What To Do If You Have Endometriosis

 

Endometriosis is of growing concern for women and more alarmingly, even more underdiagnosed than PCOS and Fibroids.

According to Viva Eve, Clinical Women’s Health Experts “Endometriosis occurs when endometrial-like tissue grows outside of the uterus, affecting the surrounding pelvic structures, such as the ovaries, fallopian tubes, and the pelvis. As displaced tissue continues to act as it normally would (thickening, breaking down, and bleeding), it becomes trapped.

Without an exit point from the body, surrounding areas become inflamed or swollen over time, and scar tissues and cysts can form.”

 

While Viva Eve provides expert diagnosis, care and treatment if you are suffering from Endometriosis, we wanted to give some additional simple diet and lifestyle tools you can start utilizing immediately outside of your visits for stress relief and self-care.  ALL of these tips will help you feel more at ease, balanced, and healthy in all areas of your life, regardless of the Stage of Endometriosis you’re experiencing.

Let’s begin with what to increase in your diet and lifestyle with the “DOS”.

DO…

• Get 8-9 hours of quality sleep per night – whatever number helps you feel refreshed in the morning.  To do this, schedule your ideal bedtime based on when you need to wake up, then work backward and give yourself a relaxing evening routine 1 hour before lights out.  You could take a warm magnesium bath (that will also help with pain!), read a paperback book that’s relaxing, diffuse some essential oils for a spa-like experience, or even listen to some binaural beats for FREE to help your brain enter into “theta state” for better “zs”!
• Take breaks – if you work at a desk, use the Pomodoro method and work 25 minutes on one task, then take 5 minutes to stand up and stretch or walk away from your desk entirely.  The same can be said for women in professions where you are moving all day, especially around the big city.  You MUST schedule regular breaks so that your body has time to rest and rejuvenate.  Setting healthy boundaries with work will go a long way in helping alleviate mental and emotional stress, which further exacerbates Endometriosis.
• Schedule time in your calendar for Self Care – Self Care isn’t “selfish” it’s essential!  Especially when your body is managing a condition like Endometriosis, you need to treat your body with kindness and Self Compassion.  This could be a once-a-week walk in nature to recalibrate your nervous system, infrared sauna session (heat is your friend when you are in pain like this), or even a luxurious foot rub.  Nurturing your mental and emotional health is also always a great option – therapy, writing, breath work, and Emotional Freedom Tapping are all incredible tools.  Whatever leaves you feeling cared for and relaxed is the aim.  And as mentioned – schedule it like you would a meeting and it’s far more likely to happen!
• Eat whole foods every 3-4 hours for blood sugar stability – yes, this is a repeat from our recent article on PCOS and Fibroids.  Blood sugar stability is KEY to your health no matter what health condition you may have.  It’s not only important for those with Diabetes- irregular blood sugar wreaks havoc on your hormones.  Your body craves STABLE fuel, so keep it extremely simple and just aim for a healthy dose of protein, fat, and veggies on your plate whether it’s a meal or a snack.  We teach clients exactly how to do that and offer meal planning that works with your specific preferences and dietary needs.
• Get your Omega-3s – this is an incredible fighter of inflammation and will support your hormones, brain, skin, mood, and more.  You can easily get Omegas via diet from Wild Caught Fish, organic chia seeds, walnuts, and other whole foods sources.  We also love a high-quality fish oil supplement.  Check with your doctor what dose might be the best fit for you.  I love and trust the quality of Wild Alaskan Company brand fish at mealtime for my clients and my family.  Code NAO gets you $25 off.

To further your healing and relief, be aware of the following common inflammatory drivers that may exacerbate your symptoms…

• Eating foods that inflame you.  We can test so you aren’t guessing.  This simple test tells us exactly what foods are causing you the most trouble.  Then we curate a meal plan for you that fits your lifestyle, and help you heal your gut so you can reintroduce foods with ease.
• Going to bed late and “burning the candle at both ends”, especially while watching TV that stimulates your nervous system or scrolling anxiously through social media (We’ve all been guilty of that, but right before bed will simply make you feel ill at ease).  This is the time of day my clients express their feelings of anxiety mounting right before bed.  Giving yourself and your brain a gentle activity, like suggested above, does the trick!
• Overworking yourself and allowing work to take over your schedule, so there’s not much time for you, people you love, and activities you love.  
• Avoiding self-care.
• Waiting more than 4 hours to eat and ending up feeling “hangry”.  All you want is sweet, sugary foods for a quick blood sugar boost, only to crash again soon after.  This leads to more emotional/impulse choices and further blood sugar highs and lows until you’re energetically “spent”.

Just remember – you are not alone and there is SO much NAO and Viva Eve can support you with so that you aren’t suffering from hormonal imbalances of any kind, including Endometriosis, PCOS, Fibroids, and more.

Check out our additional Blog for Fibroids and PCOS HERE!