I’ll be honest with you. When I first found out I had Endometriosis, I was actually quite ashamed. I was embarrassed and didn’t want to tell anyone. It was kinda like a dirty little secret that I covered up and just kinda dealt with on my own.
Years later, here I am sharing every intricate detail of the experience on my website, for the world to see – now there is an irony!
The thing is, that when I learned to actually ask for help and to seek support, it all somehow became so much easier. I knew I wasn’t alone in the hormones going made. I knew I wasn’t alone when I needed to explain to others how I couldn’t eat gluten or dairy cos it just made me feel so sore and horrible for days afterwards. It was just easier to share the load 🙂
Suddenly the burden was easier to carry and there was even some things that could be laughed off with some humour – something I never considered possible before.
I was kinda lucky, the biggest support came from my husband. He struggled to watch me in pain and suffering through a day when I just seemed to be bowled over from something – like a freight train! Over time, we kinda worked out that there were certain foods which seemed to aggravate this feeling and because he is a chef of over 20 years he was able to prepare foods for me that fell into the recommended Endometriosis Diet.
We struggled at first because the Endo diet can be quite restrictive. No gluten, no dairy, no sugar and little meat. It was a big change to what I was eating at the time. Over the next few months, he managed to create foods that were not just in line with the Endo diet but that actually helped my body feel better. He snuck in some of those superfoods which sometimes can taste quite nasty on their own!
I found for me, it was those superfoods, wildfoods and those ingredients which made all the difference to how my body felt. It somehow gave me more energy and helped me look better too. A nice little side-effect is that I lost some weight!
Well, the good news is that I decided to share the support I received from my husband with all the women out there who are trying to follow the endo diet. It is in the form of a recipe book and it combines the health aspect along with the yummy aspect, all into one book. You can visit it here.
The key thing is that we all need support sometimes and it can be hard to ask for it. I know for me, I felt weak and pathetic at times asking for support. I wanted to be strong and determined to beat Endo all on my own. It was only after years of fighting, that I finally realised that the journey is more fun and easier when you have fellow endo sisters to join you.
So, reach out and allow yourself to gain some support. You don’t need to be alone with Endo – there are heaps of us with this condition! We might as well make the journey an adventure together.
Melissa runs a free facebook support group. Please sign up to her newsletter and you will automatically be added every Wednesday.
Having discovered the cause of her endless pain at the tender age of 19, Melissa has dedicated her life to finding a way to just live a “normal” life with Endometriosis. She explored all the recommended options including hormonal treatments and after 7 operations decided that there must be a better way for her body. She was tired of dealing with symptoms and covering up her pain with pain-killers! After starting her personal blog in 2010, she started to explore natural healing methods including diet and lifestyle changes. Her research to finding a way to heal from Endometriosis has turned into a huge passion not just for her body and it’s amazing abilities but to help empower more women with Endometriosis, so they too can lead a normal life. Find me at www.cureendometriosis.com
