For those who do not know: Endometriosis is a health condition that occurs when bits of the tissue that lines the uterus (endometrium) grows where it shouldn’t every menstrual cycle. The tissue thickens, breaks down and bleeds but has nowhere to go so cysts, scarring and tumors will form. This causes horrible pain during menstrual cycles, sex and anything having to do with that area. It also disrupts other parts of the body, such as the spine in my case as well as my bladder.
I had three surgeries and it wasn’t until the third that the majority of the damage caused by my stage 4 endometriosis was removed. Unfortunately, because I still had my menstrual cycle, the health condition returned with a vengeance and wreaked havoc on my organs near my uterus, spine, sciatic nerve and sacroiliac joints. In order to stop it for now, I take birth control. No more cysts/tumors but I will still feel pain in my uterus when I take a break from the pill or when stress is higher than usual. The worst was when I ate badly for too long to save money.
But, I really can’t physically afford to keep eating badly. I do not eat meat as much anymore. I don’t eat red meat at all. I’ve started eating/drinking plant-based meals/drinks. I couldn’t let go of ramen, lol, it’s my comfort food, so I found an alternative to the old stuff I used to get:
The ramen pack already comes with an organic soy sauce broth but I always add a smidgen more. The eggs I add are organic and have no added hormones. I boil them in this chicken microwave egg boiler for only 8 minutes. You add cool water to the boiler in the base underneath the aluminum holder. You cover the the aluminum with the chicken top and nothing explodes, lol. They never over cook/boil. I cool them off, then peel and voi la.
Another thing that I’ve added to my meal plan is Vega Protein Nutrition Shake. It has a handful of vitamins that help combat the symptoms and even hemp protein which I think still helps fight inflammation. Though if it doesn’t, my Pacific Food Hemp with vanilla does. The hemp vanilla beverage is my replacement for milk. I do not like almond milk nor coconut milk so I found this and like it.
The Vega Protein is a bit pricey with only four 11 oz bottles. I drink half of it for the day and drink the other half of it the next day. It has 7 grams of sugar. I’m trying to keep the sugar intake below 20 grams per day since sugar causes endo pain to worsen. For the Pacific Foods Hemp Vanilla, they have sugar free but I really like it with the sugar. The whole container has 15 grams of sugar. I usually use it for cereal or for coffee. I no longer add any extra sugar to my coffee. I did when I started drinking coffee again and my anxiety levels went crazy.
Since starting all this, the pain has lessened. It’s rough eating and drinking things that don’t have a whole lot of taste but I’d rather deal with that than making my health condition and the pain worse.
xox, Jenn
Methodical Magpie 