I've been ITCHING to tell you all about this but I've been silently observing my body because I didn't want to jump the gun.
But now.. IT'S TIME
It's time to shout it from the rooftops! Because if you have endo.... this is NOT something to be quiet about.
My periods have been pretty good for years now, however in 2018/2019 I would have some painful days, but I've been pretty consistently good since then.
This is what I mean when I say "GOOD":
Slight ovulation pain on one side, in the hip, and buttock
Slight cramping, discomfort and bloating in the week before the start of my period (usually taking herbal medicines starting a few days before my period starts)
No significant mood changes in the week before (eg: anxiety, irritability, teary or sadness)
No drastic food cravings (eg: sugar or salt)
No significant changes in bowel movements before the start of my period, or when my period starts (eg: constipation or loose stools)
Manageable cramps on Day 1 and Day 2 (pain level 5/10). Minimal pain from Day 3 onwards. (continuing to take herbal medicines for pain during these days)
Some mildly tender breasts
Relatively heavy flow on Day 1 and Day 2, tiny clots sometimes.
Medium/Light flow from Day 3 to Day 5, with spotting from Day 5 to Day 7
It's taken me over a decade and a LOT of hard work to get to that point, and I've been OK with it. I was happy to settle there.
But it hasn't always been like that.
Here's what it USED to be like...
Ovulation pain which would often be quite severe
Cramping, discomfort and bloating starting 1 week- 3 days before the start of my period.
Irritability, moodiness and anxiety 1 week before the start of my period
Severe cramping, bloating, burning pain at the start of my period for at least 3 days. (lower abdominal pain, buttocks, legs, hips)
Tender and painful breasts in the lead up to my period
Passed lots of clots, both big and small.
Nausea during my period
Pain throughout the month
Severe food cravings (mostly sugar!)
Significant changes in bowel movements at start of my period (painful, loose stools)
Very heavy flow on Day 1 to Day 3 with extreme fatigue.
Medium/Light flow from Day 4 to Day7 with some spotting.
It's been a while since I have experienced periods like that.
It's been over a decade since my official endometriosis diagnosis, and since then, tackling the underlying root causes of my symptoms has been my goal.
What root causes?
The root causes of the pain, bloating, discomfort, heavy bleeding, which are:
Inflammation
Immune dysregulation
Microbiome imbalances and digestive dysfunction
Hormonal imbalances
I am focused on these 4 areas because I KNOW that THIS is what improves symptoms.
(By the way, these are the areas that we address if you work with me)
These 4 factors are at the forefront of my mind, they shape the way I eat, the supplements I take, and most of my day to day decisions.
It's a constant work in progress but its been a 10+ year journey and I can testify that this works! 😉
Although my periods have been GOOD, I have had TWO DREAM PERIODS, literally, the last two months.
I'm SO EXCITED to share more about this with you.
DREAM PERIODS? HOW SO.....?!
They caught me TOTALLY BY SURPRISE. I had NO idea they were coming. HOW GOOD! No warning signs. No cramping or discomfort. Usually I have some discomfort which prepares me for what's to come, but this time- NOTHING.
There was NO PAIN. There was a little bit of gurgling and pressure in my lower abdomen, but nothing painful. The sensations of gurgling and pressure was probably 2/10. I couldn't believe it, this went on during Day 1, so I thought things would escalate by Day 2 but it never did, it stayed consistently PAINLESS. WOW. Usually I would have cramps on Days 1 & 2.
No tender breasts at all.
Medium flow, and not heavy.
No clots at all.
By day 5 I was done!
No cravings, no bloating, no changes in bowel movements, no nausea, no real change in energy levels.
No fluctuating moods
AMAZING!!!!!
Me in Bali last month on DAY 5, I was done!
I was SO HAPPY about the dream period I just had. I could NOT believe it!
In addition to an 'endo diet' adapted to my likes/dislikes/sensitivities, here's what I take.
Keep in mind I have worked on 'putting out the fire' many years ago and it's been mostly maintenance work since.
Magnesium, taurine, B vitamin combination
Well rounded multivitamin with activated nutrients
Highly bioavailable CoQ10
Encapsulated beef organs (an amazing source of heme iron!)
My two staple herbal formulas: ginger, corydalis, cramp bark, wild yam, raspberry leaf, AND turmeric, willow bark, boswellia, Jamaican dogwood. BUT I decided to stop this in November as an experiment as I introduced an Omega Oil which contains Omega 9 (from really good quality olive oil), Omega 3 (from purified fish oil), polyphenols (antioxidants), and Vitamin D.
Although I was taking a practitioner-only grade fish oil for YEARS I tested my omega 6:3 ratio and it was good BUT my EPA & DHA Levels were still not high enough.. check out my results:
Ideally, we want our omega 6:3 ratio to be between 3:1 - 1:1, so at 3:1, I'm in the green! YAY!
As you can see my Omega 3 index can be improved, by increasing my Omega 3 intake.
You want a fluid (NOT RIGID) cell membrane to ensure nutrients are entering easily and wastes are exiting. Your Omega 3 status will contribute to the fluidity of your cellular membrane.
EPA and DHA are Omega 3 fatty acids which are important in suppressing inflammation. As you can see, despite being on a good quality fish oil for years, which contain great levels of EPA and DHA, my values were still below the target range.
Arachidonic acid (AA) is an Omega 6 which can trigger the production of inflammatory chemicals. High levels of AA means more INFLAMMATION and more PAIN. It's reassuring to see that my levels are optimal and this is something I manage through my diet.
As you can see my levels were overall pretty good, except for the low Omega 3.
What was it that helped me go from good periods to DREAM periods? 🌈
What changed?
The Omega oil I introduced.
The Balance Oil.
The combination of EPA and DHA + polyphenols (antioxidants) IMPROVES the STABILITY and BIOAVAILABILITY of the Omega 3s which allows them to exert their antiinflammatory effect more effectively.
There is no formula like this on the market and I KNOW that this is a non-negotiable for me now!
High antiinflammatory effect = downregulates inflammatory mediators
=LESS PAIN AND DISCOMFORT
If you want to take a test-based approach to check your levels of Omega 6, Omega 3, etc... LET'S DO IT!
Whether your periods are AWFUL or OK, LET'S TEST (not guess!) and get your essential fatty acids BALANCED.
Because, when you target inflammation effectively, you will also target pain.
I would LOVE for your periods to get
BETTER
BETTER
and even BETTER
So YOU too can have DREAM periods! 🌈
I'd love to help.
Book in your FREE intro call HERE and let's chat.
Lots of love,
Kimberly
I'd love to know what symptoms you experience around and during your periods:
Bloating and cramping before my period starts
Tender breasts before my period starts
Changes in my bowel movements before my period starts
Very painful periods
You can vote for more than one answer.