What is worse Endometriosis or IC

[peaceplease]

Ok, I just posted the LONGEST post I have ever written and I am already off and running with another one...

Does what I am about to describe sound like it could be endometriosis to those of you who know a lot about it?

I have chronic, reoccuring pain in my right pelvic area feels like the pain of ovulating some, but not quite as intense and doesn't go away... I think the pain is located in the area of the right ovary. I am also having lowerbackpain, especially on the right side. I feel this pain all the time, although it is better if I am walking and moving around than sitting/lying down etc.bWhen the OBGYN felt that ovary she said it felt swollen, what on earth might that mean!!??!! I had two days of VERY light spotting this weekend, my period isn't due to another 9 days, I am not pregnant...

I don't get pain with my periods or cramps. I LOVE my periods, as it is often when my bladder feels best when I am bleeding. I don't bleed abnormally hard and they last for about 5 days with the 4th and 5th day light.

I have bladder problems which I have attributed to IC (frequency and pressure), could this be due to endometriosis and not IC? My cytoscopys have both been normal.

What is more easily treatable IC or Endo? The OBGYN said laproscopy can miss a lot of endometriosis as it can be in the tissue and not visible? Is this true? Also, my pelvic pain is SO much in one exact area, is it possible that is the only area I might have endometriosis in is that area with the pain, or might I have endometriosis in other areas where I am not having pain?

For those ICers out there who are well read and experienced with endometriosis I would so greatly appreciate your help with these questions :idea:

[Sarojini]

:grouphug:

I have not been diagnosed with endometriosis so I cannot help you much, but I just wanted to send a hug and some feel-better wishes! I hope you are able to find out what is going on so that you can get some relief from that pain.

[holles]

i have both, and they both suck. it's hard for me to figure out sometimes which one is causing the pain.

can't say which is worse. they both suck equally. if i had to choose to live with just one of them, it would end up being a coin toss.

and it is true a lot of minimal endo can't be seen unless you look really closely. endo comes in all sorts of colors even clear. and sometimes it's hormonally active, and other times it's not. some women have pain from it, some don't.

[Katrina]

bWhen the OBGYN felt that ovary she said it felt swollen, what on earth might that mean!!??!!
I don't know but it doesn't sound like endo to me.
I have bladder problems which I have attributed to IC (frequency and pressure), could this be due to endometriosis and not IC? My cytoscopys have both been normal.


so you have had a hydro...no hunners or inflammation?...Did they do a biopsy?
What is more easily treatable IC or Endo?
In my opinion you have a lot more options with IC but endo normally goes away when you don't have many hormones....but who wants to give that up?
endo treatment choices: multiple laps to get rid of endo cells (not an option for me but is for most),BCP...didn't help me at all made me worse not matter what kind it was..., pain meds, Lupron shots....finally helped but not enough....and I just didn't want to be in metapouse forever...:grouphug: Granted I know more about IC than I do endo but I spent years suffering and wishing for help.
The OBGYN said laproscopy can miss a lot of endometriosis as it can be in the tissue and not visible? Is this true?1. Also, my pelvic pain is SO much in one exact area, is it possible that is the only area I might have endometriosis in is that area with the pain,2, or might I have endometriosis in other areas where I am not having pain?3.

1. Yes. 2. yes, Yes. Yes a lap can miss a lot of endo esp. if you have hiding spots like scar tissue. In the majority of cases of endo the women doesn't have any pain but gets diagnosed when looking into infertility or other problems.

My endo pain feels sort of like a deep bruis that won't heal. Unlike IC pain that can be very sensitive to the touch and movement endo didn't care as much unless it was extreme. Endo pain in me would get worse because I got arroused....obvulated, or period...but was constant too.
Back in the days before my diagnosis of IC I use to look forward to my periods too...the first day I wouldn't like but after that it was a break from the %^&* IC symptoms that kept having the wrong diagnosis.

I'd say that it certainly sounds like something is causing you symptoms besides IC that you should see a gyn about. I am not too sure it is endo though.

I hope that whatever is going on is easily treatable and you do well :grouphug:

[peaceplease]

Hi:
No, I haven't had a hydro. I mentioned that my cytoscopies have been normal to make light of the fact that no endometriosis tissue was seen in my bladder. I have read it can grow outside of the bladder however, although then it doesn't usually cause frequency... It takes a lot I guess for it to actually penetrate into the bladder wall.
Anyway, I think endo. sounds easier to treat than IC but I agree that no longer having my womanly cycle would be a drag. I am not sure how my IC would respond to stopping my menstrual cycle, mostly I have read those on birthcontrol find their IC gets worse. Oh well, no use in worrying about that now, I haven't even been dx. with Endometriosis at this point.

Does anybody know if it can ever be seen on pelvic or vaginal ultrasounds? I am having tomorrow morning. I also had a pelvic MRI last October or November which was normal in regards to my uterus, ovaries etc. I am not sure if an MRI would show endometriosis. I know the larproscopy is the best and then even biospy perhaps for areas of pain where they don't see anything.
Is this true?

[Katrina]

The only way to definatively diagnose endo is through a lap.

[Sher E]

I have endo and I would keep endo over IC any day. At least the pain meds worked and I felt better after I had a laparoscopy to remove endo adhesions.

They can't see the endo on a scan. You basically have to have a Lap and then they burn it off. Mine did grow on my bladder, ovaries, ligaments and bowel. But usually it's not located to just one area. Yours sounds more like a cyst or something involving the bothered ovary. They can do a vaginal ultrasound to see if that's the case. PLus endo rarely just shows up. It's months of pain that will gradually get worse. I've had painful periods for as long as I can remember.

I dealt with my Endo because it didn't effect what I could eat and the Lap would leave me pain free for usually 5 years. Plus there are meds to control it (like Lupron) or pregnancy (it stops growing). Plus I would rather take my uterus out than have a chronic illness with no cure (IC).

Could you possibly be ovulating? Are your periods fairly regular?

I'm sure the ultrasound tomorrow will shed some light.

Feel better!

[peaceplease]

Hi Sher E:
I am not ovulating as I am now 7 days to my period and when I do have pain with ovulation it only lasts for a day at the most. My periods are very regular, this intermenstrual spotting was very odd. I didn't mention, but should have that I had some deep tissue work to my c-section scar by the pt who is doing myofascial triggerpoint work on me. I wondered if that could make me spot, the OBGYN said no, but then again, it is probably not something she has ever been asked about. The pt is trying to loosen up the scar tissue from my csection I had 4 years ago. I have two kids, the other is 7 and that was a vaginal birth.
My feeling is endo would be easier to deal with than IC. Do you know if endo on the bladder can cause IC like symptoms? How do you know the endo on your bladder isn't the cause of your IC symptoms?
This pain I am describing is something I have had in the past, but never this bad and it will go away for long periods... Is your endo pain constant? Like all the time? Is it cyclical and or predictable interms of how and when it will most bother you? Have the lap surgery and the hormone treatments kept your endo and pain under control?
Thanks for any answers to all these questions!

[Katrina]

There is a common endometriosis....endo is believed to be majorly common!!

Than there those very disabled by it. Just as in many chronic illnesses in endo there are those that had just mild symptoms. I don't mean to minimize it at all because I had a full hysterectomy because of it and I would really like to take hormones and feel more alive but don't because I don't want endo back. Lupron has way no fun side effects and I was still in constant pain...it was the only thing that even helped me.

I am quite certain that the endometriosis association did at one time did some polls on people with IC and endo....you may be able to find some more info there.


Yes endo on the bladder can increase IC symptoms (it does or did in some of my friends with IC and endo) and endo has caused a lot of different symptoms....depending on where it is growing it can do a lot of things...there are common things and less common.

Endo cells are attracted scar tissue so it is possible to have a spot that is a lot worse than another. My first symptoms were just in certain areas .....than as time went on I got worse and worse.

Does diet effect your IC symptoms?

I am sorry I didn't explain what I meant about things I am having a very hard day.

[Sher E]

Spotting can happen for a variety of different reasons. Just a change in your hormones can cause it, stress, I had an iron deficiency once that caused it. Could be your scar...wierder things have happened.

I know that endo has to be ruled out when determining if someone has IC. I guess if the adhesions were ample enough they could cause IC symptoms. The removal of my endo on my bladder could have started thie. I had a Lap last April and a few months later felt some bladder discomfort though nothing major. Then it went away and came back a few months ago at the same time I had a cyst on my ovary. This time it didn't go away and the bladder pain got worse. I have no idea how aggressive the Doctor was when she removed the endo from my bladder. She may have upset the nerves and here we are. I don't know if I buy into the fact that the endo could be causing my bladder problems unless the Endo is inside the bladder. But if it was endo related I don't think I would feel it on a constant basis.

My endo pain never went away. It just got worse and worse. Then I would have a Lap (3x) and I would feel much better and have what I would call regular periods. This last one though didn't make me feel as good as the past two and I'm having pain and dealing with it with pain meds as I always have. I haven't decided on the Lupron yet because there was always the thought of another child. I'm 41 and going on Lupron now puts me back 6 months and I'm already going against Father Time in the egg department already. But the thought of pregnancy with my bladder being the way it is is not appealing.

Before my endo was diagnosed I was in pain for 3 weeks out of 4. However I was 30 when I finally got diagnosed. So that was years of build up.

You could have endo, but I think it's something you get pretty early on in your young adult years and over time it gets worse. But who knows everyone is different. My right ovary was attached to my pelvic wall with adhesions and yet my pain wasn't ovary as much as it was all over ache that effected my lower back and legs. Just a horrible "someone was swinging from my uterus" feeling.

Is your scar tissue adhered to something inside? Maybe your bladder? Maybe you just have painful ovulation from this one ovary since it always seems to be on the same side but not consistant?

I use a heating pad and Motrin and it does well. Although if you have IC that may be an irritant. I don't know if I have IC either, but something is happening in there.

Good luck for tomorrow!

[emilyrose197377]

I think endo is way worse than my ic ever was.

[Katrina]

I know that endo has to be ruled out when determining if someone has IC. It is one thing that they should check for but there are quite a few people that have both. I had IC symptoms for many, many years....but endo came on suddenly .....and than progressively got worse...but I was young....still am sorta. My IC pain got way worse than my endo pain ever did....but there was so many more things I could do for the IC pain that I was able to get it under control. Endo pain...not very much I could do but I am one that after the one lap I had still had pain, and even while on Lupron still had pain, fatigue...tiredness was major with me and I have so much scar tissue Laps couldn't get all of my endo it was just way too much of a mess. .......having talked to many there are a lot of people who have IC and endo...a few years or so ago there was a women who did a survey and wrote a paper for endometriosis assoc on patients with both. (I may be able to find that someday) I am more alive today so hopefully am making more sense.

[breezespeak]

HI guys. My pain could be anything....IBS (because it's near my colon) Uterine Adhesions or Endo (Near my uterus) or IS.

One thing I thought i'd ask is, the pain is not TENDER to the touch really. It feels much deeper. Do any of you think this may be a sign that it is not IC or am I oversimplifying it?

I feel like it's behind and to the edge/sides of my bladder but i could be wrong. I do have blood in my urine and some frequency/urgency.

Thanks for any advice on this.

Gwenn

[callie0767]

both. i have ic,ibs and endo. the endo wasn't helped at all by the lap and all the treatments for ic didn't help much. i tried everything. the only way i get relief is through a hydro. every six months.

[Katrina]

have you had a hydro and do you have hunners ulcers? The only way to know for sure is through some tests since your symptoms say both to me too...sorry. :grouphug: Left side? IF one side is worse and you think it may be IBS I would think it would be left side. :grouphug: I have all three too...blood in urine though says you should look into that bladder and make sure you don't have endo in it and what is going on....:grouphug: Sure hope you find the path to relief that is right for you! :grouphug: