Endometriosis As A Chronic Condition
Endometriosis is a common condition, but with very little conversation around the realities of the disorder. Recently, celebrities like Lena Dunham have spoken out about their personal experiences with the condition in hopes to raise awareness. Below is a breakdown of what you need to know about endometriosis.
What is Endometriosis?
Endometriosis is a debilitating, stressful, and painful condition experienced by women of reproductive age. Endometriosis occurs when the tissue that lines the uterus grows in other regions of the body, usually the abdomen. The misplaced tissue becomes growths or lesions that react to your menstrual cycle. Therefore, each month tissue develops, breaks down, and is expelled.
Menstrual blood is expelled healthily through the vagina, but tissue that is shed from a endometriotic growth is unable to leave the body. This causes inflammation, scarring, and painful symptoms. It can also contribute to infertility or difficulty getting pregnant.
What are Endometriosis Symptoms?
This condition causes pain -- often severe - that may prevent you from being able to function. Symptoms include: severe menstrual cramps, painful intercourse, painful urination or bowel movements, lower back or abdominal pain, and gastrointestinal issues such as diarrhea, constipation, and nausea.
For women with endometriosis, these symptoms may be experienced during menstruation, approximately 4 - 6 days every 28 days. Which means 48 - 72 days out of every year, those with endometriosis are experiencing a barrage of symptoms.
Some women may experience chronic abdominal and pelvic pain that is not associated with their menstrual cycles, but which occurs on a daily basis and has been reported to last for six months or longer.
There are other rare symptoms, such as leg pain or sciatica, rectal bleeding or blood in the urine, and shortness of breath.
What are Treatments for Endometriosis?
Endometriosis is a chronic, relapsing disorder. A health-care professional can help you develop a long-term plan to manage your symptoms and meet your fertility goals.
Although there are treatments for endometriosis, the path to being diagnosed can often be long and frustrating. It can sometimes take seven to 12 years from the onset of symptoms to gain a definitive diagnosis of endometriosis.
There are no definitive treatments for those with endometriosis, and often finding the right treatment can be stressful and expensive. Hormonal therapies, such as progesterone, are often used and are also contained in many birth control therapies; however, it may take a lengthy amount of time for the medication to work. Also, many birth control medications have adverse side-effects and, depending on your health care benefits, might be costly to you.
Other treatments include surgery, which presents its own risks and complications. Pain medications, if taken long term, can often cause abdominal bleeding - which someone with Endometriosis might already be experiencing.
Chronic Pain Sufferers More Likely To Experience Anxiety And Depression
Many women feel like menstrual pain is an inadequate excuse or reason to miss work or events, but endometriosis is a very serious condition that can take over many aspects of your life. Chronic pain sufferers are more likely to experience anxiety and depression as well as physical symptoms, which can compound into a larger issue.
If you need to take time off work, you may be able to use your insurance benefits to help you recover. It may take a trial and error period of trying different therapies as well as lifestyle and diet changes to manage the disorder. But if you are suffering from endometriosis, the first step is to acknowledge your symptoms and seek medical attention.
Has your long-term disability claim been denied? Contact Share Lawyers and put our experience to work for you. We offer free consultations and there are no fees unless we win your case. Find out if you have a disability case.
We have recently settled cases against Standard Life, Desjardins, Manulife, RBC Insurance, Sun Life, and much more. We love hearing feedback from our clients, so please share your own experience with us.
Denied your long term disability claim?
Contact Share Lawyers today and put our experience to work for you. Our 35+ years of experience can help you win your case against Canada Life, Desjardins, Manulife, RBC Insurance, Sun Life, and other insurance companies. We offer free consultations and there are no fees unless you win your case. Join us on Facebook and become a Top Fan for a chance to win each month.
_________
A note from our long term disability lawyers
Taking a medical leave from work is not an easy decision to make. Concerns about providing for yourself and your family and keeping your job may cause you to want to push through your pain, but this won’t make your problems go away. Stopping work is often the smartest decision for your long term health and well-being, and your disability benefits are there to provide you with financial support until you can return to work.
If you have made the tough decision to stop working and apply for your short term disability or long term disability benefits, you may feel overwhelmed by the process and have questions that your employer and your insurance company are not able or willing to answer. Share is There to see you through and answer your questions.
Our Disability law firm knows what you have been going through
We understand that things have not been easy for you over the last little while. Your health has been suffering, you are unable to work, and now your insurance company, who was supposed to be there in your time of need, has decided they will not pay your disability benefits or respect your disability claim. These benefits exist to provide you with the financial support you need so that you can focus on your health and rebuilding your life. It is unfortunate that your insurance company has not lived up to its promise. If your disability claim has been denied, we will fight to get you the benefits you are entitled to. Our disability lawyers have helped thousands of Canadians get their long term disability benefits over the past 35 years, and we can help you too.
Our experienced disability lawyers can fight back on your behalf
Share Lawyers believes that every client who is dealing with a disability claim deserves superior personal service. To achieve that goal, we have developed our team of experienced, compassionate, and caring long term disability lawyers, law clerks, and administrative staff to meet all of your needs. Our team of experienced long term disability, life insurance, employment, and critical illness insurance lawyers have made successful claims against many insurance companies, third-party administrators and employers.
If you are unable to work, your disability benefits should be there to provide you with the financial support you need. While your insurance company may be focused on finding ways to avoid paying your claim, our focus is on what is in your best interest. When Share Lawyers gets involved, you have an entire team of lawyers that are there to support you and to fight for what is yours.
Our disability claim lawyers fight for your disability insurance claim by relying on our many years of experience to apply the best strategic planning and approach in each case, using the latest technology available. Experience matters, and with Share Lawyers, you are in the best hands with 35 years of success on your side.
In this video, we explain the role of a long term disability lawyer and how we can support you when you have been denied your long term disability benefits.