*Note: I am not a doctor. I’m just sharing my experience.
Previously I mentioned that I was recently diagnosed with a uterine fibroid. Under normal circumstances this wouldn’t be very good news but considering the alternatives that we thought we were dealing with, it was a much better outcome. Still, I have had a challenging, frustrating, and all around interesting journey learning about fibroids since I was diagnosed in August.
I’ve learned that many women (like myself) don’t have any major symptoms of fibroids so it can be hard to tell that you have them. I’ve also learned that they are incredibly common with the majority of women having them at some point in their lifetime (but not necessarily knowing it). While most doctors will tell you that you need surgery, most likely a myomectomy, this isn’t always the case. Most women who opt to have surgery end up dealing with fibroids returning over and over again. There have been cases of women getting three or more surgeries for returning fibroids. But if you search the internet, you will find what doctors won’t tell you, which is that most of the time, fibroids can shrink naturally through a specific diet.
There are some other options that are better than surgery like the Curvawave (which isn’t covered by insurance because ‘Murica) but diet is the way to shrink fibroids and keep them from returning over and over again. Fibroids normally occur due to an imbalance in your hormones. When you have an estrogen dominance, fibroids (as well as other issues) are more likely to happen. As far as changing your diet, it’s not as simple as eating healthy, it’s eating with your estrogen dominance in mind.
After meeting with a surgeon, I decided that surgery wasn’t the best option for me. I am trying my best to shrink my large fibroid holistically, but I am considering a Curvawave treatment in the future in case I have trouble shrinking it on my own. Either way, I plan to eat a balanced diet that blocks estrogen and aids my liver in filtering out access estrogen for the rest of my life.
If you get diagnosed with fibroids, don’t freak out. First, go to see your OBGYN if another doctor has diagnosed you. Do not let them talk you into CT scans and MRIs like my doctors did. Your OBGYN will order an ultrasound to see your fibroid. (I can’t even tell you how mad my OBGYN was that my primary doctor and the surgeon I was sent to put me through so much unnecessary testing and worry. I have never seen a doctor more upset, which is how I know I’m in good hands).
Also, pay attention to signs that something is wrong in your body. For awhile I was having trouble losing weight. I was eating well and working on consistently, but I just kept telling myself that I wasn’t doing enough. I didn’t have any other symptoms of fibroids or even know that they existed, but the inability to lose weight is a direct result of my hormone imbalance. Had I not been so hard on myself, I would have been diagnosed earlier and maybe my fibroid would already be gone.
I’ll never forget the way the ceiling looked that day. Tiled, white, clinical. There was nothing imaginative about it. I could find no escape getting lost in it. The drugs being pushed into my veins felt warm, just like the nurse said they would. I tasted copper come up from the back of my throat and rest on the tip of my tongue. I knew the next side effect would be the “false sense of peeing”. The nurse assured me that I would only feel as if I was peeing through my pants but it wouldn’t actually be happening. She was correct, it did feel that way. It also felt hot, like I was straddling a warm furnace.
Welcome to the fresh start of a brand new week! My weekend was a perfect balance of all the things that I love. I spent Friday getting organized for the week ahead because I knew my Sunday would be too busy to spend anytime thinking about organization. Saturday morning we headed to Winter Park to celebrate my Goddaughter’s birthday with all of her family and friends. After the party, John and I headed to The Market on South for an incredibly delicious and completely vegan dinner. Sunday we woke up early, read for a few hours, and then hosted a brunch for one of my best friends and his new boyfriend. Our brunch turned into a Cards Against Humanity tournament which led to deep talks on the dock by the lake which led to a visit to a local coffee shop for delectable drinks and baked goods. It was a Sunday Funday, indeed! I’m feeling rejuvenated and ready to conquer new challenges this week!