I am a 35 yr old woman who lost her ovaries at 21 due to ovarian carcinoma.
Hi Catherine,
I am a 35 yr old woman who lost her ovaries at 21 due to ovarian carcinoma. I was also DES exposed in utero. I have suffered every ache and pain, depression, ADHD, migraines, severe adhesions to the bowel area that have resulted in bowel obstructions. I feel very alone in my mental and physical health and have never encountered anyone with my situation. I have no sex drive and have tried every herb and form of testorerone available. Need new research and links to conquer my issues? Can anyone help me out there?
Thank you,
Denise
Dear Denise,
My heart goes out to you … as do my prayers.
If there is such a place as ‘hell’ then you clearly live it, day in - day out.
The authors of ‘Our Stolen Future‘ highlight the links between reproduction problems in both men and women, and chemicals in the environment which imitate the body’s natural hormones. Their findings make chilling reading for the human race.
Dr Theo Colborn identified man-made chemicals as the cause of a potentially serious health crisis: “Both sons and daughters exposed in utero to DES experience congenital anomalies of their reproductive system and reduced fertility. In the case of DES daughters, there is simple evidence that DES has caused clear-cell cancer and deformation of the reproductive tract. Because of these structural abnormalities, DES daughters are much more likely to have ectopic pregnancies, miscarriages, and premature babies. Although the majority of DES daughters eventually bear a child, often only after repeated attempts, the odds are stacked against them, with two out of three pregnancies ending in failure. The timing of the DES exposure appears more importantand than the dose…women whose mothers took DES after the twentieth week of pregnancy do no suffer from the reproductive tract deformities, while those exposed before the tenth week of pregnancy have a greater change of developing vaginal or cervical cancer.”
Denise, I know you mentioned testosterone replacement therapy but have you had your hormone levels checked recently? Healthy ovaries produce estrogen, progesterone and testosterone. With the removal of your ovaries, you would have lost your major production house for all these hormones. What impact would the loss of these hormones AND your exposure to DES in the womb have had on your body all these years later? I think you know only too well … and you obviously attempt each and every day to pick up the pieces of your life despite the odds being stacked against you!
Before you progress any further, get yourself thoroughly checked out. Prior to commencing any further replacement therapy, I would strongly urge you sit down with your GP and insist that ALL your hormone levels (estradiol, estriol, estrone, progesterone, testosterone, DHEA-S, cortisol, melatonin) are screened. You would want to track hormone fluctuations over one full cycle.
Tests would also include a full thyroid hormone profile (TSH, fT4, fT3), gastro-intestinal track and liver screening, osteoporosis risk assessment, check for iron deficiency, gluten intolerance, leaky gut, etc., etc.
That, in my opinion, would be the RESPONSIBLE thing to do.
And hang in there … you are not alone!
Subscribers wishing to reach out to Denise to extend support and offer links to other resources can do so by emailing me directly. These will be forwarded on to Denise.
