My doctor and I recently spoke to a group of African American nurses during a seminar about having my having uterine fibroids and the general treatment methods used for fibroid tumors. Here's a portion of that seminar. In this video, I discuss my first symptom.
Thedy B
Thursday, April 24, 2008
Monday, March 31, 2008
Menstrual Cycle v. No Menstrual Cycle Pt 3
The more and more I think about it, the more I feel that women should strongly look into whether unnaturally stopping your menstrual cycle is a good thing. Would you stop yourself from urinating? Would you stop yourself from having a bowel movement? Would you stop yourself from sweating? So unless you have to, why would you stop your menstruation? Again, I know first hand what's it's like to have a very heavy flow and I mean very heavy. I know it's tempting to want to just get rid of your menstruation so that you won't have problems with a heavy flow, or have concerns about soiling your clothes, or losing so much blood that you need a transfusion, with problems from fatigue from losing a lot of blood every month, taking iron pills so that you can replenish the iron in your body that's been lost, etc. All of those are real symptoms and real reasons to consider using a birth control method that you think will help you deal with the blood flow.
But I want you to ask your doctor whether taking birth control is in fact exacerbating your symptoms or whether taking this birth control will cause other more permanent problems?
I was on the Patch. And during a presentation where my radiologist and I were presenting on uterine atery embolization or uterine fibroid embolization (UFE), I asked him that same question and he said anything that has hormones in it will cause an imbalance of estrogen in your body which causes your fibroids to grow. Anything means food, birth control pills, and anything else that is known to have added hormones in it.
Some birth control has more estrogen in it than others he said; some have none and some have a lot. Some of it just depends on the strength of the birth control you use. So check with your doctor about whether the birth control you use is helping or hurting you and make sure you know the long term effects of stopping your menstruation. Again, in the sidebar of this blog are books on the subject of menstruation and birth control. Take a look at them and purchase them if you want facts about either.
Thedy B
Thedy B
But I want you to ask your doctor whether taking birth control is in fact exacerbating your symptoms or whether taking this birth control will cause other more permanent problems?
I was on the Patch. And during a presentation where my radiologist and I were presenting on uterine atery embolization or uterine fibroid embolization (UFE), I asked him that same question and he said anything that has hormones in it will cause an imbalance of estrogen in your body which causes your fibroids to grow. Anything means food, birth control pills, and anything else that is known to have added hormones in it.
Some birth control has more estrogen in it than others he said; some have none and some have a lot. Some of it just depends on the strength of the birth control you use. So check with your doctor about whether the birth control you use is helping or hurting you and make sure you know the long term effects of stopping your menstruation. Again, in the sidebar of this blog are books on the subject of menstruation and birth control. Take a look at them and purchase them if you want facts about either.
Thedy B
Thedy B
Sunday, March 30, 2008
Menstrual Cycle or No Menstrual Cycle -Pt 2
In my prior post, I discussed the different types of birth control and my personal opinions about the birth control options I knew about. One of those birth control methods would cause a woman not to have a menstrual cycle. For women, like me, with uterine fibroids who have heavy menstrual flow, this has been presented as a viable option and it may be. However, I expressed my opinion that I didn't feel it was right for me and my reasons for saying that.
After publishing that post, I came across some books on whether women should use birth control products that would eliminate their menstrual cycles. I also found some books which discuss carcinogens found in tampons, allegedly deceptive marketing campaigns for feminine products, and the like. I recommend reading these books to determine if not having a period, using tampons, etc. is really in your best interest. I have put the recommended books in the sidebar of this blog. Check them out.
Thedy B
After publishing that post, I came across some books on whether women should use birth control products that would eliminate their menstrual cycles. I also found some books which discuss carcinogens found in tampons, allegedly deceptive marketing campaigns for feminine products, and the like. I recommend reading these books to determine if not having a period, using tampons, etc. is really in your best interest. I have put the recommended books in the sidebar of this blog. Check them out.
Thedy B
Symptoms v. No Symptoms
As I mentioned in previous posts, I was able to monitor or track my menstrual cycle by using a menstrual cycle calendar. We were checking to see if the uterine fibroids I had were staying the same in size or growing and if enlarging, whether they were causing any symptoms. My doctor told me that some women who have uterine fibroids do not have symptoms at all and no problems at all. These women essentially live normal lives with the fibroids. So the big question for my doctor and I was: am I one of those lucky women?
From the menstrual cycle calendar, I was able to see that initially my menstrual cycle was as it always was. It came when it normally came. The bleeding was pretty much the same. The cramping, moodiness, tenderness and bloating were the same. So I thought that was good. Everything is regular. After six months of using the calendar and noticing no big changes, we stopped using the menstrual cycle calendar. I thought I was one of those lucky women.
Indeed, though I was diagnosed as having uterine fibroids some eight months or so previously, my medical condition had not started to change. Unfortunately I did not remain asymptomatic. In my next post, I'll tell you more about the symptoms I started noticing.
Thedy B
From the menstrual cycle calendar, I was able to see that initially my menstrual cycle was as it always was. It came when it normally came. The bleeding was pretty much the same. The cramping, moodiness, tenderness and bloating were the same. So I thought that was good. Everything is regular. After six months of using the calendar and noticing no big changes, we stopped using the menstrual cycle calendar. I thought I was one of those lucky women.
Indeed, though I was diagnosed as having uterine fibroids some eight months or so previously, my medical condition had not started to change. Unfortunately I did not remain asymptomatic. In my next post, I'll tell you more about the symptoms I started noticing.
Thedy B
Saturday, March 29, 2008
The Menstrual Cycle Calendar - How long?
The menstrual cycle calendar made me curious to see the patterns in my menstrual cycle. Would the fact that I had uterine fibroids affect my cycle? If so, how?
My GYN told me to track my menstrual cycle using the menstrual cycle calendar for six months so that we could see these patterns, notice any irregularities, and determine if I had irregularities, what they were? Was my cycle heavier? Was it longer? Did the distance between the cycles get shorter or longer? When did I first notice the irregularities? How long has the irregularities been going on?
The answers to those questions would reveal the signs and symptoms that the uterine fibroids were increasing in size. So I used the menstrual cycle for six months to help me and my GYN discover whether the uterine fibroids I had would continue being asymptomatic. I'm really glad that I could track my cycle and give specific information to my doctors. So yes, I do recommend getting a menstrual cycle calendar.
My GYN told me to track my menstrual cycle using the menstrual cycle calendar for six months so that we could see these patterns, notice any irregularities, and determine if I had irregularities, what they were? Was my cycle heavier? Was it longer? Did the distance between the cycles get shorter or longer? When did I first notice the irregularities? How long has the irregularities been going on?
The answers to those questions would reveal the signs and symptoms that the uterine fibroids were increasing in size. So I used the menstrual cycle for six months to help me and my GYN discover whether the uterine fibroids I had would continue being asymptomatic. I'm really glad that I could track my cycle and give specific information to my doctors. So yes, I do recommend getting a menstrual cycle calendar.
Friday, March 28, 2008
The Menstrual Cycle Calendar - Help or Hurt?!
Using the menstrual cycle calendar definitely helped. I like using the menstrual cycle calendar because I was able to predict when my periods would begin. I was able to predict when they would end. I could tell when my pre-menstrual symptoms would begin as well like moodiness, for example. So I like the predictability factor.
I was also able to determine the extent of my bleeding. Yes, I liked tracking it, for some odd reason. I think knowing satisfied my curiosity, calmed my anxiety from not knowing, and made me feel somewhat on top of my physical health.
I also like the fact that the menstrual cycle calendar helps you determine exactly when and if your symptoms have started to change. Don't you hate it when you go to the doctor and they ask you, has anything changed since your last visit and you can't really remember? Suppose you say "yes, some things have changed," then the nurse or doctor will likely ask, "well when did you first notice the change in your symptoms?" Typically, the honest answer is, "I don't know!!!!!" What I want to say is, well, it wasn't like I was blogging or journaling at the time and said, hey, new symptom! Let me mark this date down in my calendar as the day my menstrual cycle decided it wanted to act up! LOL! It always acts up! (:-)" With the menstrual cycle calendar, I could instead show my doctor, this is the day(s) that I noticed the change. I could also show her how long I had noticed the problem.
So in my opinion, the menstrual cycle calendar helps and I'd recommend at least looking into one if you think you might be having cycle problems. So I'm glad my GYN recommended it. Use your doctor's advice on whether using one will help you or not. I'm not a doctor (:-) but I certainly know it helped me answer all the questions that I needed to answer about my menstrual cycle. Plus, I saw no disadvantages to using a calendar.
Thedy B
Wednesday, March 26, 2008
The Menstual Cycle Calendar
My GYN had me track my menstrual cycles after I found out I had uterine fibroids. The object of using this menstrual cycle calendar was to see when my menstrual cycle began, when it ended, whether the bleeding was heavy, normal or light, and to see the distance between each cycle.
Growing up I had had painful cramping during that time of the month. Eventually as an adult, my menstrual cycle normalized. My menstrual cycles were always regular in that they came at the same time. From time to time, I'd just put a note on my regular calendar of when my menstrual cycle began and when it ended.
A menstrual cycle calendar is different. The menstrual cycle calendar I used had all twelve months on it lined up in rows with 31 days acting as each month's columns. It looks like that so you can see your cycle's patterns on a monthly basis side by side. Each day of the month was essentially a box. There are instructions on the calendar which tell you to note the day of the month the cycle begins and when you note it, color in the box to denote the extent of the bleeding. The way you colored in the box showed how heavy your menstruation was.
This menstrual cycle calendar helped me and my GYN determine if my menstrual cycle was affected by the uterine fibroids. I'm not a physician but as a patient going through this, I do recommend getting and using a menstrual cycle calendar if you notice that your cycles and/or your bleeding is not normal. In the next blog, I'll tell you the advantages I saw from using a menstrual cycle calendar.
Growing up I had had painful cramping during that time of the month. Eventually as an adult, my menstrual cycle normalized. My menstrual cycles were always regular in that they came at the same time. From time to time, I'd just put a note on my regular calendar of when my menstrual cycle began and when it ended.
A menstrual cycle calendar is different. The menstrual cycle calendar I used had all twelve months on it lined up in rows with 31 days acting as each month's columns. It looks like that so you can see your cycle's patterns on a monthly basis side by side. Each day of the month was essentially a box. There are instructions on the calendar which tell you to note the day of the month the cycle begins and when you note it, color in the box to denote the extent of the bleeding. The way you colored in the box showed how heavy your menstruation was.
This menstrual cycle calendar helped me and my GYN determine if my menstrual cycle was affected by the uterine fibroids. I'm not a physician but as a patient going through this, I do recommend getting and using a menstrual cycle calendar if you notice that your cycles and/or your bleeding is not normal. In the next blog, I'll tell you the advantages I saw from using a menstrual cycle calendar.
Thedy
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