Tuesday, May 28, 2013

Endo Happy: Are You an Endo Warrior?

Image Courtesy of Katie with Endo Happy


 An Endo Sister's Guide to Living with Endometriosis

  • An "EndoWarrior" eats healthily, says no to junk food and educates herself about the "EndoDiet" and incorporates it into her daily life knowing that it may help with her symptoms and long term care.
  • Empowers herself by finding out as much as she can about Endometriosis and knows she deserves and is entitled to the best medical care available to her. She doesn't accept no for an answer from any medic and gets a 2nd/3rd opinion if required.
  • Knows that there is no 'normal' everybody is on their own journey and doesn't compare her life to anybody else's.
  • Is proud of every scar on her body, she knows they represent the battles she had fought and won.
  • Takes time to rest and relax. She accepts that Endometriosis is disabling at times so doesn't try to do everything, instead spends her valuable time doing the things she enjoys and says no to the things she doesn't or that give her stress.
  • Takes time to exercise (if possible) at least once per week as she knows it makes your mind and body stronger.
  • Promotes awareness of Endometriosis by telling friends, family and others about it.
  • Continues to work towards the goals she has in life, she knows that it doesn't matter how long it takes to get to them just that they are achieved.
  • She acknowledges that depression is common among chronic illness sufferers and talks about her feelings, and asks for help when required and knows it is okay to be emotional and cry!
  • Lastly, she knows that she is perfectly 'imperfect' and feels proud of everything she has achieved! She accepts herself as she is and knows she is worthy of love, kindness and respect.
                                          

For more words of encouragement on surviving a life with Endometriosis, please follow Katie on Twitter!

xo Heather

Healthline: How to Reduce Endometriosis Symptoms through Diet and Exercise




Endometriosis is a painful condition that affects between five and ten percent of women and can make the discomfort of menstruation much more extreme.

During the normal menstrual cycle, the endometrial tissue grows inside the uterus and is expelled during menstruation. Endometriosis occurs when this tissue grows outside of the uterus, sometimes attaching to other organs and causing significant pain, bleeding, and inflammation.

The symptoms of the condition tend to get worse with time if they go untreated, so treatment is vital to combat this condition. In addition to medicinal options, diet and exercise have been shown to have a beneficial effect in dealing with the symptoms of this condition.

Benefits of Exercise

In general, the benefits of exercise are somewhat mixed in terms of their success in alleviating pain that results from endometriosis. Among the side effects of this condition are extremely painful periods, pelvic soreness, fatigue, and pain because of exercise. Because of that, women who experience endometriosis are typically hesitant to pick up new exercise routines to combat the symptoms of their condition.

Still, exercise can have certain positive effects. One of the benefits comes before the condition develops. Research indicates that women who exercise vigorously are far less likely to develop endometriosis, although there is less of a pattern for women who exercise less.

For women that have already developed the condition, some level of exercise may help alleviate some of the pain. During exercise, the body releases endorphins, which are natural chemicals that relieve pain and improve mood. These feel-good chemicals work for everyone doing exercise—not just those with conditions that cause significant pain—but this endorphin production can be especially helpful in dealing with pain as significant as that caused by endometriosis.

In general, light to moderate exercise is advised for women with this condition. Exercise beyond that may be impossible, as the body experiences more pain with high levels of exertion. Exercises like walking and yoga, however, require relatively little stress on the body and can produce endorphins to provide some level of pain relief.

Dietary Suggestions

Diet appears to have a much more significant effect on symptoms, so it is important for women that experience this condition to focus on regulating their diet with the proper nutrients.

Certain fatty acids can aggravate pain that is caused by endometriosis, and others can help to relieve that pain. The bad kind of fatty acids are found in foods like meat, dairy, and palm oil, so women with endometriosis would do well to cut these foods out of their diet as much as possible. On the other hand, omega-3 acids fall in the good category, so it helps to consume plenty of food that includes these compounds. Examples of foods that are high in omega-3 fatty acids are salmon, olive oil, and legumes.

Cutting meat and other animal products out of your diet carries the risk of having an unbalanced diet, with too little protein and calcium intake. Having a balanced diet is vital for stabilizing your hormones, and hormones are ultimately responsible for the development of this condition. Thus, balancing your diet with the right nutrients is vital. To keep your protein levels high, replace meat products with foods like tofu, nuts, and fish, and replace the calcium that you get from animal products with leafy greens, almonds, and tofu.

There are a few foods that you will want to avoid in case of endometriosis and other conditions, like arthritis. Caffeine and refined sugar are two of them, as these ingredients tend to result in nutrient loss, allowing additional pain and inflammation to occur in the body because of endometriosis.

Valerie Johnston is a health and fitness writer located in East Texas. With ambitions of one day running a marathon, writing for Healthline.com ensures she keeps up-to-date on all of the latest health and fitness news.
                                       
Special thanks to Valerie Johnston of HealthLine for sharing such an informative post. 

Friday, May 10, 2013

It's been a while...

Its been a long time since I have told everyone where I am in life, how I'm feeling, etc.
Since so much has happened in such a short time, I thought I would give you all the opportunity to ask some questions that you would like answered (can be silly or serious questions).
Shoot me an email at helloendoblog@gmail.com or tweet me @helloendoblog by Sunday night and I will follow up on a post here.
Also, send me a brief update on everything that is going on in your life!
Look forward to hearing from you all!
xo Heather
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