I'll begin with how I even got diagnosed with endometriosis in the first place, because that in itself was an adventure.  In mid 2007 I began experiencing severe abdominal pain, but only on in the lower left quadrant (LLQ).  I was concerned because in October 1999 I had a ovarian cyst that had to be removed via surgery.  It was the size of a football.  So, I waited a while to see if it would go away, but it didn't.  In fact, the pain was getting worse.  So around August of 2007 I went to see my family practice doctor to discuss my LLQ pain.  Following some x-rays, she said it was just constipation and prescribed me some fiber.  She instructed me to drink more water and eat more fiber in my diet.  I followed her directions, finished the prescribed fiber grit she had given, but my pain remained.  Since I didn't like my doctor, I opted to just live with the pain and figured I must just have sensitive bowels or something.

Then in January of 2008 I went to the gynocologist for my annual pap and exam.  By this time the pain had gotten really bad and I was having horrible menstrual pain, plus I was having pain with sex.  When the gyno did the exam I just about jumped off the table from the pain of the internal exam.  She referred me to a civilian gyno who handled special cases (I'm military and we only have basic medical services on base).  I saw him and he immediately suspected endometriosis.  He began treatment with sending me to a vaginal physical therapist and by prescribing an anti-inflamatory to see if that would reduce the pain.  The vaginal physical therapist said that I had several pelvic floor muscles which were in spasm, contributing to my pain.

In February 2008, the doctor and I decided that he would do a laproscopic surgery to have a look around and see if he could see any endometriosis.  Once inside, he did find endo and managed to burn some to get rid of it.  Following the surgery I felt pretty good and my pain seemed to be gone.  He put me on birth control pills to try and control any more endometriosis.  My pain slowly began to return until August 2008 when the pain was almost back to where it was pre-surgery.  Again, I was having pain with sex and daily LLQ pain.

At this point, the doctor has suggested the Lupron shot to cause a temporary forced state of menopause, which may cause the endometriosis to stop growing and go away.  The down side to the shot are that I may experience all of the side effects of  menopause like hot flashes, acne, depression, weight gain, sweats, irritability, etc.  Doing my own research it seems that for every good experience out there about Lupron, I can find 10 bad ones.  Some women experience serious problems including suicidal thoughts, horrible body heat to the point of passing out, and general self-esteem issues from weight gain and acne.

I have picked up my shot from the pharmacy, and am now weighing my odds.  Should I try it and see what happens?  The enduced menopause only lasts 3 months, but it can take up to a year for the medicine to be completely out of my system.  Which is worse?  The pain I experience daily now, or the potential side effects?

Quixi