#endtheendo

Ever tried to send your significant other to the store for female sanitary products and they look at you with the most fearful face ever ? Yea, me neither ! Throughout this journey with Endo, (I'll just refer to it as such considering it resembles Lord Voldemort and he's referred to as he who must not be named because of the longevity of the letters as well as the fear to say it) I've been embarrassed to "tell" people what is wrong. Simply because without a photogenic sample, it's hard for others to understand. And I mean who REALLY wants to look at and hear about a vagina ??? But, the female reproductive system is literally the treasure at the end of the rainbow for women. It's connected to EVERYTHING! I mean how do you think it's able to open up the size of a honeydew melon to let a full sized baby human escape as if it was at six flags sliding down a water park freely ? Exactly ! Amazing right ?! We normally get to see and discuss the woman's body when someone's glorifying it in a music video, on the runway, or even in some celebrities cases ... just put out there... but never in the light of actually looking at it or discussing how it can affect our WHOLE body when a part isn't working right. If we can talk about it then, why can't we talk about bleeding, pelvic pain, pads/ tampons? Ya know real life stuff ???? We cringe when a woman says "oh it's that time of the month" BUT we laugh and copy cat when celebrities display it for the world to see. Crazy huh?! With Endometriosis, there's ALOT of blood. And I mean a lot. So much, I was at risk for a transfusion. Just because of a period. I bled that heavy ! I used to get embarrassed when someone would ask what's wrong. I'm thinking in my head, how can I put nicely my vagina is pulsating with this sharp pain & I'm bleeding out like a major artery has been hit ? Hmmm I can't. Or couldn't because I didn't want to gross anyone out. Endo affects the whole reproductive system. Basically what happens is the lining that's outside of your uterus sticks to any organ inside of your body it can. Sort of like double bubble that gets in your hair and your mom has to regretfully cut it out. Same thing! Yikes. Once it sticks, it then grows and continues to twist and turn around your organs covering it each time you menstruate. The blood is now outside of the space it's supposed to be in, so it's trapped, constantly trying to get out which makes you bleed for days on end. Painful & a nuisance. Uh yeeaaaa. The problem I ran into was how do I tell people that when they ask what's wrong without it being so gross? Simple I JUST DID. I had to stop being embarrassed and channel my inner Amber Rose or inner Kim K to say hey, I'm just as aware of my body as them. Because of Endo, I only have one ovary and one Fallopian tube. I still have my uterus so if my child prays to the baby Gods for a sibling (yet again *face palm* a brother to be exact) only with God's grace and my one good side will he get one. There was so much infection, cysts, and fibroids, my complete left side was destroyed and had to be removed. I had to have a D&C, the same procedure some moms who experience miscarriage have to have to clean their insides out I had to have that too, and scar tissue was removed. Everyone who knew was all like, "oohhh I'm so sorry for you you're so young", "eewwww that's gross", or simply "I didn't think THAT would make you have all THAT going on". Those type comments put me into a shell. I didn't want anyone to know. I was ashamed. Everyone thought it was "nasty". I'm thinking in my head now y'all can watch porn and Nelly's video tip drill and bounce around, but can't bare to hear about blood coming out of the very same place you were birthed? Contradictory much ? The reproductive system and monthly menstruation is important. Saying "I'm bleeding" is not disgusting. Think about it. If you can sit and talk about sexcapades with your girlfriends or talk sex with a guy your digging or even involved with and are comfortable spilling the tea, knowing your body as well as your partner knowing your body should share the same validity. Don't let the words vagina, blood, pad, tampon, cramping, ovary, uterus.. etc gross you out or make you feel ashamed. A woman's body is only good for one thing. Sex. Society says anyway. The outside may look golden, but Endo has taught me that no matter how smooth as a baby's bottom the freshly waxed vagina feels and looks once ONE thing is off in there, you've wasted your 59.99 madame. If it's not sexual it's not important. Society says anyways. We've deemed menstruation as the unspeakable. We're programmed to be embarrassed about periods or that who must not be named. With Endometriosis, there's a lot of that. Many days I've had to take a whole overnight bag to work or just in general with clothes and items J.I.C. Being a woman is not shameful. Being a woman with constant reproductive issues is not wrong. We praise video girls and half naked or naked for that matter women on Instagram because of the arousal waves it sends through our brains and bodies, but we won't take the time out to stimulate and arouse our brains and bodies with female reproductive system literacy. It's all the same. A woman's body. Her temple. Guys, or girls ... the next time your lady needs an extra moment of compassion or for you to go to the store to buy sanitary products for that time of the month or if you see her rushing to put clothes she's bled through, or sheets she's bled on in the washer so you won't see, do it. Let her know it's okay. It's life. It will happen again. Endometriosis is unpredictable. You can count those 28 days on your menstruation calendar and even still if it feels like it, oh Hail Mary! The W in Women isn't Wrong ladies and gents. Our bodies and its reproductive topics aren't nasty or degrading. Let's change that W to Wonderful because being a woman, our bodies do wonderful things. We have the power. Let's stop idolizing our bodies for sex so much and educate ourselves on the other W.onderful things it does. Even with Endometriosis I'm proud to be a woman. #womenwithendometriosis #iamoneinten #endometriosisawareness #endtheendo #thejourneythroughendometriosis

Waking up in the middle of the night, as if the wind was just knocked out of me, grabbing and clutching my shirt, drenched in sweat, balled up in a fetal position, groaning in pain, trying to catch my breath....would only be the beginning ! ENDOMETRIOSIS - A disorder in which tissue that normally lines the uterus, grows outside of the uterus. It can cause permanent infertility, endometric cell growth can expand and damage other organs, there are fibroid tumors and ovarian cysts, more common in moms and sisters ages 25-40 (but can start early as 12), your periods can last longer than 7 days, and the unbearable chronic pain can last for a lifetime. More than 200,00 cases of endometriosis are found per year, 176 women worldwide, and 1 in ten women know they have, manage, and deal with this condition. There are four stages to this condition. I-minimal, II-mild, III-moderate, and IV-severe (that would be me). Thousands of women go undiagnosed because there is no known cause of Endometriosis and then there's always the statement- "it's just normal female aches and pains". I am here to tell you *raises hand* there is NOTHING normal female or not, about this pain! Now don't get me wrong, having a normal menstrual cycles can be painful, but symptoms and affects of endometriosis are upped on the pain scale about 20-1 billion notches. Hey, I'm just here to render the bearable, unbearable truth. Please forgive me. The most common symptoms are pain in lower abdomen, back, pelvis, rectum, and/or vagina (or all these places collectively at one time. --once again I'm the messenger. Don't shoot me. Lol. Pain can and will occur during sex, sometimes with occasional bleeding. Your menstrual cycle will be abnormal, heavy, painful, spotty like, or non existent at all and then you're screaming lord no what did I do I can't be pregnant now! It's ok princess, for now. It's just the endometriosis playing mind games with your uterus.. you'll eventually get that baby you thought was there (trust me! Ha!). Then there's an increase of pH level off-balance and you're googling everything that could be wrong with your "special" area, once again lovebug ... it's the endometriosis playing mind games with your hoo-ha as if you haven't looked and checked it out for the last 20 something years you've had it. Google will die you the slowest, earliest death ever.. we've got to stop. Endometriosis increases bladder and yeast infections and weakens your immune system. Your body is then prone to EVERYTHING ----**raises hand, ME**** There's NO cure. Treatment and "relief" to get you through. Treatments or bandaids include surgery or self care..break out the good old heating pad gals...it gets ugly. Hmmmm, let's move on to relief. There are pain killers, in which most of us have scared ourselves silly by watching intervention (me), or have had a family member or someone close who's abused the painkillers that have scared us twice to death as well so we just choose to double over in pain when really we need the medication...until it's time to go to work and do the job they actually pay you for (that's another story .. stay tuned). You can choose acupuncture, birth control, medicated IUDs, change your diet, oh and the worst of them all GnRH therapy also known as Lupron <<<--- I'm in that group. I am 28 years old and never knew I had Endometriosis until almost a year ago. And let me tell you, it has been no crystal stair. I've had more downs than ups, more sicknesses and pains, more surgeries, doctors appointments, procedures & medicine bottles I can count. I've always had horrible periods as a young woman and as many times I've been to the doctor, labor and delivery included, you'd think they would have found it by now. It's undetectable. A thief in the night (literally steals your breath away). Only detected by sonogram or MRI, IF you even know what it is to bring it up to your OBGYN for them to check. I've dealt and deal with the insensitive comments and confused looks when I'm trying to explain I simply do not feel good without unraveling a picture of the female reproductive system and vagina and taking out my magic markers to circle all of my problem areas **sigh**. Endometriosis is hard. It affects EVERYTHING. My job, relationship, family life( I have a rambunctious 4 year old --we'll get to that later), everyday life, my friends, once again EVERYTHING is affected. I'm no longer embarrassed to be an open book or take out that picture and magic marker to show and tell about endometriosis. I've already heard there's no reason, no cure... that's already two strikes against me and I won't let there be a third! It's time to fight this thing and get it under control. Please follow my #ENDtheENDO journey ! Ask questions, have open discussions, and take charge of YOU! I'm as open as I can be and I invite you into my life journey with Endometriosis. I AM ONE IN TEN #womenwithendometriosis #thejourneywithendometriosis #endometriosisawareness #iamoneinten #endtheendo

@michelleruiz, @lizzieohreally,