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Ovarian Cysts


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Today I had a pelvic exam and my doc found a cyst on my ovary. It bloody hurt when he poked it too!

I've been scheduled for a pelvic ultrasound next month.

 

Anyone here ever have ovarian cysts? If so, I have some questions.

 

1. What did you do to manage the pain

 

2. Is it safe to workout? I've heard you shouldn't do any strenuous activity because it could cause the cyst to rupture.

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Marcina,

It is fine to workout with cysts, unless you are feeling severe pain of course.

I have had ovarian cysts, and I understand the pain & the pain of a cyst rupture! I had them a few times until I found the cure;the best remedy is wild yam cream, they will disappear with regular use of the cream.

check out this book. http://www.amazon.com/Estrogen-Alternative-Natural-Botanical-Progesterone/dp/089281893X

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Most ovarian cysts disappear on their own within a few months anyhow. Most ovarian cysts also produce no symptoms.

The ones that don't go away are usually the ones that keep growing, ones that are cancerous (very rare in women under 40), or endometriomas (chocolate cysts).

 

So, it's very possible that the cysts just went away on their own, like most do, while using the yam cream.

I will admit, I'm extremely skeptical of anyone who claims that just using some kind of vegetable-derived cream is going to cure a health problem.

 

I'm going to go to my ultrasound appointment and find out what kind of cyst it is before I decide on a treatment plan (with my doctor).

 

I'm not trying to sound rude or anything.. I'm just.. not into "natural remedies". I've tried some for other ailments that never worked.

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Title of this thread makes me feel ill.

 

Oh I'm sorry. I forgot. Girls aren't allowed to talk about their "girl parts" but it's okay for men to talk about THEIR issues.. Because talking about sweaty balls is okay. Talking about erectile dysfunction is okay, but it's ing the second a woman mentions her ovaries or her uterus.

 

Next time I want to discuss a health matter in an adult way, I'll go to an all women site so I don't offend any of the delicate little men around here.

 

Good grief.

 

P.S: Yes I have moodswings. It's part of my ovaries being fucked up. Oops.. I mean.. marshmallow-kitten-lady-no-no-spot.

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Bahaha, good one, Marcina.

 

Please don't be discouraged from discussing anything you want to. Besides, ovarian cysts are super common and not gross in the least. I hope you feel better soon! And like veganluv said, don't worry about exercising when you feel up for it!

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Actually I saw a picture of an ovarian cyst. I was like "EEEEEEW"

 

Dermoid cysts are even more ing! But I love to be grossed out. And I don't care, I'll talk about my periods. If I didn't, then I'd be suffering in silence wondering what's wrong with me. I have seen my doctor so many times about this subject. It first began last year when I stopped getting a period. I had hot flashes, acne, my hair fell out, and I developed hirsutism. My doctor sent me for bloodwork to test my blood glucose and thyroid. A couple months later I saw my doctor again and he sent me for more bloodwork and they tested my hormone levels. They didn't find anything wrong. I got my period back after 3 months of not having one, but it was irregular. I would get my period every month and a half.

The pelvic pain started around October/November. I was diagnosed with a bladder infection and took antibiotics. The thing is, I don't know how I got it because I had no symptoms of a bladder infection (such as painful urinating). I am one of those people that drinks a lot of water throughout the day too. Anyways, I got through it, but the pain stayed. I went back to the doctor and he thought that the infection probably didn't clear up completely. He told me to go to the lab and do a urine test but due to work, I didn't find the time. I kept ignoring the pain, thinking it would go away on its own. I was working full time anyways and the doctor's office was closed on weekends (which at the time, were the only days I would get off).

Then one day, at work, I started having severe pelvic pain. I went to the ER and waited about 3 hours to see a doctor. I had more blood taken and they did a urine test. I had a bladder infection again and I was still baffled as to how I developed that without having any symptoms other than the pelvic pain. I was given a prescription for ciprofloxacin and sent home.

Then one day (this was scary) on May 1st (we were moving so I remember the date) I got up in the morning and I had to pee. I went to the washroom but I COULD NOT URINATE!! I was like "oh shit I'm gonna die". I eventually did go pee but only little bits could come out at a time, and I had to strain. Then a few hours later, I was fine. As if nothing happened. Bizzare.

I also noticed strange spotting in between my periods. That is what promped the doctor to do a pelvic exam. That's when he found the cysts.

The only annoying part is the pain I get. Usually at work because I'm sitting for long periods of time. I also get the pain when I stand for long periods of time.. Or in the middle of the night. Okay, it's quite random lol!

Ibuprofen won't touch the pain. I'm gonna try acetominophen next, but I only take it if the pain is really bad. I'm not much of a pill-popper. I think that pain is my body's way of communicating with me, and it forces me to slow down and take a rest. My doctor offered to prescribe me stronger painkillers but I said "no." Besides, I can't be gorked at work. My job requires a lot of mental focus.

 

So that's my story. It's taken me almost a year to really pinpoint what's wrong. I now know it's my reproductive system giving me a hard time. My doctor tells me that it's common, and a lot of young women go through the same thing. That's why I posted here, because I figured at least one lady here has gone through the same thing.

I even posted a little bit on Facebook, but only one person actually spoke to me about it. Rightfully so, not all women are as.. Open to talking about their parts! Hahaha! Me? I don't care. I have nothing to be ashamed of.

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Ovarian cysts may equal high estrogen levels (which can flunctuate wildly depending on your cycle, so testing needs to be during a specific time when it is peaking).

How much soy products do you ingest daily?

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Any salad dressing? I was shocked when I found out that all my salad dressings were made with soybean oil. Now I can take tofu every once inawhile, but soybean oil really ups my estrogen (cramping menses, tender breasts, and crying at every little cute thing I see on TV). I also cut out flaxseed from my diet and that helped alot too ( I read that the lignins in flaxseed gets digested by the intestinal flora and provides estrogen like molecules as by-products, so I outed the flaxseed from my diet and again the cramping went way down).

 

I get my Omegas by eating organic whole walnuts and V-pure's algae oil capsules (which doesn't seem to bother me too much).

 

I also decided to try a gluten-free diet, and now my abdomen went way down flat! Unfortunately I love my sprouted wheat toast, and when I try to eat it I bloat.

 

With everything I take out of my diet, I give it two months to see if anything gets better. I also try to add it back in after the 2 months, and see what happens. It is very interesting when I eat something new and bloat up, indicating that there is something in it that my body does not like. And even one serving of it can make me have a reaction to it.

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I only use extra virgin olive oil and balsamic vinegar (from ITALY!!) on my salads. I also don't do flax, as it gives me the shits.

 

I don't think it's my diet contributing to my hormonal problem. I've had this problem for about a year now. The ovaries are what produce the female hormones anyways. Mine are just.. Messed up! Lol! I've had issues with my period even as a teenager. I remember my first period hurt like hell. I was 12. I was terrified because I bled so much I thought I was gonna die! I started taking birth control around age 16 and stopped taking them a year ago. The pills regulated me and controlled my hormones and my PMS symptoms pretty much disappeared.. But birth control pills gave me headaches, nausea, and bouts of depression so I quit taking them. I also quit taking them so that I could build muscle easier. (Which I can now, unfortunately, I can also grow a mustache).

 

Irregular periods are extremely common in young women. I'm not too worried about it.

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There are 3 kinds of estrogen compounds, and then there are phytoestrogens and xenoestrogens (not made by the ovary, but stimulate the receptors on the cells just the same). This is a website that I read thru the article and it seems a little techno in some parts, but it does give alot of info:

http://www.naturodoc.com/library/hormones/estrogen.htm

You might want to google phytoestrogens and xenoestrogens and see what you might be exposed to (it is in your environment that is doing this to you). Remember that alot of petrochemicals are in body products (make-up and deoderant and soap included). Look around and see what you might have started using a year ago. Food and supplements included.

Chronic exposure to whatever it is, will take a while to figure out what it is because even if you eliminate it, it might take many months before you see visible results (maybe little tiny results at first, and then major ones later. And then when you try to use it after it has been gone from your system, you should see immediate acute symptoms instead of a build-up of chronic ones).

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I don't think it's my environment causing this problem.

 

There are primary and secondary sources of disease. Primary being that it's genetic, secondary being that it's environmental.

 

I mentioned in my long storybook post that I've had issues with menstruating since I was a teenager. I'll go more into detail with this: I first started getting a period when I was 11. By time I was 12, I was bleeding very heavily and experienced cramping that was severe enough to make me sick to my stomach, and I would sometimes miss school, or go home early from school because of the pain. I started taking birth control pills when I was 16 to regulate my hormones and I took them for 7 years. I stopped taking birth control pills mainly because of the side effects. I experienced depression, headaches, and fatigue. A year ago is when I stopped taking the birth control pills, and that's when my symptoms began. My symptoms were a result of my body having to rely on its own hormone production without the aid of medication. My doctor told me that hormone imbalance after taking the pill for such a long time was normal, and that the problem would resolve itself in a few months. Since they didn't, I went back to the doctor and that's when the long process of diagnosing and testing began (blood tests, urine tests, x-rays etc.).

I was first diagnosed with IBS, and then with recurring bladder infections. It was just recently that it was determined I have ovarian cysts (which are extremely common in young women anyways). I was booked for a sonogram, which is next month, and we'll find out exactly what kind of cysts they are.

 

I also mentioned in my earlier post that I'm not a fan of naturopathic medicine. I'm very scientific. I don't believe modern medicine has failed me. It's just a process of elimination. I understand that it's easier to test for a bladder infection, which is extremely common and causes pelvic pain, rather than sending someone for an ultrasound to test for something less common. I understand how the process works, as I also have a small medical background (I have an education in veterinary medicine, and my father is a retired EMT).

 

I ultimately believe that prevention should be more focused on in modern medicine, so I take good care myself. However, sometimes we are just born with parts that don't work quite right.

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The cysts were diagnosed during a routine pelvic exam. Most women are diagnosed this way, and they usually don't know they have cysts since a majority of women don't experience symptoms.

 

It's important to get your yearly pelvic exam! I was dumb and didn't have one for almost 3 years.

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There are primary and secondary sources of disease. Primary being that it's genetic, secondary being that it's environmental

So are you saying that your mother, or either of your grandmothers, had this problem? Then that would be genetic, and you can still manipulate your environment to alleviate some of the symptoms.

 

If not, then it is environmental. And looking at the chemicals you might be exposed to (just take a look at the post on bisphenol A, a good candidate for your problem) is not naturopathic medicine, it is just elimination.

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I'm exposed the same things my sister, niece, and mom are exposed to. None of them have hormonal problems. In fact, I would say I'm exposed to less "harmful" stuff than they are since I eat more organic stuff and don't eat meat or consume dairy products.

 

I just have a hard time believing that it's the plastic containers I eat out of, or salad dressing messing up my hormones. The body isn't that fragile. Even with phytoestrogens which are found in many plant foods aren't consumed enough to make an impact on female hormones.. Especially an impact strong enough to cause infertility and cyst growth.

 

As far as family history goes for reproductive issues, there's not much I know. Everything seems fine on my mom's side of the family, but I don't know anything about my dad's side. For all I know, PCOS or endometriosis run in the family and I got unlucky. We won't know until I get more testing done. Maybe I don't have anything wrong with me. Maybe my body is out of whack from stress or something.

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Gaia, with all due respect, environmental factors like BPA won't cause this type of problem, and Marcina is right about the body "not being that fragile." The thing about phyto/xenoestrogens is that many of them are of extremely low potency (in the case of phytoestrogens) or extremely low exposure (in the case of xenoestrogens). One thing that is important to understand is that there are a HUGE number of estrogen receptors, and very few have any female sex hormone activity (regulating ovulation, breast tissue growth, etc). For a compound to be classified as a phytoestrogen, it just has to be able to bind to ANY of these receptors, and even when it does bind, it may have extremely low activity. The phytoestrogens in soy, for example, have been shown to bind to the estrogen receptors in the cardiovascular system. They still haven't figured out whether they decrease the rate of cardiovascular disease, or have no effect at all. Nobody has shown a soy phytoestrogen to have ANY impact on the sex hormone-type receptors in either men or women. All the evidence has been related to either cancer or cardiovascular disease, and even in those, we're not sure if they make any tangible difference.

 

Marcina, it is clear that you are bright and understand how these less common problems are figured out. I wish you all the best and hope you get to the bottom of it soon.

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