Now here are some things that worked for me, when it comes to the supplements please talk to your Naturopath before starting any and to get the correct dosages. I am not a doctor but based off my experience and research these may help.
First and foremost, find an OBYN that you trust and listens to you, normal appointments are about 15 mins, you should be able to e-mail them, and they should contact you back within 2 business days. When having endo, you have more issues and things come up, so you’ll be in constant communication with your doctor. Locate a reputable acupuncturist that one has heard of endo, and that has worked with clients who have had it before. Find a naturopath or holistic practitioner that knows about endo and that you trust. Naturopaths and holistic practitioners tend to have hour appointments with you, so you are able to go through your entire health history and work on EVERYTHING that is going on, yes you need to treat your whole body!
Again these are some things that maybe you’ve tried and did not work, or may not work for you. these are things I’ve tried and did wonders for me, and sometimes its combining it all that helps!
My tips and tricks for dealing with endo naturally, and successfully:
- Get off birth control- why would you want to put more estrogen in your body when your endo is estrogen dominant and messing up your endocrine system and hormones.
- Menstrual cup instead of tampons during your period- no toxic cotton inside your body, and the pressure of the cup in your uterus has shown to help with cramps.
- Heating pad twenty minutes a day with castor oil all over belly and liver point. What this does is it breaks up the endo tissue inside your body so when you have your period your body can expel it. (you may feel some tingling and flutters when you are using your heating pad, totally normal) My fav heating pad is a shoulder one I found on amazon, because it wraps around my belly. Click here for Heating Pad .This castor oil is the best because it ROLLS on, no mess! No clean up! AMAZING
- Glutathione- powerful antioxidant that helps remove toxins from your body, and helps process out excess estrogen. RXed through my holistic chiropractor
- N-Acetylcysteine (NAC)- reduces endometrial tissues and aids the liver in detoxing, noticing a trend?
- Cleary sage essential oil to diffuse- helps with PMS symptoms, hormones and cramps
- Cleary calm ROLL ON- apply directly to kiss those cramps goodbye, or at least make them tolerable. Helps during ovarian cyst ruptures.
- Vitex- helps balance estrogen and progesterone, also helps aid in fertility
- Vitamin D3: reduces endometrial tissue from reoccurring, also helps with mood and immune system
- Rosemarinus- anti inflammatory, helps relieve pain and sheds endo tissue, and MAY prevent it from reoccurring
- Undas RX per ND
- Chinese Herbs- prescribed per your acupuncturist, depends on how your body runs, hot vs. cold. I run hot
- Acupuncture and cupping on abdominal region- helps strengthen the immune system, and get everything working the way it should be
- Eating organic veggies: pesticides and herbicides, can interfere with normal hormone function.
- Staying away from Dairy and red meat, dairy can contain excess of estrogen, and there are studies showing that commercially raied red meat often contains dioxin, xenoestrogens, and antibiotics.
- Eliminate grains and gluten, Grains and gluten can cause inflammation in normal healthy people, and makes it even worse for people who already have inflammatory issues.
- Food sensitivity panel- this is where I found I was sensitive to gluten, dairy, eggs, chicken, fish, and other healthy items, By eliminating what was harming MY body, I allowed my gut to heal and improve my immune system. Which in turns helps your body process and excrete excess hormones
- Diet high based on organic vegetables and high in fiber: Studies show that basing your diet off fresh vegetables and a diet high in fiber help excrete excess estrogen by binding it to bile and removes it from the body.
- Medical Marijuana- helps with pain during a flare, this is up to you if you are comfortable doing this, they now have oils, and creams that do not contain THC(the part that gets you high) and that have shown to help with pain and flares.
- Epsom salt baths- help relax you and aids in detoxing the body
- Wine or champagne- to calm you down and relax when you are at your breaking point, no it really isn’t doing anything for endo, but for me it helped me get through the pain and flares.
I hope my experience can help you in knowing that you are not restricted to Western Medicine, but that there are alternatives to helping your body. In future blog posts I will get more in depth with other natural remedies that have changed my life, and lives of people close to me. There will also be additional posts on endo and women’s health, but feel free to shoot me a comment or e-mail about anything, you are not alone, and you have options! You are in control of your health and you get to choose what form of treatments you want to do!