Since you may be unfamiliar with this form of alternative therapy, the following are answers to some of the questions you may have:

What is interferential electro-therapy? -It is a form of therapeutic treatment that assists in alleviating pain and encourages healing of the soft tissues in the body (muscles, tendons and ligaments) through electrical muscle stimulation.

How does the therapy work? - Miniscule amounts of electrical impulses are induced into the bodily tissue in the targeted area through electro-therapy patches.  These impulses interconnect beneath the surface of the skin, creating a stimulation of low frequency.  The stimulation prompts the body to produce endorphins (natural painkillers) to alleviate pain.

How can interferential electro-therapy help those with endometriosis? - Those who have endometriosis receive electro therapy in their pelvic region.  Four electro-therapy patches are used.  Two are placed on either side of the lower back, and two are positioned on either side of the pelvic region.  The electrical impulses that are induced into the targeted area are meant to create criss-cross stimulation in the pelvis to ease pain and encourage healing.

Does the therapy hurt or is it uncomfortable? - No.  The vast majority of people who undergo interferential electro-therapy describe it as a dull sensation that is similar to a “pins and needles” feeling.

Why is interferential electro-therapy a recommended treatment? - A number of practitioners believe that this form of electro therapy greatly helps areas of injured tissue by increasing the lymphatic flow and blood flow they receive.  By improving blood and lymphatic flow, this increases the amount of oxygen and nutrients delivered to the injured tissue.  This helps to reduce swelling which works to alleviate pain.

What are the benefits of this therapy? - Interferential therapy has been known to:

 *Encourage the body to release endorphins
 *Decrease and/or relieve painful symptoms
 *Reduce swelling in the tissue
 *Speeds up the healing process
 *Encourage muscle tone
 *Restores normal movement in an injured area

Are there any negative side effects? - Yes.  Some people may not be able to undergo interferential electro therapy if they have cancer, cardiac problems, have a seizure disorder or a pacemaker.  In addition, you should also know:

 *Patients have had allergic reactions to electro-therapy patches
 *Electro therapy shouldn’t be used:
 -After a head injury or acute trauma
 -Over the neck or face – this can cause serious spasms of the neck muscles (laryngeal and pharyngeal) which can cause the throat to close and obstruct the airway or make breathing difficult
 -Over areas of the skin that are infected or inflamed
 -Over the heart

Most people who experience interferential elector-therapy find the treatment to be extremely beneficial.  If you are interested in trying this form of alternative treatment or another type of therapy to treat endometriosis, it is always best to consult your doctor first to find out what he or she recommends.

These “rebel” tissues are known as endometriosis lesions, and are usually found anywhere within the pelvic region (IE. Fallopian tubs, ovaries, pelvic sidewall, etc.). Due to the prime location of the endometriosis lesions, the most common symptom is pelvic pain.

There is no cure for endometriosis; therefore, women with the condition need to seek effective treatment that will help them control the symptoms that plague them, particularly during their menstruation cycle. While many women seek medical therapy, others find that by simply controlling their diet they are successfully living a symptom free life.

How can a diet improve endometriosis symptoms?

An endometriosis diet works to relieve and/or prevent some of the severe symptoms experienced during menstruation such as:

- Backache
- Fatigue
- Severe cramping
- Menorrhagia (heavy menstrual bleeding)
- Dysmenorrhea (pain or discomfort)
- Dyspareunia (pain in the pelvic or vaginal region during intercourse)

The objective of a controlled diet is to reduce estrogen levels, increase the body’s energy level, relieve painful cramps, normalize hormones and stabilize emotions.

It has become evident that endometriosis is an estrogen-sensitive condition. However, the severe cramping that a woman experiences, is typically a result of prostaglandin synthesis in her body.

Prostaglandins are fatty acids that naturally occur from dietary phospholipids. Prostaglandins can be broken down into three separate groups:

1. Prostaglandin E1 (PGE1) – This form helps to relieve symptoms of endometriosis
2. Prostaglandin E2 (PGE2) – This form encourages menorrhagia
3. Prostaglandin F2a (PGF2a) – This form can lead to nausea, vomiting and diarrhea.

Essentially, when combined, PGE2 and PGF2a create the severe symptoms women with endometriosis experience during menstruation. However, the right change in diet can actually block the production of PGE2 and PGF2a and increase the production of PGE1 to help overcome or reduce the painful symptoms.

The following is how such a diet can be achieved.

Fatty acids: It is known that fatty acids such as saturated fats, lard, butter and animal and organ meet increase the amount of PGF2a that is produced, while omega-3 fatty acids such as evening primrose oil, flax seeds and oil, pumpkin seeds, sunflower oil and walnut oil increase production of PGE1. Therefore, when a woman decreases the amount of “bad fat” in her diet, she will experience positive results.

Fiber: Aside from decreasing the intake of bad fat, women seeking dietary treatment for their endometriosis should have a diet high in fiber. A high fiber diet (approximately 25 grams per day) can reduce the amount of circulating estrogens. Good sources of fiber are beans, brown rice, fruits and vegetables, oatmeal and whole grains.

Dairy: Just like bad fats can increase symptoms, so can diary products. Unfortunately, dairy (in the correct form) is a fantastic source of calcium. Therefore, if a woman chooses to eliminate diary from her diet, she needs to find other calcium sources by either taking supplements or eating foods that contain the mineral such as almonds, dark green veggies (IE. spinach, kale, broccoli, etc.), Figs, sesame seeds, etc.

Other food that should be avoided during menstruation includes caffeine, chocolate, alcohol, fried foods, salt, sugar and refined carbohydrates (IE bread, cake, pastries, pasta, etc.)

Finally, if foods are eliminated from a diet during menstruation, there may be a need to suplement the diet to maintan adequate nutrition levels. Before taking supplements, women should consult their doctor, a Dietician or a Nutritionalist.

Don’t forget if you haven’t already done so, you can sign up for the free endometriosis newsletter that uncovers effective ways to help women combat endometriosis symptoms. You’ll also find more suggestions for effectively dealing with endometriosis here.

So what happens next? You know you have endometriosis. Your doctor has probably already suggested a course of action or is closely monitoring you. Aside from serious issues related to the disease such as infertility, there is the matter of pain and discomfort. For some women, it’s minimal. For others, it is debilitating. How can you find relief from the pain?

The type of pain treatment you need depends on the severity of your symptoms. If you are only suffering minimal pelvic pain, you may be able to take an anti-inflammatory drug to sate the pain. Doctors often recommend analgesics, or oral contraceptives.

GnRh analogs help relieve the pain related to endometriosis. These drugs come in the form of nasal spray or injections. They provide pain relief, but it’s important to keep in mind, like many of the pain relievers, it does not increase a woman’s chances of getting pregnant. These types of drugs simply keep the pituitary gland from producing gonadotropin. This means that your ovary won’t produce estrogen. Most patients who take these drugs experience relief of pain for about five years. After that point, the majority of women experience a recurrence of symptoms and pain.

Oral contraceptives, otherwise referred to as birth control pills can also help a woman suffering from endometriosis find relief from pain. These pills can help limit growth of problematic tissue from growing, but GnRH agonists and Danazol have been found to work better in treating more serious forms of endometriosis when pain is more pronounced. For mild pain, oral contraceptives are often the best option since they carry very few side effects.

Another effective pain treatment for endometriosis is via progestins. Studies have shown that progestin treatment which stops endometrial tissue from growing has been effective in relieving pain in the majority of women. In fact, most studies find it to be 80% effective. Some side effects to this drug include bleeding between menstrual cycles, retention of fluid, nausea, and depression. Another drug called Danazol has similar benefits. It can cause weight gain, cramps, hot flashes, or depression.

Studies show that medicinal treatments can be quite effective in treating the pain related to endometriosis. About 90% of women feel an improvement after beginning to take medicine for their pain. It is important to keep in mind, however, that many of these medications carry side effects. Talking with your doctor about the benefits and risks of different medications will enable you to make the most informed decision for your particular situation. If medication does not help alleviate your symptoms, your doctor may want to discuss surgical intervention.

In addition to this possibility, endometriosis brings with it a variety of painful and disturbing symptoms. Pain, the most common symptom of endometriosis, can severely hinder your quality of life. However, there are ways to manage the condition to lessen its impact.

The pain and other symptoms of endometriosis can be managed in a variety of ways. The first and most important is to control your stress levels.  Stress puts undue pressure on the body. It causes your systems to function less effectively, allowing endometriosis to worsen.

In addition, if you are a smoker, you should consider giving up the habit. It may be a difficult task, but it is important that you keep your body functioning at peak capacity. There is no proven link between smoking cigarettes and the onset of endometriosis, but cigarette smoke impairs the body’s ability to fight off diseases and opportunistic infections.

Another way to keep your body performing well is to detoxify. Many people have a high level of toxicity in their system that they may not be aware of. There are many products available at health food stores and even large supermarkets that will enable your body to purge harmful chemicals and toxins.

Detoxifying is a great way to increase your energy level and fight against fatigue – another symptom of endometriosis. Drinking 8 or more glasses of water each day is a good start to the detoxification process. This will enable your body to get back to working the way nature intended.

Furthermore, keeping fit is an important step to take if you want to feel better. Exercise is important for a variety of reasons. First of all, it allows your body to run at peak ability. The better your physical conditioning the higher chance you have of warding off disease and controlling the progression of endometriosis.

In addition to exercising, you should concentrate on balancing your emotional health. Consider techniques such as meditation and yoga to relieve stress and help you stay calm and relaxed. Pampering yourself with the occasional massage or day spa treatment can also help you reduce stress levels. Acupuncture and acupressure are also good choices to keep you relaxed and stress-free.

There are also support groups available to sufferers of endometriosis. Support groups meet regularly and allow people to talk about their experiences and share knowledge. These groups can be very helpful and provide someone with a sense of unity. Women without endometriosis will not be able to fully understand the disorder, so it is important to meet with people who share your experience.

Coping with endometriosis is usually not easy. The condition can cause changes in your life and, since it is incurable, it is important that you work to stop (or slow down) the progress of the disease.

Keep track of the way your body feels on different days, track your symptoms, eating habits, bowel movements, and cross-reference these variables with your menstrual cycle. Use your mind and your body to battle endometriosis and you may just turn the tide and keep the symptoms at a manageable level.

For more information on Managing and controlling Endometriosis Symptoms Click Here

Dr. Francesco Sesti, Tor Vergata University Hospital, Rome, Italy, and her colleagues performed a trial where 6 months hormone suppression treatment and diet therapy were used to relieve pain in 222 women who had undergone conservative surgery for severe endometriosis.

Most women who receive surgery for severe endometriosis experience pain relief, however, roughly a quarter report worsening pain and around a third go on to have further surgery.

In a bid to stop the need for endless rounds of surgery Dr. Franscesco and her fellow researchers wanted to investigate the effectiveness of hormone suppression and diet therapy.

Of the group of 222 women, 110 received a placebo, 35 were given dietary supplements, including vitamins, mineral salts, lactic ferments, omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids and 77 women underwent hormone suppression treatment.

All the women were treated for 6 months and at the 12 month follow up the women in the dietary supplement and hormone suppression groups reported less menstrual pain, nonmenstrual pelvic pain and pain during intercourse.

The study concluded that for women still experiencing pain after conservative surgery hormone suppression or dietary supplementation were effective treatment options.

However, further clinical trials with larger numbers of women are needed to confirm the results and to also identify the most effective kind of treatment post surgery for severe endometriosis.

In the meantime, if you have undergone surgery that hasn’t relieved you of all your symptoms have a word with your doctor to discuss the benefits of hormone suppression or visit a dietician to discuss supplementation.

We all know the risks of sunbathing and skin cancer but did you know that women with endometriosis have a 60% higher chance of developing a melanoma?

These findings were the outcome of a study that analysed a cohort of nearly 92,000 French women, aged between 40 to 65 at the start of the study.

The women,filled out a questionnaire at the start of the study and were sent follow-up questionnaires every two years.

During the following 12 years, 363 melanoma cases were reported. 5949 women with a history of endometriosis had significantly higher risk of melanoma.

One hypothesis for the connection between endometriosis and an increased risk of melanoma is that they have a genetic relationship. Endometriosis is associated with an imbalance in some tumor suppressor genes that are also involved in melanoma.

To read more about the study’s findings please click here.

If you’re worried about developing a melanoma then please speak to your doctor.

What Is Endometriosis?

Endometriosis is a condition that emerges because of the unnatural growth of endometrial cells. Endometrial cells are supposed to grow only within the uterus, but with endometriosis, they also grow outside the uterus and become endometrial implants causing scarring, inflammation and adhesions. They can appear on the outer tissues of the uterus, the fallopian tubes and anywhere in the pelvic and lower back area. The lungs and even the brain can be effected, although this happens rarely.

The Symptoms of Endometriosis

PAIN is arguably the most common symptom of endometriosis. The degree of pain that endometriosis causes however varies from case to case, depending on the severity of the woman’s condition and how well she is able to tolerate pain. Pain can also appear in various parts of the body, depending on how far the condition has spread.

Physical relationships may also be hampered because some women suffering from endometriosis have reported experiencing pain while engaging in physical intimacy. Bleeding afterward can also occur.

Urination and bowel movements are also affected. Women suffering from endometriosis may experience pain during bowel movements or when urinating, especially during menstruation.

The menstrual cycle of a woman is usually aggravated by endometriosis. They may experience far more pain and discomfort than usual. The number of days for their monthly menses may also be lengthened because of endometriosis.

Infertility is a possible symptom or effect of endometriosis. There are many documented cases where endometriosis has caused damage to the fallopian tubes, and this consequently creates problems with getting pregnant and giving birth.

Other common symptoms of endometriosis are nausea and fatigue.

How Do You Know If You Have Endometriosis?

If you’re experiencing any of the symptoms mentioned above, it is best that you pay a visit to your personal physician immediately to find out whether or not you have endometriosis.

Your consultation will usually start with an interview about your medical history followed by a physical examination. These two may already be sufficient to determine if you have endometriosis.

If you wish for additional accuracy, your physician may use an imaging test or suggest exploratory laparoscopy surgery to see if internal areas are affected by endometriosis.

How to Treat Endometriosis

There is no known cure for endometriosis, but there are several successful ways of treating the condition and preventing the symptoms from worsening. If pain is your main problem with endometriosis, NSAIDs may be adequate for treating your condition as they can tackle both the inflammation and offer pain relief.

Herbal remedies are also used to treat endometriosis, although individuals must take care in choosing herbs that are of good quality and manufactured to careful standards.

There is anecdotal evidence of alternative treatments such as acupuncture and aromatherapy providing significant relief for endometriosis sufferers.

Surgery may also be an option to treat endometriosis. Laparoscopic surgery involves the removal of endometrial growths and implants that are believed to cause the pain for the woman. A hysterectomy will typically only be recommended in special circumstances or where the woman’s life is in danger.

Endometriosis is a chronic condition that tends to be progressive so it’s important to keep abreast of all the latest info about endometriosis to ensure you are receiving the best treatment.

Don’t forget if you haven’t already done so, you can sign up for the free endometriosis newsletter that uncovers effective ways to help women combat endometriosis symptoms. You’ll also find more info about endometriosis treatments..

Endometriosis occurs when the endometrial lining that cover the interior of the uterus grows outside that area. The common place that is most often effected is the pelvic area, although endometrial tissue can be found in the intestines and as far as the brain and lungs.

A woman suffering from endometriosis will normally feel pain in the pelvic area. This pain can worsen in the run up to and during the monthly menses. Endometriosis can cause added complications with pain during bowel movements and also during sexual intercourse. Thus, it’s a condition that poses a huge obstacle in living a normal lifestyle and can result in emotional as well as physical symptoms as a result.

Considering the disruption and pain brought on by this problem, dealing effectively with endometriosis is crucial. It is important to look at the different techniques that you can adopt for managing your endometriosis, especially the pain and discomfort it causes.

Coping with Endometriosis

There are many ways to deal with endometriosis to alleviate your pain and discomfort. It’s worthwhile investigating all the options to find one or more that makes a difference for you.

1. A Change in Diet

One theory is that endometriosis is caused by too much estrogen in the system. It definitely responds to hormonal treatments like the combination progestin and estrogen birth control pills. This medication causes estrogen levels to drop and by lowering estrogen levels, endometrial tissues no longer grow. 

Therefore, minimizing food intake that increases the production of estrogen hormones will help to improve symptoms.

Reduce or eliminate your intake of fatty foods, including meat and meat products. Try avoiding even the low fat ones. Simply indulge on foods high in fiber and those that include vitamin B and magnesium.

2. Castor Oil Application or Regular Massage

Applying castor oil packs on your lower abdomen can help to ease the pain. A study conducted by Washington University,Washington, D.C., showed castor oil packs can help to improve the immune response in the pelvic area. Anecdotally, women have tried this and found the method effective after regularly doing it.

A good alternative is to get regular massage, at least once a week. This can also have a positive impact on painful symptoms.

3. Natural Progesterone

Taking progesterone can also help you with overcoming painful endometriosis symptoms. This could decrease the pain you feel by minimizing the effects to the endometrial tissues of estrogen. You can do this by applying the cream directly to the skin or it can be taken in suppository form that is inserted into the rectum or vagina.

4. Alternative Medicine

Some women also find alternative medicine is a good way to deal with endometriosis. The traditional Chinese method of acupuncture can improve the imbalance conditions in your body and increase blood flow to the pelvic region which helps reduce pain.

There are also herbs that can help in the alleviation of pain. These two can be used together for better results.

Endometriosis can be a painful condition that hampers your lifestyle. However, there are effective techniques that can help you in dealing with endometriosis. These natural options can take a little longer to work than medications, however, they tend to tackle the cause of the problem rather than just mask the symptoms.

Don’t forget if you haven’t already done so, you can sign up for the free endometriosis newsletter that uncovers effective ways to help women combat endometriosis symptoms. You’ll also find more suggestions for effectively .dealing with endometriosis.

You probably also know that endometriosis can be difficult to treat at higher stages of the disease, where symptoms can cause infertility and perhaps a greater chance of reproductive cancers in the future. In order to understand the four stages of endometriosis, you need to understand how endometriosis occurs.

The menstrual blood released from a woman’s body every month is actually made up of muscle tissue and comes from the inner lining of the uterus. This inner lining, called the endometrium, thickens at the same time every month and is designed to be the future placenta, the halfway house of nutrients from mother to child. In some rare cases, the menstrual blood is not expelled from the body as it should be. Rather, it finds its way out of the uterus and into nearby bones, tissues and organ systems.

Once the pockets of endometrial tissue leave the uterus but not the body, then problems can occur for some women. Usually the immune system will deal with this rogue tissues however in some women the pockets of endometrial lining can adhere to certain bones and tissues, then shed and bleed each month in line with the menstrual cycle causing endometriosis.

This makes a woman suffering from endometriosis feel ‘heavy’ in her pelvic area. At its most extreme, endometriosis can result in progressive, severe pain that reach all the way into the lower back. The pockets of endometrial lining can also deposit themselves onto the surfaces of nearby organs, or migrate to areas such as the intestines or lungs, inhibiting organ function.

Women suffering from endometriosis will experience painful, irregular and often heavy periods. They may also bleed, or spot, in between menstrual periods. Women suffering from endometriosis can also experience pain during sexual intercourse and may find bowel movements painful. They can also experience frequent nausea and occassional vomiting. At its worst, endometriosis can lead to endometrial tissue blocking the fallopian tubes, causing infertility. Women with endometriosis are also more likely to have reproductive cancers in the future, especially ovarian cancer.

To diagnose endometriosis, doctors will conduct a pelvic exam, and will look for tenderness in the pelvic areas and organs, thickening or increase in mass of these same organs, or nodules that may be growing on the surface of the ovaries and uterus.

These signs, however, are also common to other cancers and reproductive disorders, so doctors supplement their diagnoses with comprehensive blood tests, x-rays, and even diagnostic surgery. Once endometrial deposits are found in the body, they are measured, and their color is determined. When these characteristics are taken into consideration, a doctor can then assign points to a patient and diagnose the woman as suffering from a specific stage of the disease.

In Stage 1, or minimal endometriosis, women will have a score of about 5 points, where there are only isolated incidents of the endometrial lining growing outside the uterus.

In Stage 2, or mild endometriosis, women will score as much as 15 points, and will have small endometrial implants outside the uterus, along with some areas of adhesions or scar tissue.

In Stage 3, or moderate endometriosis, women will score as high as 40 points, and will have implants that are deep, as well as several areas where adhesions and scar tissue are prominent.

Finally, Stage 4, or severe endometriosis occurs when women score over 40 points during diagnosis, will often be infertile, and will have many implants and large adhesions of endometrial lining in their bodies.

Not all endometriosis symptoms appear during the first few stages, so be sure to have an annual check up with your obstetrician or gynecologist. When the diagnosis is made, do as much research as you can, and ask your doctor as many questions as possible. The sooner you know what’s happening inside you — the sooner you can go about making it better!

Don’t forget if you haven’t already done so, you can sign up for the free endometriosis newsletter that uncovers effective ways to help women combat endometriosis symptoms. You’ll also find more about effects of all endometriosis symptoms and the treatments available.

Did you know that when women reach menopause, they tend to cease experiencing the painful and often debilitating symptoms of endometriosis?

Endometriosis symptoms can start to be felt any time after the onset of puberty. In other words, menstruating women are more at risk of developing endometriosis.

So, women are less likely to feel the painful effects of endometriosis if they are in their menopausal years.

This relief has made many women accept and even welcome the onset of menopause to relieve themselves of the Endometriosis related pains.

However, unfortunately, it’s not that straight forward as it has been found that menopause does not guarantee the removal of all the endometriosis symptoms. But more on this in a moment.

To understand why menopause helps women overcome endometriosis symptoms, it helps to understand more about the nature of endometriosis.

The exact cause of the condition is not yet determined, but the reasons why the symptoms are felt once endometriosis has developed seem quite clear.

The uterus contains endometrial tissues that are directly affected by estrogen levels in the blood.

Every month estrogen levels increase and the endometrial glands in the uterus start producing lots of tissue to thicken the wall lining in readiness for pregnancy. When pregnancy doesn’t occur the estrogen levels drop and the period starts.

Problems start when endometrial glands are found in other parts of the body like the kidneys, ovaries, bladder, abdominal wall, intestines and even the areas in-between these organs.

These deposits react in the same way as the glands that line the, swelling then shedding and bleeding. However, there is usually nowhere for the blood and debris to go, and this is what can cause the endometriosis symptoms, including the excruciating pain.

Menopause

During menopause, the ovaries are not active anymore. Estrogen levels dip and so women who regularly suffer from endometriosis who reach the menopause tend not to experience endometriosis symptoms anymore.

The same goes for younger women who elect to have their ovaries surgically removed in a bid to alleviate the pain endometriosis brings about. By taking this route, menopause is accelerated.

Recurrence

Unfortunately, menopause either natural or forced does not necessarily mean the end of endometriosis symptoms. If you take hormone replacements or if your body continues to produce hormones after menopause your symptoms can still remain.

But what should you do if endometriosis recurs during and after menopause?

Normally, your doctor would ask you to take pain relievers for pain relief. There are also a number of natural methods and simple lifestyle changes you can make that help reduce the endometriosis symptoms..

Endometriosis and menopause can have significant impacts on your life, so make sure you understand how the two are linked to choose the best solution.

Don’t forget if you haven’t already done so, you can sign up for the free endometriosis newsletter that uncovers effective ways to help women combat endometriosis symptoms. You’ll also find more about the effects of endometriosis and menopause.