Women > Reproduction > Endometriosis

Endometriosis is a women's reproductive health (gynaecological) problem where the inner mucous membrane (the endometrial cells of the uterus's inside lining) grow outside of the uterine cavity causing symptoms from mild discomfort to chronic pain and infertility.

It's thought that about ten percent of women suffer from this notoriously painful condition, that many describe as being more intense than child birth. Untreated early, endometriosis often causes internal scarring and it's a common cause of infertility.

Modern medicine has no idea as to the cause, however within alternative medicine, the cause is seen as a hormonal imbalance, a cause that some medics in part agree with. The hormonal imbalance is caused by the poisons in or food and environment, especially plastics which mimic estrogens (primary female sex hormones).

Symptoms are often more apparent during menstrual periods and  include:

• Chronic pelvic pain and cramping that can radiate to the lower back and legs.
• Occasional lower back and abdominal pain.
• Intense premenstrual discomfort.
• Painful periods (dysmenorrhoea).
• Heavy and prolonged bleeding during menstruation.
• Bleeding between periods (menometrorrhagia).
• Pain during sexual intercourse.
• Pain during bowel movements and/or urination which is more common during periods.
• Other symptoms include fatigue, diarrhoea, constipation, bloating and nausea.

Diagnosis:

Endometriosis is a very difficult condition to diagnose as there is no 'one fits all' indicator. The nature of the pain is not a clear indicator and the severity of pain is also an unreliable indicator of the nature and extent of the condition.

Some women may have a mild endometriosis problem and experience extensive pain, whereas others with advanced endometriosis may experience little pain or have no pain at all and the problem may only be discovered when they seek help with conception.

Endometriosis may be mistaken for other conditions that can cause pelvic pain such as pelvic inflammatory disease (PID) or ovarian cysts. It may be also be confused with irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), a condition that causes bouts of diarrhoea, constipation and abdominal cramping. IBS can accompany endometriosis, which can complicate the diagnosis.

A medical diagnosis is performed by laparoscopic surgery where some small holes are made near the navel and a tube with a camera is inserted into the abdominal cavity. This allows the doctor to see and make an accurate diagnosis.

Medical treatments:

Endometriosis is medically incurable; however medical treatment initially focuses on the relief of symptoms through the use of pain relief (analgesics) medications and hormone treatment. The next option is surgery with laparoscopic removal of the out of place tissues.  Further options are hysterectomy and/or Oopherectomy.

1. Analgesics
   Panadol, Aspirin, Paracetamol, Codine and combinations of these products offer temporary pain relief and help sufferers to get by.
    
2. Doctors may prescribe birth control pills which like analgesics, suppress but do not cure the condition.
    
3. Laparoscopy
   Key-hole surgery to remove as much of the endometriosis as possible by cutting out or burning while preserving the uterus and ovaries. This is a conservative surgery, however, the endometriosis and pain may return.
    
4. Hysterectomy
   This procedure removes the uterus and is sometimes considered in severe cases of long-standing painful and extensive endometriosis. However it does not ‘cure’ endometriosis and prevent it recurring and is only considered for women who do not want (more) children.
    
5. Oopherectomy
   This is where the removal of one or both ovaries (oophorectomy or bi-lateral oopherectomy) is done although it's usually when the ovaries are severely damaged by endomitriosis. When both ovaries are removed, symptoms of menopause will usually be experienced and hormone Replacement Therapy (HRT)  recommended.

Surgeries have many risks and guarantee permanent infertility, but they are not a guaranteed cure and end to suffering as chronic pain may still be experienced.

Natural healing options
While the condition is not easy to treat with any modality, treatment, diet and lifestyle changes can help manage it. In Chinese medicine, endometriosis is seen as a kind of Blood or Phlegm stagnation and the remedy is to get that energy moving.

1. Diet plays a significant part in the treatment of endometriosis.
    
   • Coffee, sugar and all processed foods, dairy and soy should be avoided since they are estrogenic and may aggravate autoimmune conditions
      
   • High fibre foods, sea vegetables, fruits and vegetables, and low levels of fish or lean pasture-raised meat are recommended.
      
   • Anti-inflammatory supplements such as circumin, turmeric, fish oil, evening primrose oil, and clary sage can be helpful.
      
   • Vitamin D levels should be brought up so that blood levels of 25hydroxy D3 are 50-80.
      
   • Calcium and magnesium levels should be balanced and magnesium increased.
      
   • One should also keep up antioxidants, flavanoids and adaptogenic herbs like ginseng and holy basil.
      
2. Massage and bodywork
    
   • Deep abdominal massage can help to remove endometriosis and its subsequent scar tissues. This is not as painful as it sounds and typically regular treatments are required.  But this only treats apart of the problem.
      
   • Holism like Chinese medicine sees endometriosis as an imbalance and sets out to release stress and restore balance. Holistic bodywork (massage) treats the entire body to release stress and restore balance to the entire body, and to some extent the mind and spirit.
      
   • Holistic massage as a part of a full body treatment treats the abdomen, the whole pubic area and groin to release the stress accumulated within the entire reproductive system.  Therapeutically, there is no massage of the genitals, however a happy (orgasmic) ending that is tantric in nature is a coup de grâce and a powerful healing element that more women are beginning to explore..
      
3. Exercise 
    
• Yoga is one of the safer options and one must avoid the power and hot yoga sequences when the condition is chronic.
   
• Tai Chi is also suitable as it's gentle and like yoga, it tones the entire body.
   
• Women must avoid doing press ups and hi impact sports as these exercises create further imbalance that weakens the reproductive system. 

References
Endometriosis and Chinese medicine
Curing endometriosis with natural methods
My journey healing endometriosis
University of Maryland endometriosis overview
Kama Rani: A natural ayurvedic herbal supplement to strengthen female reproductive health.