What is endometriosis?
Endometriosis is a chronic disorder where the tissue like the outer lining of the uterus grows outside of the uterine cavity, on common areas of the ovaries, fallopian tubes and the tissue lining the pelvis. This displaced tissue from the uterus lining thickens, break down, and bleeds during each menstrual cycle. However, displaced tissue has no exit for the blood it produced, thus the blood becomes trapped which causes inflammation, pain, and scar tissues.
Symptoms
One of the challenges is that some women experience symptoms very much like period pain, thus symptoms of endometriosis are often ignored. Severe symptoms include intense pelvic pain, which can be persistent throughout the month, impacting on daily life and work.
Other symptoms include heavy menstrual bleeding, painful intercourse, and infertility. As these symptoms are so common in normal period pain as well, endometriosis in some women is often delayed in diagnosis.
Causes
The cause remains uncertain, but possible explanation can be due to:
- Retrograde menstruation– this can occur in all age group during the menstruation. Each month the blood and uterus lining, rather than flowing out of the uterus, it can flow backup to other parts of the body.
- Immume system- a weak immune system may result in the body unable to recognize and destroy the reverted uterus lining that is growing outside the uterus.
- Cellular metaplasia- when cell changes from one form into another. This means that cells outside the uterus can change into uterus lining property and start to grow.
What are the risk?
- Menstruation age (if you have period, there will always be a risk).
- Never giving birth
- Heavy menstrual periods more than 7 days
- Higher levels of oestrogen
- Low body mass index
- Genetic causes
- Other reproductive disorders
Complication can lead to infertility
Endometriosis is one of the most common causes of infertility, where 30-50% of women are infertile and 20% of women will experience chronic menstrual pain (read more here)
This is because, the retrograded menstruation with the thickening uterus lining in places like fallopian tube- the main site for fertilization, can be blocked and resulting in the sperm unable to enter the fallopian tube and reach the egg for fertilization.
Managing and treatments
The gold standard treatment for severe endometriosis is surgical removal (Laparoscopy). Another alternative treatment that has been successful in Ponsonby Wellness Centre is acupuncture. Treatment must be continuous for few sessions, the time you should continue your treatment, and how often you are required to visit the clinic every week, will depend on every individual’s body condition, lifestyle, genetics, previous diagnosis, when consulted by our practitioner, Virgina. Tongue reading and pulse reading will also be performed during your first and follow-up consultations.
Acupuncture can:
- Reduce pain– by stimulating our body to release endorphins, which is a natural pain reducer. This allows the body to compensate with period pain and eventually have a higher pain threshold. Additionally, acupuncture can also stimulate the body to release happy hormones such as dopamine and serotonin levels.
- Reduce estrogen levels -Endometriosis growth depends on the level of estrogen, and it was found that acupuncture can suppress the level of serum estradiol levels to inhibit the growth and suppress pelvic pain.
- Increase immune system– It was found that acupuncture can enhance natural killer cells in the immune system, which improves the body’s immune system and thus the uterus lining growing outside the uterus, can be recognized and destroyed.
Contact Us
For more information, you can:
Read more about women health care
You can also book an appointment with our expertise acupuncturist here
Contact us via:
phone number: 021 2159963
email address: ponsonbywellness@gmail.com
Our Location
43A Brown St,
Ponsonby,
Auckland 1021
