My Journey

Hey, hi, hello!

First and foremost, welcome to The Nourishing Project. I am so excited to have you along for the ride! I would be lying if I said Endometriosis wasn't a big part of my life, but it is, and I am constantly needing to make decisions based on my Endo, everyday.

My story:

As long as I can remember I had experienced horrible periods. I was insanely crampy and moody for 7 days a month. Thats 84 days a year that I was in pain and crying, angry or just a bad and negative energy to be around. I remember complaining about my period to my family doctor for years and years. I was constantly tired, falling asleep in my classes throughout high school, and I had absolutely zero motivation. On top of this, my periods were extremely heavy and my cramping was insane. I ended up getting put on the birth control pill (bcp) in grade 10 to control my periods and cramping. Unfortunately, we are not made aware of all the side effects birth control has. So here is a little recap.

When looking up side effects or being told about the effects for the birth control pill (bcp), majority of them say there are side effects but they are not serious

Some side effects include:

nausea, weight gain, acne, mood changes, depression, spotting, sore/swollen breasts, headaches, blurred vision, abdominal pain, decreased libido, chest pain, swelling/aching in the legs or thighs, increased risk of blood clots, increased breast cancer risk, increased uterine cancer risk etc.

Not so serious? I disagree.

The birth control pill (bcp) also causes nutrient deficiencies including:

B vitamins, Vitamin C, folic acid, Magnesium, Selenium and Zinc

Vitamins and minerals needed for overall health and wellbeing, oxygen and DNA production, getting and staying pregnant, natural anti-inflammatory and anti-cancer properties...

Not serious? Again, I disagree.

After years of being on the pill (7 to be exact) I started reading more about the bcp dangers and decided to stop taking the pill. Looking back now I wish I had worked with a Practitioner to assist my body with post birth control syndrome but unfortunately at that time I didn't know much and just wanted to stop the pill immediately. I ended up getting horrible periods post-pill and sharp pains that were pretty alarming. I ended up getting an ultrasound done and they found a cyst on my left ovary. They said its not cancerous, just a small cyst, it'll go away, so I assumed it would. As soon as my period was over, my pain was completely gone like nothing had happened.

Fast forward to 2 months later again. I remember feeling super out of body randomly, I got extremely tired. I felt a sharp pain and it felt like a knife was going through my body and just repeatedly stabbing my uterus and stomach. I drew myself an epsom salt bath and all I remember is my vision started blurring, I was totally out of it so I thought "ok you gotta get out of the bath". I get out of the bath and suddenly lost my breath. These sharp pains were so severe I stopped breathing. I dropped to the floor and immediately called 911, I remember a lady answered the phone and she asked "what's your emergency?" I tried to tell her what was wrong but I could barely speak, so I spat out my address quickly then blacked out. I woke up on a stretcher, was shot with morphine and I was in the hospital for 16 hours. At 4 am I was sent home with pain killers, anti-inflammatories to use during my periods and some words that really hurt me. “its just a small cyst."

6 months after this hospital visit, countless doctors appointments, emergency trips etc. I found out I had been suffering with Endometriosis. If you count my pre-teen/teenage experience with insanely uncomfortable menstrual cycles, I could have potentially been undiagnosed for over 10 years. The average woman is diagnosed in 10 years. When I started taking matters into my own hands it took me less than 1 year to figure out I had Endometriosis.

Us women are told our whole lives that pain with periods are normal, cramping is normal, basically anything that happens during our menses is said to be normal, but it isn't and we shouldn't ever ignore these signals our bodies are telling us. Our bodies are SMART. Our bodies send out these signals in hope that we listen and do something about it. That headache you get everyday around 1 pm? Those intense cramps with your period that make you stay in bed all day? These are just a couple of ways our body tries to communicate that something isn't right and covering these symptoms up with anti-inflammatories, birth control pills or any other medication isn't going to solve the problem, it will only mask the symptom...until maybe years later your body shoots out a more severe symptom.

I want everyone reading my posts to know they are not alone when dealing with this or any other issue. Yes, sometimes it may be all in your head, but at the end of the day you know your body better than anyone else. Just because someone tells you not to worry doesn't mean you shouldn't look into what is making you feel lousy.

If you ever want to chat, I am here and would love to help you feel your best. Until then, let me know what blog posts you want to see next from me. Send me an email or simply comment any ideas you have below!

xx Cass