I started my period when I was 11, and after a few years my periods were horrible. They would last about 10 days, be very heavy, and the first two days of my period I would experience SEVERE cramps. So bad I would cry and vomit and be dizzy (passed out once, came really close countless times), have hot and cold flashes, be sweaty, and curl up on the bathroom floor. My cramps were weird, it was a combination of stabbing sensations in my guts, a throbbing soreness outside of my pelvic area, and these waves of feeling like I absolutely had to go to the bathroom, URGENTLY, like I just had to squeeze everything out of my guts, so I'd end up on the toilet for hours, even though there was nothing left to expel (this is the reason I never made it to the ER, I was too afraid to get off the toilet, just in case). I haven't given birth, but it felt similar to how I hear contractions feel. I went to a gyno and had an ultrasound, found that I had ovarian cysts and went on the pill, but it didn't help.

At age 18, I got pregnant and miscarried in the first trimester. For the next four years or so, I rarely had ANY pain during my menstrual cycle, and my periods were shorter and regular. Since then, the pain has gradually been coming back. It's not as bad as it was, but the first day of every period is pretty bad again. I have to stay in bed those days. I also have this symptom where it REALLY hurts when I go to the bathroom on or around the time of my period, which I hear is common in endo. Additionally, as of the last 6 months or so tampons no longer "fit." After using them for almost ten years, it's now really hard to make them go in, and when they're there I can feel them the whole time and it kind of hurts, even small ones!

The pill never helped before (I tried 3 or 4 kinds), each one actually just made me feel pregnant (nausea, moodiness, frequent urination, weight gain, sore breasts). I currently use a heating pad and take Norco (as needed) and Advil for the cramps, but this doesn't always work and I get so desperate that I end up sedating myself with tranquilizers out of desperation (not the fun kind).

Does this sound like endometriosis? Something else? Anyway to treat it without birth control pills? I don't have insurance anymore...