Adhesions. Endometriosis. Let Me Think About It.

When you turn to a doctor for help, be thankful if your condition is quickly revealed and 100% confirmed. It's always easier to handle something if you know what it is that you must handle! One thing I learned after fighting for Melissa's health was that I had placed too much confidence in doctors. I expected "them" to find the root cause of her pain and I expected "them" to take the necessary measures that would restore her body to health. That's what doctors are for, right? I wanted her back, just as she had been before her body was assaulted by illness.

Years passed and Melissa was not any better. In fact, she grew worse. We sought out "new" doctors, believing someone held the magic key to the mystery of her debilitating pain and misery.

It took a long time, but I finally realized that doctor's are mere men (and women). They are not walking answers to illnesses. They are often limited to the training they have had and, understandably, they rely heavily upon tests to help them determine what has gone wrong in your body. Sometimes, even the "best" of these men and women will pin an illness upon you, though all the tests may not have provided a definite diagnosis of that illness.

Many doctors also rely on the "rule out" theory. They rule out illnesses: X, Y and Z...eliminating the illnesses that they are certain you do NOT have. (This is where you must hope and pray that the doctor is well versed in all illnesses, common and uncommon, and/or hope he (she) will spend their evening hours pulling medical books from the shelves, desperate to find an answer to YOUR problem!)

Let's face it folks, it ain't happening! (In all fairness to physicians, I'm sure there are a few physicians, perplexed by certain cases, who do search for an answer for their patient.)

Inconclusive tests results may also give way to a symptomatic diagnosis. If your "symptoms" (say: vomiting, pain) match the "symptoms" of a certain disease, (and diseases X, Y and Z have already been eliminated) you may soon find yourself popping pills (corticosteroids?) for that particular disease.

If your tests are inconclusive, lab work is 'normal', and your "symptoms" are vague, your doctor may likely determine that you are simply 'depressed,' and an antidepressant will be the order of the day.

Now, more than ever, all people must become savvy in regards to their health. For the woman who suffers from endometriosis, only YOU can decipher the pain that you deal with inside your body. Endometriosis is said to be a "puzzling" illness, with no known cure. Many times there is much more literature and emphasis placed on the issue of endometriosis and little emphasis in regards to adhesions that are often a subsequent (and perhaps, in some cases) the debilitating, life-limiting factor of this "puzzling" illness. If you suffer from endometriosis, I encourage you to STUDY endometriosis, along with an in-depth study about adhesions. Study the SYMPTOMS of both issues, endo and adhesions, by reading the stories of other women who have dealt with these illnesses.

You may find that YOU are the key to uncovering the answer to the pain and misery in your body!

Think. Take time to listen to your body. Decipher the different types of pain, all which can help YOU to determine what might be going on inside. Certain ailments often produce specific types of pain. (Adhesions are often described as pulling, tearing, etc.) Certain ailments also produce specific types of symptoms (Abdominal adhesions, for instance, can cause nausea and vomiting.)

Finally, fight for the right to become whole in body and find a doctor who will help you in that fight.