Last year I decided I would never be able to manage my endomees without educating myself. I've always been a focused learner, soaking up all the knowledge I can from all the books I can get my hands on. Unfortunately, books on endomees tend to be pretty dry. Still, I was able to get some good information from the following.
I'm a bit of a hippie (but not super hippie--sort of a moderate hippie) and I wanted a nutritional/naturopathic guide to endo as well as one centered in western medicine. I liked this book because of the personal stories scattered throughout as well as the nutritional plan (yeast free, alcohol free, caffeine free--not that I did that, but I liked that it was there) and supplement suggestions.
Some chapters of the book are more heavily technical, while others are more conversational in tone. Two chapters focus on fertility. Meal plans and blank record charts (to track periods, medication, and symptoms) are included in the appendices. Altogether I found it readable and informative.
"Endometriosis is a jigsaw puzzle of symptoms. You need to fit all the pieces together to provide clues as to what is happening within your body. This book will try to give you some of the pieces of the jigsaw, but you have to put them together yourself," (p 1).
To complement the nutritional book, I wanted a medical textbook to read. I got one in this hefty tome. The book was published in 2009, so the "current management" it refers to is probably 2005 and earlier. Still, it has a lot of detailed medical information on how endo starts (as best we know), how it develops, and what treatments exist.
What struck me about this book is the compassion the authors have for women who suffer for the condition. While the material is complex and dry, the writers strive to make the information personal and caring. It's not what I expected.
The book has lots of color pictures--squeamish, take note--and lists of academic references. Information is divided into eight sections: epidemiology, pathogenesis, diagnostic dilemmas, clinical relevance and treatment options, surgical treatment, classical medical treatments, new medical treatments, and future trends.
"From a woman's perspective...endometriosis is a disease of many illnesses which is surrounded by taboos, myths, delayed diagnosis, hit-and-miss treatments, and a lack of awareness, overlaid on a wide variety of symptoms that embody a stubborn, frustrating and, for some, chronic condition. These women are given a life sentence and are trapped by endometriosis," (p 3).
