birth control help

[MNM03]

i just had surgery two weeks ago to remove cysts on my ovaries. they found no cancer but endmetriosis. they are suggesting birth control.... either the pill, the patch or the hormone shot. i got a little thing about them but i am wondering what people who might taken them now or have taken them have to say. i wanna kinda know what i am getting into with my choice.

[rabid_child]

I've been on them for 6 years and once they found the "right" pill for me, I had no side effects after the first week, my periods have been shorter, lighter, very predictable, and virtually pain free.

[CatLadyVT]

I've had very good luck with NuvaRing. Might that be an option for you?

[zoebird]

I prefer natural approaches to healing, and so i'm going to recommend what i know has helped my friends and clients who have endometriosis, without hormonal birth control.

1. movement-- bikram style yoga (the sequence) is very good for treating/managing endometriosis. you don't have to do it in a heated room, you could always ask a teacher to come to you or do bikram's video at home if you want a cooler room. but, the sequence is excellent for people with this condition. i don't exactly know how it works, just that it works. (i have some theories as to how).

2. diet-- there is a lot of helpful diet information (http://www.endo-resolved.com/diet.html) at the Endo Resolved web site (http://endo-resolved.com). there's also a great book called Endometriosis: Healing through Nutrition (http://www.amazon.com/Endometriosis-Nutrition-Dian-Shepperson-Mills/dp/1862043000/ref=sr_1_3/103-2610744-9907044?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1182859780&sr=8-3) that people have found very beneficial to treating this situation naturally.

3. as always, i highly recommend using fertility awareness method of charting to get an overall picture of your reproductive health. two excellent books go into detail about this: garden of fertility (http://gardenoffertility.com) and taking charge of your fertility (http://ovusoft.com).

these books offer a functional, all natural form of birth control as well as a method of how to udnerstand the body and find ways to heal it naturally according to what you observe in your own cycle. it's amazing what you can learn through this method. i'm continually amazed.

it takes very little time to learn the method, but it does take a bit to become familiar with reading the charts. but, everyone i know who does chart really loves it, finds it quite simple, and finds deep healing through the process (most use natural methods).

with this, i would recommend books by Susun Weed (http://susunweed.com). She has one called Wise Woman Herbal for the Child Bearing Year. do not be fooled by the title. this is also for fertility, women in their fertile years, and helping women balance and condition the body for a healthy cycle. unless i'm mistaken, i believe that there is a section for PCOS, endometriosis, and related. Mostly, it focuses on easy-to-make teas that help nourish the body to promote healing.

In my experience with friends and clients, it is completely possible to manage this disorder through natural means, and in many cases, women actually decrease their symptoms almost entirely. it's pretty amazing.

it takes more discipline and work than simply taking a pill, but i think that it's worth it.