by Robin Dipasquale, ND
Ms. C., a 33 year old woman, came to mv office in February 1998 with chief complaints of painful menstrual periods, PMS, and musculoskeletal pain. She had a history of painful periods since menarche at age 13 and was diagnosed with endometriosis in 1986, followed by laser surgery.
Over the years since the surgery, the symptoms have been intensifying. At the time of the office visit, she reported extreme spasms and cramping with the menstrual flow, throbbing vaginal and vulvar pain, and a sense of being overwhelmed with pain by the end of each cycle.
She bleeds for two days, stops, then bleeds another 5 days, passing multiple clots. Just after bleeding until ovulation occurs, she feels good, with a positive outlook toward life. From ovulation until the menses begins, she feels irritable, desperate, overwhelmed, and a sense of rage.
Ms. C. reported that she has a general discomfort in her body in the neck, shoulder, gluteals, and SI joint. She also has hip, knee, and ankle joint pain. This worsens with exertion. She feels this is emotional/spiritual as well as physical.
There is a sense of fatigue and exhaustion most of the time. Her sleep is disturbed, waking in the night and not able to fall back to sleep. Both the sleep and the musculoskeletal symptoms are worse after drinking alcohol.
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