Hello Kmicic,
I've been reading a bit about endometriosis and other issues related to female hormones because I've been dealing with some of that myself. Endometriosis is a very tricky disease because it's hard to diagnose it properly and doctors don't know much about what actually causes it and how to treat it effectively. But there is research suggesting that it has some immune/inflammation components:
The causes of endometriosis vary and are poorly understood. Doctors still don’t know everything about what triggers this condition. Causes may be the combination of multiple factors including genetics and immune dysfunction.
Endometriosis has not yet been classified as an autoimmune disease but it may increase risk for autoimmune diseases.
The inflammatory nature of endometriosis seems to trigger imbalance in the immune system.
[...]
Researchers are looking to understand the root cause of endometriosis. It’s thought that women who have endometriosis may have abnormal immune system responses. This could stem from endometriosis. Or endometriosis may be a result of this factor. There are likely many things related to triggering this condition.
Hypothyroidism, fibromyalgia, and rheumatoid arthritis are all autoimmune conditions. These conditions have been linked to higher occurrence rates in women with endometriosis.
Inflammation plays a role in the pain and other symptoms associated with these conditions, as it does with endometriosis.
Celiac disease may also has a link to endometriosis. Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is another inflammatory condition that has an established connection to endometriosis.
Source:
Is Endometriosis an Autoimmune Disease? Your Risk for Comorbidity
As Adaryn said, the condition is linked to estrogens levels, and a high level estrogens is linked to immune dysfunction and inflammation too:
New findings link estrogen and T cell immune response to autoimmune inflammation
Summary:
Women are more prone to the development of autoimmune diseases.
The female hormone estrogen is likely to affect the immune system. A team of scientists reported new findings related to the involvement of estrogen hormone receptor in autoimmune diseases.
And as Lys said, the liver is key for metabolizing estrogens and other hormones, such as melatonin.
So, after my tiny research (I can't say that I've researched a lot), what I've found is that you could probably alleviate symptoms by using hormonal treatment like the progesterone treatment and melatonin, but in the long run, if your liver isn't metabolizing these hormones very well, you might end up having recurring symptoms.
Also, if inflammation is the underlying cause of it, maybe the best course of action would be to identify what is causing inflammation and help your body become better at dealing with inflammation sources that we can't avoid nowadays, such as electromagnetic contamination and toxins in the environment. For me this means having a close look at my diet, maybe do an elimination diet for a while in order to identify what doesn't agree with me and doing my best to improve gut and liver function.
For me, what seems to be helping apart from dietary changes (making sure to remove inflammatory food) is to help with some herbs and supplements. So I'm drinking wormwood tea (very sour!) and milk thistle (as a supplement) for liver support. I also take Alpha Lipoic Acid and B vitamins for this purpose. NAC is also a very good suggestion.
Then, because my specific problem was a uterine fibroid and I've found research suggesting
green tea as treatment, I've been taking a green tea extract supplement. Doing a quick search, I've found that
this could help with endometriosis as well, or at least a specific compound found in it.
I've also been eating more cruciferous vegetables such as broccoli and cabbage, because everybody who speaks about female hormone balance says these are very good for that. The problem is that I don't tolerate them very well. I can eat broccoli but cabbage isn't very good for me. So, if you have this problem, some people suggest a supplement called diindolylmethane (DIM), which is made from cruciferous veggies. There's some info about it here:
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Now, I haven't tried this one myself because I couldn't order it due to the covid-19 situation, so please do your research on it to see if it is something you would like to try.
Another thing that many, many women mention as very helpful for hormone balance and alleviating these issues is exercise, good sleep, and stress reduction. And I added those things to my protocol as well and I can remember that I felt much better regarding this hormonal issues when I exercised more or less regularly. So maybe, if you think you can do some exercise, practice meditation or something that helps you reduce stress and improve your sleep (could be with melatonin and other sleep hygiene habits, for example), that would help as well.
I also started taking selenium and I take iodine every now and then (not regularly and not high doses) just to support the thyroid function which can also be affected by a sluggish liver and estrogen dominance and can also be a cause of these. And I also take vitamin C quite regularly.
As you see, it's a combination of things you can do to improve your body's ability to heal by reducing inflammation and supporting it with the right nutrients. For me, it seems to be working because the fibroid I had is now gone and my cycle seems to be going back to more normal after a few months of doing all of this. It's still soon to tell for sure, but I'm noticing some positive effects.
I wanted to ask:
Have you had a lab test done for estrogen (and other hormones) levels? This could help you identify if this is an issue for you.
Have you tested your thyroid function? This is also important in all things related to hormones.
And also, because endometriosis can be a very serious condition, is better to always continue following up with a good gynecologist in case you need another treatment.
Finally, these are some websites that were very useful and interesting when I was starting to learn about this... in case they are useful:
In this episode, we discuss male and female hormonal issues including low pregnenolone symptoms and how to address them
chriskresser.com
“My hormones feel so out of balance” a female patient will tell me. “I’m tired of feeling crappy and terrible all the time. Do I need to do hormone replacement […]
drhyman.com
Dr. Sara Gottfried is a wife, mother, friend, scholar, seeker, yoga teacher, and Harvard-trained medical doctor with over 20 years of experience. She’s the author of the New York Times bestselling books The Hormone Cure and The Hormone Reset Diet, which are the focus of this interview. Sara also...
ultimatehealthpodcast.com