Living

Douching involves inserting water, soaps, body washes, or other cleansing products into the vagina. Advertisements for douche products show women bathing under crisp waterfalls or plucking bouquets of wildflowers. In...

This last weekend was, quite unexpectedly, a busy one. Perhaps encouraged by warmer weather and brighter skies, friends and acquaintances were everywhere here in Brighton, U.K. I bumped into them...

Author note: Quest uses they/them and he/him pronouns interchangeably. I will use both pronouns for them throughout this article. Picture this: you’ve waited 18 years for an endometriosis diagnosis. You’ve...

If I had to describe my current state, I’d say I am, mostly and quite definitely, hungry. Yet, despite my hunger pans, I do not wish to eat much. At...

I’m going to say something that I know might be a sensitive topic for some: I look forward to having my periods. My period used to cause me anxiety all...

If you have endometriosis, you may get a worsening of pain or other symptoms from time to time. Inflammation and hormonal fluctuations are likely to blame for these flare-ups. But...

My friends describe me as optimistic, loyal, and determined. Anger or irritability are certainly not traits of my normal character. Yet, they loved to make an appearance when I was...

Have you had exploratory laparoscopy surgery to see if endometriosis is the cause of your undiagnosed abdominal or pelvic pain? After this diagnostic surgery, you would need to meet the...

In the last month, I added another fun situation to my already complex health picture: concussion recovery. Can you detect the sarcasm here? Back in March, as I was bent...

Endometriosis has changed me. It's as simple as that. I am not the same person I was years before my diagnosis. Honestly, I don't 100% remember who I was before...

For many of us with endo, if we get pain in the bladder or urethra or have problems urinating, we naturally might assume that endometriosis is on our bladder. While...

When we think about a journal, we think about writing out our feelings or even a list of things for which we’re thankful. Both of those aspects are helpful and...

Living with a chronic invisible illness like endometriosis has taught me many powerful lessons. One of the most important lessons I learned was not to expect everything you need from...

Navigating an endometriosis diagnosis can be incredibly challenging. For many of us, it will involve a myriad of doctors' appointments and disappointing treatment strategies, and even misdiagnoses. Endometriosis is also...

As someone with stage 4, deep infiltrating endometriosis, I am quite familiar with surgery. My first ablation was in 2009, and I had another six months later in 2010. Then...

Can we talk about the weight fluctuations with endometriosis? As women, there are deeply rooted messages about our appearance and our self-image that certainly don’t set the stage for a...

While not officially classified as an autoimmune disease, there are many doctors and other health professionals who support and recognize endometriosis as an autoimmune disease, despite its unofficial classification. Endometriosis...

I used to catch a cold at the drop of a hat. If someone near me sneezed, chances were that I'd show symptoms within a day. But I haven't had...

Right now, money is a constant worry on my mind. It's no secret to anyone living with endometriosis that this disease sabotages career paths, severely limiting a person’s income. While...

"I haven't seen you around the office recently! Were you on vacation?" My coworker greeted me during lunch when I returned to the office. "No," I responded. "I wasn't feeling...