Worries

Despite my desires to find the light at the end of the tunnel, I worried about how Endometriosis would affect my fertility. How could I not? I was being told I have this disease that can make it difficult for some women to conceive or impossible for some women to get pregnant. That it has no cure! Surgery may increase your chance for kids, but doesn't guarantee it and is not a method that should be used to help achieve pregnancy multiple times, because of scar tissue. Oh, and Endometriosis is said to affect egg quality. Huh?!? I worried that I would never get the opportunity to biologically have children. At 20 years old and newly married that was a lot for me to have to come to terms with, that motherhood may have to come another way (adoption), it may be a struggle to achieve (fertility treatments) or I may never become a mother (both options are unsuccessful). 

My greatest fear was not being able to have children.

When I got the diagnosis of Endometriosis, my worst fear was coming true.

I thought this isn't supposed to happen to me.

I'm young. I'm healthy.

But I am beating this disease.

I will not let it define me.

I am accepting that this is just a small part of what makes me, me.

The first thing I learned about Endometriosis is that it affects all women differently and that there is not an average of how many children a woman with Endometriosis can have. In my real life, all I could go off of was my maternal grandmother who had both Endometriosis and Fibroids, was able to have 3 biological children. My sister in law who had Endometriosis, as well as other fertility issues,  was able to have two biological children. On my Endometriosis Support message board, I asked how many children the most each woman had if any, the answers varied. I made a chart consisting of the answers as people have responded to my post.

Number of Women: 12
1 Child: 6 /12	2 Children: 0	3 Children: 4/12	4 Children: 2/12
5 Children: 0	6 Children: 0	7 Children: 0	8 Children: 0

This chart was last updated 10/24/2015.