Ketamine Infusion

Last Wednesday I had my 3rd Ketamine infusion. Ketamine infusions originally were to sedate animals. Now, doctors have discovered it can be used for many different things in humans. One way is that it can be an anesthetic to sedate children when undergoing a procedure. The reason I get it is to help my pain. It was recommended to me by my pain management doctor. They give me a dose of 0.02 so I am not asleep. It does make me a little loopy which is a common side effect. The first time I got the treatment in January, it helped my pain by not getting the pain as frequently or as intense as it can be. It went so well that we decided to try it again. The next month, it helped the same way. I may have had a few more flare ups than the first month, but not nearly as bad as before I started the infusions. The next month I skipped the infusion because we were suppose to see a doctor in Minnesota and had problems scheduling the infusion. We ended up not seeing the doctor in Minnesota. That month I could tell I was getting more pain than the past two months and I suspected it was from not getting the infusion. This month I got the infusion again. I get them at the infusion center at Hershey Medical Center. It will run through my body for about 6 hours then I would be able to go home. I got to the hospital around 8 am. The nurse took my vitals and put in an iv, then I sat in the waiting room for a few minutes. Then, a nurse took me back to my room and the infusion started around 9 am. I was in the middle of doing homework when all of a sudden the dizziness and loopy feeling started. It hit me like a truck. I had to stop doing my homework and relax. After I started feeling a little better, I tried to work on more homework. I did some more and then slept a little. The infusion really makes me tired and I was surprised how fast it was working. Before I knew it, it was time to go home. The infusion was complete. It has been about a week since the infusion and I have had very little pain so far. I have had some discomfort but not enough to keep me from doing daily things. Hopefully this infusion continues to help and keeps me out of pain.

Running for the first time

Today I went for a run for the first time in at least 6 months. I love running and being active but it is very hard to do when I am in debilitating pain. As some of you know, I have had to quit my all star cheerleading due to endo. It has been apart of my life for 10 years and is the greatest sport I've ever done. (Yes a sport!) it really kept me in shape and since I stopped I lost a lot of muscle mass which is hard for me to face since I have not been this out of shape in many years. I've always been an active child that's always on the go, but endo has prevented me from doing that. This morning I woke up feeling great and decided to take advantage of it by going on a run. Physical activity is great for endo and can help reduce pain. Running is just my personal favorite way to exercise. I ran for about a mile. I didn't want to over do it since it has been awhile. It felt great to be able to run again! 

When will this end

I've been in so much pain these past few weeks. I haven't been to school in three weeks and I can't do any of my cyber schooling because my pain is so bad. It's 4 am and I can't sleep:/ I found out yesterday that I have a bladder infection and that may be contributing to the pain. I've been taking all the antibiotics but it still hurts. It's like a giant knife going through my whole lower abdomen. I feel nauseous too from all the medicine. Life with endo sucks. 

My Story

When I was just 12 years old, I was diagnosed with Endometriosis. I was scared and worried on how it will effect my life. I am 15 now and still get pain weekly. I have been to Boston, Maryland, Philly, etc. and not much has helped. I get Lupron shots monthly. I have been getting them for the past two years. I worked for the first year, but then I started getting more pain flareups this past year. I have tried everything from medical massages to acupuncture to therapy, etc. Nothing has worked. As of right now I am seeing Dr. Gerald Harkins as my OBGYN at Hershey Medical Center. He is a great doctor and I would recommend him to everyone. I also see a pain management doctor, Dr. James Moony, also at Hershey Medical Center. He is trying to help me cope with the pain and try different treatments such as a Ketamine treatment which I get monthly. He is very good as well. Also they both have great bed side manners which is important for someone my age with a illness as debilitating as this is. I miss a ton of school from my pain and can not stand up straight with it. This illness is also very hard on my emotional state. It makes my depression and anxiety worse because I never know when I will get a pain flareup. I created this blog to share my experiences as well as help teens with this illness be aware that they are not alone. I want to be able to help teens learn to cope with this pain and also even teach me some new ideas on what I can do to help myself. I want this to be a safety zone where teens can talk about their illness as well as learn there not alone. Thanks for reading!

My New blog!

Hello everyone! Today I decided to start a blog about my experience with Endometriosis as a teen. I will try to post weekly on my experience with it and how I am doing. Feel free to ask questions and comment whatever you like. Thanks!