Symptoms of endometriosis?

Some of the symptoms of endometriosis are very similar to PMS, which is why it often goes undetected, but endometriosis can produce other symptoms too:

• Pain at times of your monthly cycle other than your period
• Heavy and/or irregular periods
• Loss of large clots of blood
• Loss of stale, brown blood before and/or after periods
• Problems with going to the toilet (constipation, diarrhoea, difficulty passing water)
• Pain during sex.

Some girls do not suffer any or many of these, making it difficult to tell whether someone has it or not.

You only accurately tell by having an operation called a ‘laparoscopy’. A laparoscopy involves having a tiny tube with a light on the end inserted through a hole near the tummy button so the gynaecologist can look at the pelvis and abdomen.

Symptoms of PMS

You may get a combination of physical and emotional symptoms, including:

• Tender/sore breasts
• Bloating/swollen tummy
• Stomach cramps
• Headaches
• Back pain
• Sudden mood changes
• Aggression
• Feeling tense, angry, upset, irritable or anxious
• Craving fatty and sugary foods

Doctors diagnose women with PMS based on the pattern of the symptoms in relation to their monthly cycle, so it is important to keep a note of when your periods are and what symptoms you get.

Don’t worry – endometriosis cannot kill you and you can’t pass it on to anyone, but if you don’t have treatment you could become infertile.