As I laid on the nurse’s couch, my mum stood beside me holding my hand tightly, I was engulfed by a deep wave of sadness and defeat. My nurse approached, gently explaining her actions, looking away I felt her cool hands on my stomach. I tried to steal myself against the sharp pain of the needle, a puncture wound, the solution that would render my remaining ovary useless and chemically induce menopause, again, at 26.
Thankful that the pain from the needle, unlike my Endo-pain, is sharp but over quickly.
I squeezed my eyes shut, feeling them water and almost let go of my emotion, but instinctively, I knew that wouldn’t be fair on my mum, or this calm and compassionate woman who was trying to help me manage the endless pain.
I am devastated that I have had to go back on Zoladex injections. This is my 6th week of relentless abdo pain. I am now unemployed and spend most of my time indoors, either in bed or taking things slowly, drugged up. I can count the number of times I’ve ventured out of my house on one hand and the amount of times I went alone are even less.
I don’t know how long it will take for the injection to change my body, for the side effects to take hold and plunge me into a storm of yo-yo body temperatures and mood swings. This time this treatment has punctuated the end of an unsuccessful year, a year spent trying to conceive. At the front of my mind, the single harrowing thought; well, there definitely won’t be a baby now.
I have failed to conceive in 13 months and I can no longer tolerate the relentless pain caused by my Stage IV Endometriosis and my time has run out. For now, we must pause our dream and wait for the professionals and doctors, who will fail to fill me with hope and solutions, to help me. I must wait until the next step can be shown to me by someone who should have all the answers.
Can you blame me for being sceptical? The last time I visited a doctor, he dismissed my severe pain and my sadness and pushed a prescription into my hand. A green piece of paper which I could trade for pain relief. The biggest bottle of liquid morphine I’ve ever seen. Three times the amount of Oramorph that I’ve ever been given before. Is this the answer? Flood me full of strong drugs, to block out my pain, which will leave me immobile, comatose, restrained and incoherent. The drugs he gave me are designed to give relief, but are also effective in keeping me pliant and silent. It’s all too much and I need a break.
But by going back on the zoladex treatment, I am hoping the pain will disappear and the active endometriosis should settle down. This will also cut my ties to the stronger pain killers and allow me to live my life, like a normal person.
I was brought out of this reverie by my nurse’s slight pressure as she applied a dressing and gently touched my shoulder, our eyes locking, and a smile. I sat up and zipped up my shorts, gingerly sitting up and testing my aches and pains. I sat across from the nurse as she scanned the computer screen looking to book my next appointment in a month’s time. Yes, this is a monthly ‘torture’ regime.
“Now, I won’t be here when your next one is due…” she said quietly.
“Ah, are you going on holiday?”
She laughed nervously, and softly said “No, I’m actually leaving the practice…”
With that final sentence, the emotion that had been brewing inside me roared in my ears and I lost control for a small moment, my resolve crumbling, tears in my eyes. I do not know this lovely lady personally, I only met her when I joined the surgery and started my first course of injections last year and I have never seen her out of her nurse’s uniform. She is an amazing nurse and a good person, who made me feel at ease and make this small but awful moment, once a month, that bit easier.
You see, I don’t want to have these injections. I didn’t a year ago and I don’t today. I want to be normal. I want a period that doesn’t leave me incapacitated. I don’t want pain every day. I want to conceive, naturally. I want to have a baby.
But I found I could be ok with it, with having these injections. As long as I could have that 10 minutes’ interaction with someone who understood what I was going through, who showed me compassion. I could cope with this rebound, if I had someone who knew me. I am full of gratitude for all she has done for me, for understanding, from one woman to another, for being a friend as well as an excellent Nurse.
I have no doubt that she has broken hearts with breaking the news of her resignation. But, short of demanding that she stays, throwing a tantrum and locking her in her nurse’s room, there is nothing I can do but wish her all the best in her new adventure.
So, there’s nothing else to do but pull up my big girl britches and get on with it. Life has given me these sour lemons which I will turn into the best damn Lemonade we (and Beyoncé) have ever tasted.
Chronic Writer 