Endometriosis: One Woman's Journey
Jennifer Marie Lewis
Griffin Publishing Group
ISBN 1-882180-91-7
Buy this book at Border's Books!

Endometriosis is an underdiagnosed and misdiagnosed condition that frequently sneaks up on a woman, causing mysterious back or abdominal pain, menstrual pain and irregularities, painful intercourse, and often infertility. A painful condition in which endometrial tissue is found outside the uterus, often in the abdominal area -- endometriosis is estimated to affect some 10 to 20 percent of women. Many of its victims, however, spend years on an agonizing quest for diagnosis and treatment.

Author Jennifer Lewis was one of those victims. Suffering symptoms from the age of 15, Jennifer spent more than a decade in pain, undergoing multiple surgeries, and enduring medical mismanagement of her condition. Ultimately, she decided to have a hysterectomy at the age of 27. After going through this this trial by fire, Jennifer decided to chronicle her own experiences, plus the information she discovered in her own search for diagnosis and treatment. This personal experience gives Jennifer's book a candid and honest feeling that will resonate with other endometriosis sufferers.

"Endometriosis: One Woman's Journey" provides a thorough overview of the symptoms of endometriosis, and moves right into an excellent review of various treatments, including homeopathy, mind-body medicine, pain relievers, hormonal therapy, and surgical treatments. Of particular help is her chapter on how to be your own advocate with doctors, and presenting your case history to doctors.

A unique chapter in the book is one titled "Preparing for Setbacks," in which she describes some hard realities of living with a chronic condition like endometriosis. Endometriosis suffers will recognize their own situations in Jennifer's open discussions of topics such as feeling unable to live up to others needs and expectations, lost wages, and depression.

With a large section of personal stories, the experiences of Jennifer and her readers are given even greater voice. One theme is the inability to get diagnosed, and doctor's dismissal of problems as psychological instead of physical. One reader seems to sum up many of those who have written, in saying: "Only we know what we feel...we know that we are right even though you may doubt yourself when they say it's all in your head."

A particularly useful chapter discusses the benefits of keeping a health diary, and provides a detailed format that a reader can follow in creating her own personal journal/diary.

The book concludes with a resources chapter that offers information on organizations, books, newsletters and web sites for more information on endometriosis.

Endometriosis is also a condition that is more often seen along with autoimmune diseases, so being aware o this condition and its symptoms, diagnosis and treatment should be of particular concern to women who suffer from thyroid problems, lupus, and other autoimmune diseases.

"Losing my fertility as a young woman does not make me bitter. Ten years of surgeries, drug addiction, instability, lack of self-esteem, pain, suffering, indifference and ignorance does," she says, in her introduction. "I will not let that happen to you." And she delivers on that promise in this excellent book.

For more information: Visit Jennifer Lewis' webpage