Taking "Ownership" of Pain

[Sibbie]

I oftentimes find myself minimizing the pain I feel. I find it very hard to "own" the fact that yes, I really do suffer from pain, and no, it's not all just in my head.

I have to repeatedly tell myself that it is not normal period pain if I have to take Panadine Forte. That having pain almost all the time is really not normal. Pain that makes me constantly nauseous is not normal. That yes, I really DO have problems.

I find myself using the term "suspected endo" a lot, as this does explain my situation (I haven't booked in for my lap just yet, so still waiting for answers!!!) I know that every time I say it, I feel like I am just a hypochondriac. I also know that little comments like "Can't you handle period pain?" or "suck it up and deal with it like all other women do" seriously do not help (granted they are rare comments, they still hurt).

I am going to see my gyno again in a few weeks to book in for my Lap, so I guess this has got me thinking about it all. I really want answers so they put my mind at ease. I want my pain to be validated!!

Anyways, the whole point of my post was to find out:

Does anyone else deal with these sort of feeling and thoughts?

How did you begin to take "ownership" of your pain?

What/Who helped you and how?

Thanks in Advance

[Bumperstump Cummerbund]

For me, I had to let myself actually feel it, and let it affect me. My PCOS got so bad, I had 2 periods 8 months apart. By the time I finally got my period, I was hopitalised with a suspected ectopic pregnancy, as the pain was absolutely excruciating.

Obviously I had a couple of days off work, but when I went back I was told that 'period pain is not really an acceptable excuse for not attending work'. At first I started to apologise, and then something snapped - I said to my boss 'Actually, this is my first period in 8 months. You know the pain your wife is in every month? Imagine that multiplied by 8, plus the emotional pain of getting a BFP on a HPT because of the sheer amount of hormones running through your body, only to be told that you're just getting your period.' It kinda left him speechless!

I know we shouldn't hafta tell people what's going on in our lives if we don't want to, but I think it makes it easier to cope, and easier for people to understand what you're going through. They think its only a 'bad period', but they won't understand the difference until someone educates them.

HTH chicky

[chris]

Hi Girls

I have felt like a hypochondriac that often it is not funny!!! I have lost friends as they just don't understand , I have explained about my pain 1000,000,000,'s of times but its as if it goes in one ear and out the other. I seen one of my "friends" two weeks after my lap. I told her that the next morning after my lap I was out shopping for fish for good friday, and getting ready to have family visit for lunch on good friday. I swear she looked at me as if I had 3 heads and told me that after her lap she was in bed for days and that she would rather have a C -section (she has had 3 of them) before another lap. My answer to that was "I am in pain most of the time, I always just do what I can untill it's(the pain) too much and then I go to bed and sleep".

I can't say that I own my pain but I have just come to the fact that I am in pain all the time. It's just other people who get at me with the way they treat me (the rolling of eyes and the way they talk to me).

Sophie: If I were you I would just say that you have Endo and if anyone asks for any more info say your waiting for conformation of diagnosis via lap.

There is one thing that I do to help me with pain (when I can), I lay in bed (after taking pan forte with my heat packs) and visulise something and really concentrate on it and I tend to relax and fall asleep. I also love hot baths for my pelvic pain.

I hope I have helped.
Take care
Chris