pituitary gland and the reproductive glands may lead to many problems such as Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome, menstrual irregularities, fibroids and also endometriosis. The sluggish flow causes derangement in the organs’ inner physiology and yields all these different clinical issues. Well, this was my very first time hearing about yoga therapy. Nevertheless, she made a lot of sense to me. She shared with us a testimony of yoga therapy on endometriosis in the US. That gave us confidence, so we decided to give it a try.

My programme had a lot of postures that activated my abdomen and my pelvic muscles. I did plenty of leg raise, cycling, and abdominal core muscle training alongside Pilates like pelvic exercises. I was also given a sequence to do whenever I had pain. The best part was the yoga Nidra; it replenished my energy, and it helped me combat my constant fatigue.

I stopped medication two weeks into the programme. Although I completed the second set of pills as per the doctor’s prescription, I was not sure how it helped me besides occasionally keeping pain at bay.

Hence, I decided to put the medication on hold while I give the wellness programme a genuine try. I kept my faith on the programme and food intervention that I had embarked on. I enthusiastically participated and engaged myself routinely in all the techniques taught to me by my coach. A clear understanding on the condition, how each pose provides a fragment of the solution, positive reminders on self-esteem and strong intention of being pregnant were reinforced repeatedly in each session. I started cultivating a happier mindset.

By the 6th session, the entire programme structured for me was well delivered. The next few sessions were just repetition and getting into the flow smoothly. By this time, I realised that I had started enjoying yoga. It is always nice to spend time with the body and become aware of it.

I felt much lighter, calmer and happier after each session. My pain became much more manageable as well.

I would seek advice and clarify doubts on certain matters from my coach. She made it so simple and easy to understand. She reassured us to go ahead without any laparoscopic intervention until the programme ended. She also encouraged me to go ahead with traditional massage techniques and aromatherapy for better quality of sleep.

Five weeks upon completing the programme and five months of practicing a healthy lifestyle gave me the happiest news!!! I became pregnant. My effort paid off. I am convinced now that my intention, my physical work out, my diet and my healthier approach to the desires have all contributed to this success. This is just the beginning for me; I have another seven months to go to meet the apple of my eye!

Ladies, please do not procrastinate. You should go ahead and do this programme. I am positive that it will work for you the way it did for me. Experiencing the body improve is a nice way to boost confidence. It resets our hormones, and in return, it makes us happy.