Hello!

Hello.

(This is me, I'm a poser, I know)

Welcome to my blog, The Endo Artist!
I'm Jordan-Melissa or Jord for short.
:)

This is my personal blog about my everyday struggles and overall battle with the disease Endometriosis. (Stage 3) I wanted to create a diary almost, of the trials and suffering with Endometriosis to both vent and share my personal experiences and to also spread awareness and remind other Endometriosis sufferers that YOU ARE NOT ALONE.

After being diagnosed just over 18 months ago, I've had a rather up and down journey with Endo which has had a huge impact on my day to day life. I also suffer from Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome ( my ovaries pretty much hate me and grow multiple cysts which are absolute shits) which also affects most aspects of my life. My experience with Endo so far is a very lonely one. I tend to find no matter how much I try to explain to family and to friends that they just cannot understand how much of a dominant impact it has. Most people assume that the affect and impact is exaggerated, but I can safely say it's not. The pain I feel on a day to day basis is un-imaginable to most people and because I've experienced such pain for almost 10 years now, the majority of that without a proper diagnosis, I've learnt to deal with it in a pretty relaxed way. Most of the time throughout the day I'm in pain, but won't say anything or act as though I am as a lot of people find it tiresome. If I was to moan or complain every time I was in pain or discomfort I would be permanently in tears and crying out. Over time I've got fairly tough! I don't know how but I have and the stigma associated with this disease enrages me on a day to day basis. So this blog will be my little sanctuary to talk freely about my thoughts.

As you may of guessed, I'm an Artist! (or at least I like to think of myself as one!) and I'm currently studying Fine Art at degree level, in Staffordshire, England where I live. I'm HOPING to make a living doing this! I'm a pretty creative soul and can't fathom a life where I can't draw or paint or sing!

First of all I'd like to just post a brief summary of what Endometriosis is for all of you out there who have no clue what it is or how to say it! (it takes a while to get your head around it!)

So, END-OH-MET-RI-OH-SIS- that's how you say it, it's a nightmare for most people to say and spell so I tend to shorten it to Endo for people who have trouble! :P

Endometriosis is a disease in which tissue that normally grows inside the uterus grows outside the uterus. Its main symptoms are pelvic pain and infertility. Nearly half have chronic pelvic pain, while in 70% pain occurs during menstruation. Pain with sex is also common. Infertility occurs in up to half of people. Less common symptoms include urinary or bowel symptoms. About 25% of women have no symptoms. Endometriosis can have both social and psychological effects.

Sounds fun doesn't it?

Pelvic pain

A major symptom of endometriosis is recurring pelvic pain. The pain can range from mild to severe cramping or stabbing pain that occurs on both sides of the pelvis, in the lower back and rectal area, and even down the legs. The amount of pain a woman feels correlates poorly with the extent or stage (1 through 4) of endometriosis, with some women having little or no pain despite having extensive endometriosis or endometriosis with scarring, while other women may have severe pain even though they have only a few small areas of endometriosis. Symptoms of endometriosis-related pain may include:

• dysmenorrhea – painful, sometimes disabling cramps during the menstrual period; pain may get worse over time (progressive pain), also lower back pains linked to the pelvis
• chronic pelvic pain – typically accompanied by lower back pain or abdominal pain
• dyspareunia – painful sex
• dysuria – urinary urgency, frequency, and sometimes painful voiding

Throbbing, gnawing, and dragging pain to the legs are reported more commonly by women with endometriosis. Compared with women with superficial endometriosis, those with deep disease appear to be more likely to report shooting rectal pain and a sense of their insides being pulled down. Individual pain areas and pain intensity appears to be unrelated to the surgical diagnosis, and the area of pain unrelated to area of endometriosis.
Endometriosis lesions react to hormonal stimulation and may "bleed" at the time of menstruation. The blood accumulates locally, causes swelling, and triggers inflammatory responses with the activation of cytokines. This process may cause pain. Pain can also occur from adhesions (internal scar tissue) binding internal organs to each other, causing organ dislocation. Fallopian tubes, ovaries, the uterus, the bowels, and the bladder can be bound together in ways that are painful on a daily basis, not just during menstrual periods.
Also, endometriotic lesions can develop their own nerve supply, thereby creating a direct and two-way interaction between lesions and the central nervous system, potentially producing a variety of individual differences in pain that can, in some women, become independent of the disease itself.

How horrible does that sound eh?! It's pretty damn shit to put it bluntly, sadly the thing is with most people who do not have Endometriosis they tend to follow the IF I CANT SEE IT, IT'S NOT REAL way of thinking. My mum, dad, granddad and sisters don't fully grasp how awful it can be and sometimes I can appreciate it. How on earth can you sympathise with someone when you have absolutely no idea how painful it can be?

For me, my pain is virtually constant, daily. Coming in waves of extreme intense sharp stabbing pains. It feels as though my pelvis is a web of pain points, at each connection of the web there's a hot searing needle that stabs stabs stabs. The pain travels down into my legs, into my abdomen and also throbs in my lower back. Periods are endless stretches of utter hell, relentless pain, fatigue so strong I can barely hold myself up and hormones and emotions that make me an absolute WRECK. Some days, I have no idea how I don't actually cry out with pain in public (mainly because I don't want to seem like an absolute raving lunatic) I certainly don't want people to feel sorry for me, not in the slightest, but I think there really needs to be a change in how people understand it and the stigmatism needs to be kicked in the arse!

Women with Endo are TOUGH. We're strong amazing, fabulous ladies who support each other. I'm always amazed by the Endometriosis support network, the endless forums and support groups where sufferers unite and share their experiences and I'm pretty darn proud to be part of it- despite all the struggles.

I'll discuss my Endo story with you lot and how I got from Pre-diagnosis, through my surgeries, and the place where I am now!

I'd like to say thankyou to anyone who takes the time to read this blog! It's very personal, but I hope it can bring support and comfort to other lovely ladies who have to share this burden.

Love,

The Endo Artist.

X