1. Fatigue is more than “I’m tired”.

2. Pain can be relentless.
3. The fight for diagnosis is real.
4. Being gaslit by healthcare professionals is routine.
5. It can effect all of your relationships – with your partner, friends, family, work. Everything.

Trying to explain what’s going on to someone who has never experienced it can feel impossible. How do you explain something all encompassing but which doesn’t feel like it has words. How can you say getting out of bed takes so much energy, let alone having a shower? That you just can’t today. 

Feeling like you aren’t the person you used to be can be an upsetting realisation as can the recognition of how lonely and isolated you feel. You don’t have to do this alone.

If you are looking for support and someone who understands contact me below.

Undergoing tests and procedures can be scary.

You might not be sure what you want the outcome to be – to find something or not? Your nerves may be sky high on the way to the appointment.

Then you get there and you face a myriad of challenges. Can you get yourself heard? Will you be offered appropriate pain relief? Will you get the test or procedure you thought you were there for?

How you react to the doctor comes from a mixture of your past experiences, family history, personality, and values. Therefore, you can react differently to someone else who had the same test or procedure.

Reactions fall into four main responses:

Fight – arguing and feeling tense, possibly like you want to hurt someone

Flight- wanting to leave the situation and run away as quickly as possible 

Freeze- being unable to move

Fawn- prioritising the other person’s needs to avoid harm to yourself.

To calm your response, take a long, deep breath. And another one. And a third. Ensuring you breathe out longer than you breathe in can help calm you.

After the conversation or the procedure you may continue to react.

Some people find their body shakes or wants to physically react somehow and it can be helpful to let this happen as long as it is not causing your body harm. Experiencing the emotions that arise can help you process them rather than suppressing them which can lead to depression and anxiety. So cry, scream, journal, maybe pummel a pillow- whatever helps you process the emotions as long as it does not cause damage to you, to others, or to anyone’s possessions. 

Talking to someone you trust about what happened can help. However, there is a difference between processing an event and re-traumatising yourself. If you feel lighter, like something about it moved positively in you, then you could be processing what happened. If you feel worse, as upset or distressed as you did at the time, or stuck like you will never move through this, you may be re-traumatising yourself so stopping and trying something else could be beneficial. 

You may find that you feel the impact for longer than expected. Or perhaps you did not react at the time but later realise that what happened is impacting you. When this happens, it could be useful to seek professional help.

Get in touch below and we can work it through together.

Navigating the gynaecological system in the UK is hard.

Getting into the gynaecological system can feel impossible.

If you have tried, you know what I mean. 

If you are on the years long waiting lists, you definitely know what I mean.

GPs gate keeping and refusing to refer you. Instead plying you with hormones and pain killers that may or may not work. Telling you ‘it’s just a bad period’, ‘it’s not that painful’, ‘you’re within range’ for all forms of vitamins, iron levels, and pain thresholds even though you feel horrendous and know something is wrong.

Maybe you are lucky and can access private healthcare. If you are not, you may be flooding in your car, your bathroom, your sofa (if you know, you know) for years with little to no help. It is exhausting.

Trying to keep your job, your relationship, your family, while also trying to keep your sanity in a system that seems determined to take it all can feel impossible.

Fibroids

Endometriosis 

Adenomyosis

PCOS 

Conditions and diagnoses doctors do not like to see, and you will likely have to fight for. A system that wants to make you exhausted and give up.

I see you.

It is not all in your head.

The pain is real.

You will be heard here.

Contact me below.

The trauma of seeking a diagnosis.

The trauma of not having one.

Then the feelings that come with having one. 

It is confusing. 

It is relieving.

It is frightening.

It is the realisation that this is forever. Somehow you need to come to terms with having a life-long condition but how do you begin to do that? It is not like there is a manual. The grief is both a revelation and confusing.

Maybe you try to be strong and show everyone around that you have got this, they do not have to worry. Meanwhile you are imploding which just leads to more health problems.

Or maybe you talk with family and friends about your fears but realise that their feelings about it are too much for you to hear on top of your own.

I offer you the opportunity to talk about all that you are feeling – the good, the bad, the ugly, and everything in between.

Contact me below if you would like to discuss it more.