The signs of Endometriosis might be a little different to the symptoms of Endometriosis. To me, signs are signals, obvious visible things that could illustrate you have Endometriosis. Symptoms are the kind of things you might get along with Endometriosis and are part of having the condition. Naturally, the body is complex and there are always other reasons that you could have these but it appears that many of us Endometriosis girls also have these 5 Signs of Endometriosis.

1. Black or Dark Blood when we menstruate
The Traditional Chinese Doctors call this “blood stasis” and it illustrates that there is blood “sitting” in our abdominal cavity and can’t get out. It essentially goes dark as it is old. It has been sitting in there for a while.
Our menstuation should bring out red looking blood and dark blood is quite common with girls who suffer from Endometriosis.

2. Lumpy bits or clots in your blood
This is very similar to the above sign of Endometriosis but the clots illustrate that there is more cell growth occurring in your abdominal cavity, than if you just had poor movement in the area. Clots are an indication of Endometriosis cells forming and growing. This is usually closely linked to the hormone Oestrogen and it’s over activity. It is easy to get this measured and controlled, so it is well worth getting your hormones checked to see how you rank with those.

3. Swollen Abdomen after your period
I used to get this so bad that my mom actually thought I was pregnant! The biggest key to this one is that the swelling actually occurs after your period. This is all those retrograde cells trying to find their way out of the abdominal cavity. The body is trying to heal the area and creates inflammation to do that.

4. Heavy and longer periods
The stuff that comes out is heavier and longer than normal. The average women only has a period that lasts 4-5 days. I know women with Endometriosis who have had their period for over 2 weeks. The average blood loss should be about 35-40ml. In extreme cases where blood loss is more than 200ml, the term is called Menometrorrhagia.

5. The weight gain, especially around the tummy area
This is also closely linked to Oestrogen Dominance. Essentially, all our womanly characteristics are bigger! We have bigger boobs, a rounded tum, larger thighs and just look….shall I say “voluptuous”. This is certainly not one that applies to all women with Endometriosis but it does seem to fit in well with the other signs of Endometriosis.

These are some of the signs that you might have Endometriosis. They are also good to note, if you already know you have Endometriosis, because you can use them as a measure to see how you are doing with your healing. If you watch them closely, they can illustrate whether your Endometriosis is getting better or worse!

Is there any you would like to add? Any obvious signs of Endometriosis you would like to share?

I thought of one, that may be related….but I wasn’t sure if you have it too….a heightened sense of smell. I can smell everything and very distinctly. Do you get that too?

I cannot rave about Castor Oil Packs enough! They are seriously awesome! You can reduce that swollen tummy within an hour! It works on the Lymphatic System and will really get those toxins flushed out for you!

Read more in this article I wrote a few days ago: http://www.cureendometriosis.com/lymphatic/

Here’s the video:

Feel free to ask me any questions

I don’t know about you but I can barely remember the Sex Education Lesson I had at school! Thing is, without appreciating how our hormones fluctuate during the month, we are unlikely to appreciate when they are not acting normally. If nothing else, it gives us a consolation as to why we might be feeling anxious, depressed, why our boobs might hurt and really make the very important connection between WHEN we experience what. This will help you to determine when your hormones are getting back to normal too

I would really love to get a comparison from you. It would be great to share similarities or differences with you

Okay, so I am going to try and make this as simple as possible. Though we are often told that a “normal” cycle is 28 days, it turns out that only about 15% of women actually experience this.

Stage 1- Our period/ Proliferation Stage within The Follicular Phase.

Your first day of your period, counts as Day 1 of your cycle.

Should last 4-5 days. I don’t know about you but mine lasts more like 7 days! Granted, the last few days are a little bit more like trickles but it still lasts longer than 4 days!

Once our period starts, we usually experience the least of the emotional stuff. Our hormones are at their lowest point now at this point.

Stage 2 – continuation of the Follicular Phase

Well, basically we are now in a process of “building”. The Oestrogen levels shoot up, to build the follicles and regrow that Endometrial lining.

Oestrogen and Testosterone build together and build up to peak for Ovulation. You actually probably feel the best during this time of the month. Oestrogen boosts your mood. Testosterone will make you feel like you can do anything. You are relaxed and comfortable with yourself.

This is a great time to start a new diet as you generally feel like eating less and feel like things are possible

For some of us, we find the increase in Oestrogen actually creates a feeling of overwhelm – I can soooo relate to this one! Funnily enough, when I looked back on my blog posts, the ones where I am struggling to cope or am feeling overwhelmed are all around then Elevated Oestrogen will make you “mountains out of molehills” or turn little things into a big deal. We can get worked up about nothing with excess Oestrogen.

This is the best week to have sex. The least pain, the most hormones (Oestrogen and Testosterone) and you feel confident and look fabulous!

Stage 3 – Ovulation Day 14-19 (roughly)

This is obviously the time when you can fall pregnant – if you have been trying for a while, you probably know this one by now

What does happen though , is our Oestrogen and Testosterone levels decline a little now. This means we are likely to feel a slight slump in our mood. This lasts for about 3-4 days. You might feel a little irritated or short tempered. Your sex drive slumps too.

Stage 4 – Luteal Phase – last week before our monthly (Day 19-end of cycle)

This is really the most important week for us all to look at. This is also when you should get your saliva hormone test done – specifically day 19,20 or 21. – I am getting mine done this month

Now, this is usually when we experience all the PMS stuff, illustrating that things are simply as they should be.

What should happen is that the Oestrogen should drop slightly and then increase slightly over day 21, dropping again until we menstruate.

Here’s a diagram:

Progesterone should shoot up leading up to day 19,20 and 21 and then drop to match Estrogen for menstruation. Now, for most of us this just doesn’t happen. Hence, why we suffer from Oestrogen Dominance.

Let me explain. We need Progesterone to balance out the Oestrogen. They work together, like a Jin Jang effect.

Dr Cabot explains it the best:

” Estrogen is like the fertiliser for the lawn and progesterone is the lawn mower” – well that is not word for word but you get the idea

Now, we are all different and our fluctuations in this area can be quite different. They can also change each month, depending on diet, lifestyle and our current stress levels.

I know I don’t suffer from many of the PMS symptoms I used to have, just by changing my diet.

There are some very important things I need to point out to go along with this article:

1. You cannot successfully measure hormone levels with a blood test. Oestrogen, especially Xenoestrogens often sit in the fat cells of our body. They still elevate our Estrogen levels in the body and yet, they are not picked up by a blood test. The best way to test your hormones is with a Saliva test. I found a great place in Tauranga that can do them in New Zealand – they are called Patient Advocates. If you don’t live in New Zealand, request a Saliva Test and get it done on days 19,20 or 21 of your cycle.

2. The liver has a direct affect on our hormone levels. If your liver is not functioning correctly, then you won’t be able to flush out any excess hormones in the body. By not flushing them out, they simply get recycled in the blood stream and land up, back in the body! This is part of the reason for Oestrogen Dominance in many of us. That “flushing out” is a combination of the liver working well and the pathway to get them out, needs to be free too – you know your bowels? Yip, they need to be free of bacteria and clogged up matter to ensure the excess that the liver has processed, actually manages to get out.

Now, this applies to ALL hormones. That includes our thyroid, adrenals, prostaglandins – all of them.

3. Diet makes a difference

We need all the right minerals and vitamins to make the necessary processes to occur within the liver to occur. The best source of those, is in what we eat. There are foods that also inhibit these processes. So, please don’t believe your doc, when they say that diet doesn’t change anything. It totally does!

Here’s the thing. I have been hesitant to use Progesterone Cream for my endo. I have focused heavily on my liver and detoxing it. I have also made heaps of changes to my diet. I have managed to cross off many of the symptoms I used to experience before my period and during my period.

Here are the symptoms I used to have:

• Headaches
• Bad bowels – either diarrhea or constipation before my period
• Migraines
• Nausea to the point of throwing up
• Extreme moodiness and irritation
• Sore boobs
• Heaps of water retention
• Tiredness and lethargy
• Depression

Feel free to share and ask any questions

Stage 2

Well, I can’t imagine why, but for some reason I get asked this question so often on my blog and in my emails. So, I thought I would share my current eating plan. Now, please note that I get bored easily and change my diet quite often, so it changes all the time. I also incorporate a heap of superfoods in my diet – like Reishi Mushrooms, Cocoa, Blueberries, Aloe Vera and heaps of herbs. So, I am getting heaps of protein and other minerals and vitamins from other sources.

So, watch the video and feel free to ask me any questions on where to start

Let me know if you have any questions. Happy to help:)

Also, my other website is www.eatingwithmel.com. 

I know it sounds like a double handed question but in actual fact, it plays a massive role in how you see yourself and ultimately the message you are sending out to your body. If you are a sufferer of Endometriosis, than you simply suffer from the condition – it is a temporary statement. If you are an Endometriosis Sufferer, it has a much more permanent sound to it. It illustrates that you have been suffering from Endometriosis for a while and that you have almost defined this to be who you are, kinda like a title. It is like saying, I am Melissa and I am an Endometriosis Sufferer. I know it is minor difference but it does ultimately affect your ability to heal from Endometriosis.

If you tell yourself each and every day that you are useless and pathetic, than ultimately you will start to believe this statement. If you tell yourself you are beautiful, strong and free, than you will ultimately believe this too. The same applies to Endometriosis. Start to notice the voice in your head and what it tells you about your Endometriosis. Does it say: I am strong and I will find a way to heal….or does it say: I will never beat this thing, it hurts and it is unbeatable!

I know some of you might think this sort of like “positive thinking” but the power of our minds shouldn’t be under estimated. Think of people who can walk on hot coals or people who can drink pure poison and do not die from it, as they have convinced their subconscious mind that they can’t be harmed or die.

If you have read any of Louise Hay’s books (You Can Heal Your Life (Gift Edition) you will realise how powerful our minds are in our healing. Within the book, she takes you through a journey of actually focusing on those voices and changing them. Telling yourself each day, that you are strong, that disease doesn’t control you and that you can choose what happens to you. It is incredibly powerful stuff!

The other day I was listening to an audio interview with Dr Bruce Lipton. It was a little out there but one of the key elements I took out of it was that each cell in our bodies works on messengers. So, they communicate with each other. What is interesting to me about this is that even though we renew our cells every few weeks – depends on the organ, the same disease or imbalance still exists in the body, sometimes for months/years at a time. I have actually heard of this concept before in a book by Brandon Bays, The Journey: A Practical Guide to Healing Your Life and Setting Yourself Free
. In this book she also explains that the subconscious messages we have in our mind, create whichever situation we have in our bodies.

What if we take this idea one step further…what if we send the body a different message each day, that we are well, healthy and strong and direct it to the subconscious mind? Then our subconscious mind could in theory “listen” to that message and create that to be true. It thereby creates the situation we are sending it.

If we changed that message to something powerful and were convinced of it enough, we could alter our subconscious mind, than perhaps we could alter our healing. I mean ultimately, our imbalances are all controlled by our bodies and our mind controls our bodies action. We tell it when to move, when to eat etc. What if we could tell it to heal? It all stems from the brain in the end anyways. The brain decides on hormone levels and how it reacts to toxins etc etc.

One of the theories within Brandon Bay’s book is that our subconscious mind holds heaps of emotional pain, which affects our organs and the diseases we develop. According to her, there is a reason we develop “blockages” in the body and she believes they stem from strong emotions, we have held in our memory from childhood. She gives one example, where she explains how she had a memory of an event she didn’t want to look at, and how once she actually confronted it, it made her inability to see without glasses disappear.

It is an interesting perspective isn’t it?

I know it is never as simple as this. Getting that message through to our subconscious mind of  ”I am perfectly healthy”, when your body is aching from pain every day, is just about impossible.

However, I have personally experienced the amazing healing benefits of releasing strong emotional pain from my body. I used Emotional Freedom Technique to heal some aspects of my anger and pain from my family. I can tell you that releasing this stuff helped me deal with stress better. I just wasn’t as angry about life in general. I wasn’t as wound up or sensitive to things. It gave me the right mindset to be able to believe that I could heal…..which I think is the BIG thing here. See, all this negative stuff, that we have sitting in our subconscious mind must have an impact in our outlook, our depression and this will affect our decisions, our reactions, our energy and how we perceive the world.

We get stuck in a negative space through these emotions. We start to believe that nasty inner voice and to me, this prevents people from really “seeing” their true healing abilities.

Let me put this another way. The information to heal ourselves is all within our reach. It is there, in black and white. Those girls who have searched and researched and most importantly ACTED on the knowledge they have gained, have done it. So, why is it that not everyone is seeing it? Why do we not simply do what we need to do to get better?

To me, this is where the limited beliefs we might have about ourselves come in. If we don’t have qualities like discipline or the ability to stick to things or to follow through with stuff or even just loving ourselves enough, then we won’t ACT. We will try and we will fail and it is this failure, that re-enforces that belief and so the circle goes round and round.

I speak from experience here. Growing up, I developed a belief system that I was weak, sensitive and just didn’t stick to stuff. I lacked discipline and motivation to do anything properly. These were the “voices” in my subconscious, which were brought on by my mom. Sure, I could spend the rest of my life blaming her but ultimately, I formed those belief systems and allowed them to sit in my mind. So, I decided to tackle them…. which I did with the Emotional Freedom Technique. What this video to see the results!

I wouldn’t be able to do what I do with this blog, if it weren’t for getting rid of those thought patterns. Sure, they still come up from time to time but mostly I now have the ability to “do whatever it takes” and to stick to this journey of healing naturally – no matter what! They don’t dominate my entire life, the way they used to. I am stronger, clearer and just generally more positive than I ever was before.

I know this is a little out there for some of you but I would love to get some of your thoughts on it all. Do you think there is any merit to it? Is it all just a load of rubbish? Is the body a mechanism, that responds to the right minerals, herbs and basic biology? If we feed it the right stuff, can we alter ALL of it, including the negative thought patterns?

I have tried to find information about it being a scam and couldn’t find a single website listing it as a scam. They all directed me straight to the sales page! I researched the company further and they own over 1000 websites. So, they obviously do quite a bit of internet marketing and make some mean cash by the sounds of it!

When I looked at the sales pages more closely I discovered that the cute story about meeting a lady/man in a small town in France, seemed to exist for all sorts of sufferers! – I am being sarcastic The same story about meeting a friend in a supermarket seemed to exist in all 8 cases too! Oh this makes me cross!

So, ladies, don’t buy the book! Yipppeee you have just saved yourself $47!