I am the heaviest I have ever been, I am not sleeping, I am in constant pain and discomfort, I am basically being held in a wait and see pattern while the doctors keep me as numb as I can possibly be and still function at work at the same time...
I am sick and tired of being sick and tired...
Let's back up and start with a bit of history:
Ever since I was very young I always had very long, heavy and painful menstrual cycles. I didn't realize for a very long time that this was normal. Often I would stay home from school or work for 1-2 days when the really bad days hit me. I was prescribed birth control pills to help control my cycles.
I moved out on my own when I was 16 and started smoking. I quit taking the pill because I was advised not to continue taking them if I smoked.
I had my son with my first husband when I was 21. My cycles became even worse, so I went on Depo Provera (birth control injection shots) as I couldn't go back on the birth control pill because I was still smoking at that time.
During my second marriage we decided to try and have a child together. I went off the injections and nothing happened (no menstrual cycle). I was prescribed hormone pills to help re-start everything. They made me miserable, and I made everyone else around me miserable as well. After a few more months my cycles returned, but I was never able to have any more children. I began to discover then that my menstrual cycle troubles were a sign that things were not really all that well in the hormone and fertility department. The second marriage ended shortly after.
In 2010 my menstrual cycles were out of control. I was missing multiple days of work almost every month due to the extreme amounts of pain and bleeding. After multiple doctor visits and hospital emergencies a cyst was found that was causing the pain due to a twisted stalk. A laparoscopy was performed and the cyst was removed. It took me almost 2 weeks to recover from that surgery. I thought that was the end of that.
My common law husband and I changed out diet and eating habits and researched what we could find out about PCOS. Things seemed pretty good for a while, although eventually the cycles went back to their normal (for me) horrid self.
Starting in September of 2014 I could take it any more. The pain was horrible again, I was missing too much work again, and I was at the end of my rope. I was given ultrasounds, pain killers, iron supplements, medication to slow down the bleeding, everything. But everything was all wait and see. I requested a specialist but was told I didn't need one.
Finally, in December, after going to the hospital on three separate occasions, the hospital emergency doctor referred me to a specialist that works out of the hospital.I really like my specialist. The first ultrasound we did showed a large, almost 9 cm cyst in my right ovary. As most cysts tend to resolve themselves in 1-2 months, he decided to wait 2 months and get new images done and decide at that point what steps to take next. I am still on a wait and see regiment, but at least I feel like there is some information and some movement. My specialist also requested a CA 125 blood test (which was not covered by OHIP) so I am just waiting for those results back right now as well. I have been prescribed low dosage birth control (Lolo) to help prevent new cysts from forming as well as to (hopefully) regulate my cycle. I take Metformin to help control blood sugar levels and weight gain, and I now also have to take Toradol three scheduled times a day to keep the pain at bay.
I have little to no motivation. I am not really doing any courses lately, I am trying to stay on task at my full time job, trying to build a business of my own on the side, and mostly just chilling out in my comfy home office chair with a hot water bottle, some Netflix and some knitting.
Fun right?
Well that ran a little longer then intended....
Basically my thought was to revive this blog to help track all my symptoms, tests, results, etc. for medical purposes and also to provide the information for anyone else out there is having similar issues so you know you are not alone and maybe we can share what is/is not working for you/me.
I started tracking my symptoms on January 10th, 2015 as follows:
Saturday, January 10th, 2015
- lower back pain
- lower left pelvic pain
- nausea
- no appetite, full easily
- headache
- having to urinate frequently, but not a lot each time
- constipated
- Extra medications today: Naproxen for afternoon pain, Docusate for constipation, Gravol for nausea, Percocet for increased evening pain and to sleep.
Sunday, January 11th, 2015
- little to no sleep the previous night
- diarrhea
- upper and lower gas
- pelvic pain
- lack of appetite
- no energy
- passed out in the middle of the day for about 4 hours
- Extra medications today: Tylenol 3 for pain (barely numbed it)
Monday, January 12th, 2015
- lower left pelvic pain
- nausea
- extreme bloating and pressure
- Extra medications today: n/a
Tuesday, January 13th, 2015
- little to no sleep the previous night
- having to urinate frequently, but not a lot each time
- heartburn
- weak and shaky
- right leg glitches
- extreme bloating and pressure
- upper and lower gas
- dizzy
- heaviness of chest
- short walk to the bank almost made me pass out
- Extra medications today: n/a
Wednesday, January 14th, 2015
- little to no sleep the previous night
- had to get up to urinate in the middle of the night
- bad tasting and burning upper gas
- bad smelling and burning lower gas
- constant tummy rumbling
- sharp pains in the lower left pelvic area
- extreme nausea
- lower back pain
- Extra medications today: n/a
Thursday, January 15th, 2015
- little to no sleep the previous night
- running on empty
- extreme nausea
- extreme heartburn
- lower back pain
- stomach pain (above the belly button)
- lower right pelvic pain
- Extra medications today: Gravol for nausea and sleep
Friday, January 16th, 2015 (as at 1:00 pm EST)
- almost no sleep previous night, maybe 2 hours
- exhausted
- nausea
- heartburn
