I started my hot flashes yesterday.  They aren't as remarkable as I thought they'd be.
 

Today is Sunday, Mike and I picked up my parents' puppy, Stella, and brought her back to the house to play with Mike's puppy, Chelsea.  The Bears won, and I may have found a dog walker for my dog, Maggie.  It's been a pretty good day. 

Friday's doctor appointment turned out to be painful - but not for the Lupron shot.  I had thought there would be some kind of pomp and circumstance around the shot - asking me if I understood the side effects or how Lupron works on your brain.  Nothing.  I didn't even see the doctor before the shot.  For all the literature on this drug, I'm starting to think all the hype is overreactions. 

When Dr. Anderson entered the room, I asked her about the memory loss - is it the "I forgot how I got to work" memory loss?  Or the "I forgot my name" type?  She says she's never had a patient experience side effects aside from the hot flashes, and she's been administering it for years.  Good enough for me.

The painful part was the IUD.  HOLY SHIT.  I was not prepared for the cramping, not just in the office but for the remainder of the day.  I ended up getting sick by the end of the night, but I don't know if it was bad food, the shot or the IUD.

As this weekend comes to a close, I look forward to this week at work.  A major project kicks off, it's a once in a lifetime kind of thing.  Hopefully I can find a dog walker this week to remove that stressor in my life.  Aside from this endometriosis diagnosis/surgery/shot, life's been pretty good. 

Why I'm writing this blog

I started this blog to document my experience receiving Lupron injections over the next 6 months.  Maybe this will be an outlet to vent frustrations, maybe just a way for me to keep track of what I experience.  Mostly, this blog is an outlet, in hopes it will help me get through the next few months.

I'm going through the Lupron treatment because I have endometriosis.  I recently had surgery to have endometrial cells removed, and unfortunately I had cells on my bladder that couldn't be removed.  Treatment with Lupron is supposed to help my body absorb these cells, and reduce the hormones in my body that causes endometriosis, and I should experience relief for approximately 5-6 years.

The side effects to this treatment are scary as hell.  And after doing my research, I learned that it shuts down the pituitary gland and is also used in treating prostate cancer (WTF!).  The most concerning side effect is memory loss... with no explanation of what type of memory loss.  Is it short term, long term? Am I going to forget where I live?  How I got to work?  Names?  The other side effects are the same side effect of menopause.  Sounds awesome, right?

After some basic online research, I see there is a blog that's very against Lupron, and there's a lawsuit pending with the pharmaceutical company.  As of right now, my boyfriend is against my treatment, and I understand his perspective. 

I've decided to move forward with treatment as I see no other options.  My appointment is tomorrow morning.