The abdominal pain epic has been going on for over two years at this point. It's a long story if your interested here are my old posts on the subject:
- Abdominal Angst and Answers
- Getting Ready for the Next Round
- Pain Changer
- The Not So Exciting Conclusion
For those of you who don't want to reread I'll sum up the ordeal. A little over two years ago I started having horrible abdominal pain. It was an excruciating experience. I'd have these "attacks" in the middle of the night for hours for two or three consecutive nights every month or so. In the end I was told I had a hormone imbalance causing cysts which were bursting causing all the pain. The doctor told me hormone regulation on the pill was the only option. I was really upset because I wanted to know why this was happening and stop it. The last thing I wanted was to go on hormone regulation to possibly make the symptoms bearable. I knew it wasn't what I wanted, but I couldn't take it anymore. I begrudgingly went on the pill over the summer.
Around Christmas I decided managing the symptoms (if you could call it that) wasn't panning out. I was wacky from the pill and I was still having abdominal pain, it just wasn't as severe. After New Years I stopped taking the pill. Mike and I read anything we could find on the subject and decided it might be related to how well my liver processes hormones. I started taking Reishi, a mushroom you can take in capsule form to help liver function. I denied myself even an occasional ibuprofen (not easy). I charted my cycles to see when exactly the pain was happening on my timeline. It was rough at first because the pain came back immediately.
After a month or two went by I had a string of dental issues which caused me to give up caffeine. Around the same time I dramatically increased my water intake. I didn't completely cut out caffeine forever. I laid off entirely for a month and now have some occasionally, but no more coffee in the morning. These changes in hydration and caffeine intake happened late July. This month I realized it had been two months since I'd had any abdominal pain.
Mike it certain it just took that long for the pill to work its way out of my system. He's probably right, but I now the caffeine and water adjustments played a role for sure. I'm so glad I didn't stay on the pill. In the end I really believe it was as simple as a few adjustments in my diet and routine. You just have to go with your gut!
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