Pain relief for endometriosis

The following pain-relief options can be considered to alleviate complaints caused by endometriosis:

• heat therapy and comfort
• physiotherapy
• analgesics
• pain-modifying medications
• TENS (nerve stimulation) treatment
• MENS (microcurrent) treatment

Heat therapy and comfort

A hot bath can also help reduce pain. A comfortable body position and stress reduction may also be beneficial.

Stronger effects can be expected from the TensCare OVA Therma Belt, an innovative, portable menstrual heating pad that provides fast and effective relief for menstrual pain, dysmenorrhea and symptoms of endometriosis through heat and massage therapy.

Physiotherapy

Ask for help from an experienced physiotherapist. Have them design an exercise program aimed at strengthening your pelvic floor muscles. This can help reduce pain.

After endometriosis surgery, exercises, yoga or Pilates can aid rehabilitation by strengthening the abdominal and back muscles.

Analgesics

Some data suggest that women with endometriosis may produce more prostaglandins than those without the condition. One normal role of prostaglandins is to increase uterine contractions during menstruation — this helps the uterine lining to shed. Contractions caused by strong prostaglandin effects can cause pain. Prostaglandins also accumulate in response to injury or disease, causing pain and inflammation.

Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), such as ibuprofen or Voltaren, block the production of prostaglandins in the body and thus help prevent painful contractions. However, long-term use can cause side effects! Common side effects of NSAIDs include nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, stomach complaints and stomach ulcers. You can reduce side effects by taking the medication with food or milk. From the above you can see that NSAIDs are only effective if your body produces a lot of prostaglandins.

Although codeine-based analgesics are effective, their use can cause constipation and gastrointestinal disturbances, which may worsen endometriosis symptoms. Avoid codeine derivatives in endometriosis.

Other analgesics — for example paracetamol — are only suitable for mild pain.

Pain-modifying medications

These medications alter how the body perceives pain. Tricyclic antidepressants are drugs primarily used to treat depression but have been shown to affect the nervous system and the management of pain. Pain signals travel from the periphery to the central nervous system (the brain). These medications can help prevent pain signals from reaching the brain. Consider their use because of their other effects as well.

TENS (nerve stimulator) devices

TENS devices offer a real alternative to pain-relief medications! The small, portable device is easy and safe to use and has no side effects.

Small electrical impulses are sent to the pain-sensing nerve endings via adhesive electrodes placed on the skin around the painful area. These impulses cause the nerve pathways that transmit pain signals to "tire out" and "close the gates" that carry pain. The pain signal does not reach the brain — since the perception of pain is created in the brain. TENS impulses also stimulate your body's own pain-relieving substances — the so-called endorphins.

Place the pain-relieving electrodes on the lower abdomen. Devices that only provide conventional TENS and endorphin TENS treatments are less effective than those offering Modulated TENS. I recommend a device that has a modulated TENS program!

It is also important to know that cheap TENS devices often do not actually produce TENS impulses but muscle stimulation. You can tell this if you feel muscle twitching during treatment. TENS does not do this! Do not use a muscle stimulator to reduce endometriosis symptoms.

MENS, i.e. microcurrent nerve stimulation

In the West, microcurrent is increasingly replacing TENS because it reduces pain much more effectively. In addition to pain relief, it also has tissue-regenerating effects, which may be beneficial in endometriosis.

It certainly does not cause uterine contractions and therefore poses no risk.

The only drawback of microcurrent is that devices providing it are currently more expensive than simple TENS units.

I made a diagram showing where to place the electrodes.

1. Connect the two ends of the cable belonging to the first channel to the electrodes on the lower abdomen; connect the cables of the other channel to those above your sacrum at the back.
2. For the first channel, place one end of the cable at the front right of the lower abdomen and the other end at the right side of the sacrum at the back. Use the other channel to connect the left side in the same way.

These placements can be used for both TENS and MENS treatments. Try both and later use the one that proves more effective. For such treatment you can use, for example, the Biolito device.