Endometriosis: If you have painful and disabling periods, pain during sexual intercourse and you have not become pregnant, you may be suffering from this disease

Endometriosis is a female disease that occurs when tissue similar to endometrium (which is the inner lining of the uterus) is found in areas outside the uterus; causing chronic inflammation that worsens every month with menstrual bleeding and usually causes pain.

The most frequent discomforts are:

• Abdominal pain that worsens when your period, period or menstruation comes.
• Pain with intercourse
• heavy periods
• infertility

It is a more common disease than you think , since it affects approximately 1 in 10 women of childbearing age (between 15 and 49 years old) and here is the drama since it affects the intimate life, the social life and even the capacity of having children.

Endometriosis is ageless . It can start when you develop (with the first menstrual period), and not necessarily, the arrival of the menopause solves the problems, since internal scars or adhesions can form that hinder the normal functions of peeing, evacuating or having intercourse .

Unfortunately, endometriosis is usually not diagnosed until between the ages of 25 and 35 . That is why it is important that you become an active spokesperson in the early detection and prevention of this disease in your family group and among your friends, because it is key that we all begin to create our support groups around women's health.

How is endometriosis produced?

Let's review how your body works when your period (period or menstruation) comes, so that we understand this process. The inside of your womb is covered by a tissue that grows and changes every month, imagine it as a mattress made of tissue, ready to receive the baby in its smallest stage. If that mattress does not receive any baby, every month it is expelled through your vagina in the form of bleeding (menstruation) and is renewed.

A part of the blood leaves through the tubes and falls into the abdomen . Doctors call this situation: Retrograde Menstrual Flow. This blood is normally absorbed or eliminated by cells that are our policemen in the body and nothing bad happens. This normally occurs in all women, but when the police do NOT act and the blood remains accumulated in the different parts of the abdomen, it is the moment when endometriosis is believed to develop, since those blood spots grow with each cycle of bleeding (when your period comes), fed or stimulated by internal hormones and gradually causing inflammation and problems.

This abnormally growing tissue outside the uterus can stick to other parts of your body, such as:

• ovaries
• Fallopian tube
• Bowels
• Straight
• Bladder
• walls of your pelvis
• Among other less common: cesarean section scar, episiotomy scar, nose and even brain (the latter is not frequent)

Alert! if you identify with the following points, you may have endometriosis:

• You have a mother or sister with this disease (it can be hereditary)
• You frequently suffer from pain in the lower part of your abdomen, similar to that of an intestinal problem, which worsens with the arrival of your period or menstruation
• You have never managed to have children
• Pain during or after sexual intercourse
• Painful, heavy periods with debilitating cramps, which may even get worse over time
• Painful bowel movements or pain when urinating when you get your period or menstruation

To do?

If you identify yourself with any of these annoying problems, the first thing you have to do is see your doctor to start treatment soon to help you avoid bigger problems later on, however, it is important to keep in mind that there is NO definitive cure.

The goals are:

• Relieve constant pain
• Make possible pleasurable sexual relations WITHOUT PAIN!
• Avoid infertility or treat it if it is already present

This is achieved by putting the ovaries to SLEEP

Just as you read it! We must put our hormones to rest, since they are the ones that make the endometriosis foci stronger and larger, which cause most of the problems.

While we do that with the help of the doctor , we must simultaneously work on relieving the PAIN with pain relievers. In some cases it is necessary to resort to surgery or treatments to improve fertility. One of the most drastic solutions, which must ALWAYS be considered as a last option, is radical surgery, with which the womb and ovaries are removed or extracted.

In short, to find out which is the best treatment for you or for any woman suffering from endometriosis, you should consult an expert and take into account age, plans to have children and the severity of the symptoms and the disease.

To start attacking the symptoms of endometriosis , below we share some information and recommendations that you can start implementing now; which will make your day to day easier and your intimate life more pleasant.

What to do if you have PAIN when having sex?

Vaginal dryness and endometriosis are two situations that are frequently associated and cause pain, especially when you are already under medications that put the ovaries to sleep; That is why we recommend the following tips:

• Use a good lubricant : if you are already undergoing treatment, you can NOT separate yourself from the gel! Which must not only be a lubricant, but must also be moisturizing and regenerating, in order to prepare the area and leave it suitable for enjoyment and NOT for pain.
• Identify if there are sexual positions in which you particularly feel more pain, if so, discuss it with your partner and inform the doctor. And for now, try to avoid them or lower the force of the penetration.
• If you are using birth control pills and you get your period, try to avoid intercourse the days before the bleeding.
• Eat enough fiber and drink plenty of water to evacuate or empty the intestines easily and smoothly, this definitely helps to improve pain in relationships and even on other occasions.

Zenzsual's Feminine Moisturizing Gel with Hyaluronic Acid , which you can find in our web store, is a colorless, fragrance-free, odorless product, compatible with vaginal pH, 100% natural, paraben-free, water-based, fully compatible with the use of condoms and sex toys.

Especially recommended for women who suffer from vaginal dryness and who want to delay the aging of their genitals.

In summary, it can be said that endometriosis affects the physical, mental, sexual and social well-being of affected women, for this reason it is important to seek help.

At the end of the road , we don't want you to become part of the statistic! At Zenzsual we are committed to making a team with all women who, like you, care about their health, with the idea of ​​working together to ensure healthy aging, to see our children grow and enjoy a happy and pleasant life.

Dare to be part of the Zenzsual community, visiting our website www.zenzsual.com and social networks, where we will continue to publish articles and content like this; to stay in touch with issues relevant to our health, our sexuality and our well-being as empowered women.

Information sources:

• Dr. Sofía Herrera, Founder of Zenzsual ( @tu_ginecologa )
• Dr. Klara Senior, Founder of Zenszual ( @klarasenior )
• World Endometriosis Society
• Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD)
• www.kernpharma.com