"Endometriosis is a medical condition that occurs when the lining of the uterus, called the endometrium, grows in other places, such as the fallopian tubes, ovaries or along the pelvis. When that lining breaks down, like the regular lining in the uterus that produces the menstruation, it has nowhere to go. This causes cysts, heavy periods, severe cramps and even infertility." - http://www.livescience.com//34722-endometriosis-causes-symptoms-treatments.html
The fundamental challenge with endometriosis is that it's often difficult to get diagnosed in the first place as many physical conditions can present you with similar symptoms. In my experience, the challenge to getting a quick diagnosis is further exacerbated because the person suffering with this disease and / or GPs can often dismiss the symptoms simply as being "normal" during menstruation, something that you just have to grin and bear.
My diagnosis took over twelve years from when I started having intense pain because doctors dismissed my symptoms as being 'normal', while continually re-prescribing painkillers. This resulted in my condition advancing to Grade 4, the most serious level, causing one of my organs to enlarge. As a result, one of the ureters that took waste products from the kidney to the bladder was restricted, significantly impairing my kidney function.
That said, endometriosis does not need to hamper the quality of your life in the long term. There are a number of things that you can do to help yourself bounce back from this condition.
Get body wise
•Don't suffer - get expert medical help. The most crucial step is to act quickly if you have regular symptoms. Be persistent in getting your disease diagnosed and insist on seeing a gynaecologist who specialises in treating endometriosis. The quality of your surgery, should you require any, and how well you recover from it, will depend on the technical skill, operative experience and choice of techniques used by your surgeon.
•Don't suffer with endometrial pain as it could significantly impact your quality of life. Ask your doctor to prescribe the right painkiller for you and use it to minimise the pain until a more permanent solution can be found.
•Re-evaluate your diet. Cut back on sugar and carbohydrates and inject high quality vegetarian protein into your diet. Add vitamins and minerals that serve to lower stress and help with cellular regeneration. This will help to revitalise and increase your energy levels after surgery and feed your body with good nutrition to create healthy, new cells.
Once you have taken care of getting the right medical attention, tap into the most powerful tool - your mind.
Power up your mind
To positively transform your life, make your mind your strongest ally in your healing:
•Seeing is believing - vividly visualise your health regenerating. See yourself having refreshed vigour and vitality going forward. Sit in a quiet place and do this for five minutes everyday. Let your vision become so vibrant that you can actually touch, feel and see your future healthy self.
•Master your breath. Breathe consciously as this will give you instant access to calm and relieving stress, which in turn will do magic in promoting your healing. Learn good yogic Pranayama techniques or simply use an app such as Saagara's Pranayama to guide your daily breathing practice.
•Calm your nerves and stress caused by the pain and trauma of endometriosis by making meditation a central part of your daily life. Meditation is a super stress buster and the key is finding the type of meditation that is best suited to you. Excellent apps such as Insight Timer can be a fantastic aid in getting started.
Nurture your soul
•Free your playful spirit. Nourish your soul. Do things that you absolutely love and do them simply because they are fun. Dance, swim, go on nature walks, read books, write, do yoga, compose music, paint, cook... or just create! Prioritise being lighthearted and enjoy life.
•After a long phase of treatment or invasive surgery, totally relax into your healing. Take at least three full weeks off work and use this time to totally nurture yourself. If at all possible, take some time off and disappear into sunnier climes. In Karma & Diamonds, Book 3, "Diamond Revealed", I share my deep healing journey. Among the things I did to nurture myself, and that proved miraculous for me, were learning to float freely in the ocean and swimming with wild dolphins.
•Most importantly, listen to your inner voice and let it become your personal GPS, guiding you to your wholeness and health. Connect to the intelligence and wisdom of your brilliant higher self within. Why? Because it is this that holds the golden key to unlocking just about anything that you can want for yourself or your life.
For more information about Smita Joshi, please visit http://www.karma-and-diamonds.com/