In the beginning... 3/13 through 3/17/08

Because it took me a several days to come up with the idea to blog my daily experience, my first post is not a single-day entry.

March 13, 2008
SIDE EFFECTS FOR THIS DAY: NONE

Lupron has to be shipped (at least in my state with my insurance) from a company called Pharmacy Solutions in IL. In fact, when my doctor first suggested Lupron two months ago and I initially said "yes," it was Pharmacy Solutions that called me out of the blue asking for sensitive information. I didn't know I was going to receive a call that sounded so strange without them being able to verify who they are. So with Lupron, I now call this distributor who then ships it to my doctor. Apparently it's a controlled substance, not in the narcotic sense, but in a different way.

So I had to wait for it to come in, which it did late in the day. I scoot over to my doctor's and weigh in at 112 lbs. It would seem to me that since I try to keep my weight down, my body wouldn't produce the estrogen that's causing the endometriosis to grow. In fact, when my doctor was re-reviewing what the likely side effects are, we discovered I had been having hot flashes already since I was 31. All this time I thought I was running fevers that were breaking in the middle of the night. The middle-aged nurse laughed when I said that. Still, if I have been having perimenopausal symptoms for all this time, why is my body still fighting me? I thought this was supposed to go away as the estrogen decreases.

For those taking the shot, it comes prepackaged with its own needle. The nurse didn't like this too much, as I guess she would have preferred to use a different size needle. It was relatively painless though.

If you would like to compare notes, my doctor advised me that I would experience a "flare" between the first and second shot, at least a week or two after the first shot. She told me I would experience some of the most severe pain and probably the worst period imaginable, but all of this would subside. A nurse that I spoke to that has a lot of experience administering this drug told me that people that are pretty sick before they take Lupron seem to be the sickest while they take it. I know that would be a hard pill to swallow for the men prescribed this treatment for advanced prostate cancer (my prayers are with you, btw).

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March 14, 2008
SIDE EFFECTS FOR THIS DAY: NONE

I do not notice anything re: the Lupron. I did have to go off of the Loestrin Fe to start this treatment so the twinges I am starting to feel I believe are related to that. I've been suppressing my periods for nearly two years so this should be interesting.

Just to fill in the blanks... my pain is always on the left side, particularly the left groin. At first it used to follow a cycle and there would be days where I did not have any pain. Now it is constant, like there is an ice pick in my groin. It's very hard to sleep at night and that's really been what's destroyed my coping mechanism. My doctor gave me Darvocet a couple of months ago (I was too afraid of the Vicodin). I doesn't stop the pain but it makes me sleepy.

In the pictures they look during the laparoscopic, the endometriosis did not look bad. There was plenty of healthy tissue, but I think it must have embedded. I estimate I have had endometriosis since 2002.
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March 15, 2008
SIDE EFFECTS FOR THIS DAY: Pain in shape of an "S", racing heart, night sweats

I have a lot of pain on the left side, but it feels more menstrual. It starts at the groin and goes underneath my ribs in something that feels like the shape of an "S". My heart is racing off and on today. I have night sweats, but I was having them before too.
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March 16, 2008
POSSIBLE SIDE EFFECTS FOR THIS DAY: Pain in shape of an "S", intense headaches, night sweats

The headaches start. At first it seems responsive to ibuprofen, but as the night wears on, I find I cannot bend over because of the intensity. I feel waves of heat from my torso to my shoulders. The waves feel like they are rippling. The menstrual sensations increase. My stomach isn't digesting food well. It feels like it is just sitting there and the outside of my stomach actual burns beneath my skin.
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March 17, 2008
SIDE EFFECTS FOR THIS DAY: Pain from groin to below ribs, severe headaches, night sweats

The headaches are close to a full blown migraine. Ibuprofen does nothing. Anytime I do something that makes my heart beat (picking up laundry, bending over, the least bit of exertion), my head throbs. Menstrual symptoms increase. I've been passing lining for a few days and now it seems to be more of a flow, though very little. Not really sure how my uterus could have anything in it if I have been blocking it all this time.