Endometriosis - what exactly is it?

Endometriosis (Endo).

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This article is for those of you who have been struggling in silence, those of you who have been mis-diagnosed and those of you who may have a diagnosis, but are still feeling lost.

If you ticked any of the above, you-re not alone. It’s taken until I’m almost 30 to be told that I most likely have Endometriosis (seen on Ultrasound but awaiting laparoscopy).

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I’ve always had an inkling that something was not right. In fact, I completely shifted my career from being a full-time Industrial Designer to studying Health Science and Nutrition in an attempt to “fix” my body.

If you currently fall into the “struggling in silence” or “mis-diagnosed” category, some of the common initial Endo symptoms you should be looking for include painful periods, digestive issues, back pain or leg (nerve) pain (Parasar et al., 2017). Oftentimes Endo cannot be seen on an Ultrasound so we have to go with an individuals symptoms.

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Other symptoms which may progress include painful bowel movements, pain on urination, low-grade fevers, bloating, nausea, pain during or after sex, anxiety, depression, headaches and pain on any organs throughout the body (Parasar et al., 2017).

For myself, Endo just started out as a bad period, until I was about age 29 and began to experience pain and flu like symptoms beyond my period. It wasn’t until this stage that it was picked up via Ultrasound and demanded urgent attention.

Unfortunately, I am not here to tell you that I have found a miracle cure for Endo. However, I am here to educate and to be transparent with you in what has worked and what hasn’t worked for myself.

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What is Endo?

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Endometriosis is an inflammatory condition whereby Endometrial tissue grows outside of where it is supposed to be (Smolarz, et al., 2021). Research suggests that this tissue is transported via the lymph, in a similar way that cancer spreads. So why does Endo grow more in some women than others? Science says genetics and environment. This disease often runs in families and is an autosomal dominant condition – not autosomal recessive. Meaning there only needs to be one altered copy of the disease as opposed to two copies to pass on the disease (Smolarz, et al., 2021).

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Wherever the tissue grows it starts to build its own little Estrogen – producing cities. Pumping out Estradiol (E2) – a form of estrogen – and producing symptoms of hormonal imbalance.

We often associate the concept of “Estrogen Dominance” with Endo, but there are actually different forms of estrogen, Estrone (E1) and Estriol (E3) which are actually not associated with Endo. E2 is the one linked to the Endo sites and is also the one we have commonly tested in blood tests.

However, often E2 is not elevated enough for it to be picked up in a blood test. The excess E2 sites may only incur a minor increase – but this is still enough to cause imbalance and propel endo further.

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Nutrition and Endo

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So what can we do to help? Oftentimes if this disease is more aggressive – particularly when it starts to affect other organs or Endometriomas (chocolate cysts) form, surgery may be necessary. The main target is reducing pain and decreasing the linked risk of ovarian cancer. Wide excision surgery is often classified as gold standard (removing all tissue and surrounding like-tissue within the area affected by Endo).

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However, prior to or-post surgery, natural interventions that can help include supplements such as PEA, Omega 3 (EPA/DHA) and a good quality Iron supplement (please have your bloodwork tested first).

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There is also a very strong link between the gut and Endo so I would recommend booking in with a natural health practitioner to undergo the weed, seed, feed protocol. This targets inflammation and includes supplements that “weed out” pathogenic micro-organisms, followed by replenishing or “seeding + feeding” the gut with beneficial bacteria. Lactobacillus plantarum (299v) is particularly beneficial for Endo.

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Within the first few weeks of beginning this protocol my Endometrioma pain significantly reduced – to the point that I hardly felt it at all!

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In terms of diet – having gone vegan for almost 2 years I have learnt the hard way. What I have found to work – in line with research – is a diet that mostly eliminates refined Carbohydrates, is high in good quality proteins (meat, eggs, fish, nuts, seeds), fats (avocado, salmon, nuts, olive oil), vegetables (colourful variety at least 2 cups per day) and low GI fruit. Refined Carbohydrates such as breads, pastas, rice are simply fillers with minimal nutrition and spike our insulin, further increasing inflammation. I would also recommend avoiding phytoestrogen containing foods – particularly soy (tofu, tempeh, soy milk, etc.).

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Switching out caffeine for green tea as much as possible and drinking water with electrolytes (lemon/lime and sea salt) to keep the cells hydrated is also recommended.

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In terms of lifestyle – allowing your body time to rest when needed and reducing stress levels by finding an activity to maintain self-care on a daily basis.

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We still have so much to learn about Endometriosis – both in the realm of science and natural health. However, every little bit counts in building towards a better understanding of this disease and how it can be managed.

**Please note that this information comes from my own personal experiences with Endo. I am currently a student of Nutritional and Dietetic Medicine at Endeavour College. If you are experiencing symptoms, please seek professional help from a qualified practitioner.

Parasar, P., Ozcan, P., & Terry, K. L. (2017). Endometriosis: Epidemiology, Diagnosis and Clinical Management. Current obstetrics and gynecology reports, 6(1), 34–41. https://doi.org/10.1007/s13669-017-0187-1.

Smolarz, B., Szyłło, K., & Romanowicz, H. (2021). Endometriosis: Epidemiology, Classification, Pathogenesis, Treatment and Genetics (Review of Literature). International journal of molecular sciences, 22(19), 10554. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms221910554.