A whirlpool of pain and emotions, sadness and fear, is the state I used
to live in. The past two years of my life has been littered with medical
bills and used tissue. I always had horribly painful periods, but until
2003 I never knew what real pain felt like. It was in 2003 that
endometriosis started to take over my life.

Each month I would feel more and more pain before, during, and after my
period. This, very quickly, became an inconvenience. I had to miss work
every month and every month I would have to miss more work than the
last. The pain I felt was like someone taking my insides and stretching
them until I ripped apart. I would be struck with pain and nearly fall
to the ground. This exhausted me so much that I would frequently be sent
home from work early, and on occasion days like these would end in the
ER.

I was referred to Michael Urig by another doctor for evaluation and
treatment. I was put on different birth control pills until my body
accepted one. The longest any pill helped was a month, and the side
effects from the pill made everything worse. The pain made me feel like
my insides were going to fall on the floor. It got to the point where I
could barely walk to the bathroom without falling down or crying.

Finally, I had a laparoscopy and it was confirmed that I had severe case
of endometriosis. The doctors removed the excess tissue and I was
supposed to be OK for a while; of course this was not the case. I think
there was a period of a few months where the pain at least leveled off,
but never did it get any better or go away. I spent the next year in and
out of the emergency room at least twice a month. There were times when
the emergency room visits were weekly, and one time an ambulance had to
come get me at home because my fiancé couldn't even get me to the car.
My quality of life was in the toilet. I was depressed and at one point I
didn't want to live anymore.

Another laparoscopy passed but this time there were complications and I
had to be readmitted to the hospital. My will to survive was fading with
my health. I seriously thought I was not going to get better. I finally
started asking for a hysterectomy. I never wanted children, and I had
come to hate my female organs for the pain I was having. My doctor said
this may be the inevitable, but we should try Lupron first. Why? My
doctor said that if Lupron takes away the pain, then so will a
hysterectomy. If the pain did not ease up with Lupron, then having a
hysterectomy would be for nothing. I understood and let them give me
Lupron that day. I thought I had already been to hell and back. Boy was
I wrong.

Life with Lupron is a good as life in hell. Yes, literally. Try going
through menopause times a hundred-mood swings, hot flashes, neurotic
thinking, crying, depressed, not capable of functioning. After the first
month I wanted to give up, but my doctor convinced me to take one more
shot. Finally, after the second Lupron shot and nearly loosing my mind,
the pain was not as bad! I did not take another Lupron shot due to the
side effects and my pain returned full force within two months. I was
granted permission to have the hysterectomy and scheduled it with my
doctor. I felt like there just might be an end to my suffering in sight.

I knew the hysterectomy would be no cake walk. My doctor actually told
me it would be exactly the opposite; and since I had been in pain so
long already, the pain would be difficult to control. I was seeing a
pain management doctor for the herniated disk in my back (that somehow
appeared after my first laparoscopy) so my obgyn requested that he be
involved to control pain. February came so fast and now it is show time!

The surgery went well I'm told when I wake in recovery. It's funny how
pain wakes you up like a slap in the face or cup of coffee. I don't have
the words to describe this pain-definitely the icing on the cake. After
a few hours I was a little bit more comfortable and they took me to my
room. I will never forget Ramona -- the nurse of 3 days that I was stuck
with out of recovery. Once in my room I was given a PCA pump with
dilaudid. Unfortunately for me, Ramona didn't know how to turn my PCA on
and I lay in agony for nearly 4 hours passing in and out of
consciousness while she tried

to figure it out. Finally, after my family and fiancé screamed enough,
the nurses found someone that could explain how to turn on the PCA.
Needless to say, this motivated me to get out of the hospital which I
did only 2 days later.

Recovery went faster than I thought which made me very happy. I knew I
wasn't out of the woods yet because getting my hormones adjusted could
be tricky. I had a follow up with my obgyn 2 weeks later and he put me
on the estrogen patch. Big mistake!!!! Horrible side effects again --
mood swings, hot flashes, nervousness, etc. In discussion with Dr Evans
(pain management) he gave me the number to Lori Allen at Mixtures. He
said to call her and discuss my situation.

I called Lori right after I left Dr Evans' office. Mixtures is a
compounding pharmacy and Lori specializes in helping women balance their
hormones. I call Lori my angel now and I don't know where I would be
without Mixtures. Lori sat down with me and listened, then educated me.
I felt like I finally had answers as to why I felt and acted certain
ways. I told Lori about the problems I had with hormones in the past as
well as my medical history. It turns out that I was a very severe case
of estrogen dominance. Lori explained that I needed to let my estrogen
run out before adding more; it would be like adding fire to an existing
flame if any were added to my body at that point.

Lori suggested progesterone cream. I tried the cream and to my surprise
it worked!!! My symptoms went away and I was feeling great! About a
month later, it was time to add a little bit of estrogen. I responded so
well to this too! I am finally balanced and on my way to a normal life
again. If I hadn't found Lori and Mixtures I really don't know what I
would do or where I would be. I sometimes wonder, if I had the knowledge
of Mixtures a few years ago, would I have even had all of these
problems?

I will never know that what if....and that is fine. I feel it is my duty
to share my story with the world in hopes that no woman suffers the way
I did ever again. What a beautiful day that will be...