Sheena’s Endometriosis Journey

It took me 27 years, tons of doctors, and two surgeries to finally be officially diagnosed with endometriosis and now endo-free. But what it REALLY took was finding the RIGHT doctors and practice–the Seckin Endometriosis Center.

Dr. Seckin is are the premier expert in endometriosis and have assembled an amazing staff who will support you throughout your entire case. While I’ve been in debilitating pain ever since my first period at 12 (with my middle and high schools sending me home every month), it was only in my mid-20s that I first heard of endometriosis and, upon research, knew that it was the cause of my pain. Being limited to in-network, it took seeing over 7 doctors before finding one who was knowledgeable enough with endometriosis to suggest surgery. Because my own information was pretty limited, I believed I was seeing the right person, and in 2012 I had a laparoscopy and was subsequently told that I did NOT have endometriosis and that I should start pursuing ‘pain management. I did this for years as the pain progressively got worse, trying everything from acupuncture to physical therapy with no success, until one day I read about Dr. Seckin. I was so desperate for help that I made an appt., despite the office being out of network, and it was by far the best decision I’ve ever made.

Seeing Dr. Seckin and his team made it immediately clear what a huge difference there is between a generic gynecological surgeon and true endometriosis specialists. They spent time with me on my visit, asked me questions that I had never been asked during my entire medical history, and made me aware of things that no doctor had ever told me. (Beyond that, their office is beautiful and state-of-the-art, and they have the nicest staff I’ve ever interacted with, which, when you’re making multiple appts., needing records, etc., makes a huge difference.) When they recommended surgery, it took me time to convince myself to put my body through that again (of course now I wish I came to that decision sooner knowing what’s on the other side!), but for almost two years, Dr. Seckin’s office tirelessly worked with my insurance to help me defray the costs of an out-of-network surgery.

The prep for my laparoscopy was vastly different from my previous experience–this time I felt informed and prepared in a way I had not been before. Dr. Seckin and his team employed tactics that had not been a part of that previous surgery, and when all was said and done, they told me that not only did I have endometriosis, but they had diligently excised all of it! (I should also add that despite this being a more involved surgery given endo was actually found and removed, my incisions and healing process were SO much better than my first surgery–again, a testament to having endometriosis specialists vs. a generic GYN surgeon). It’s been almost three months and I feel like a completely different person, even though I still have some healing to do. I no longer find myself planning around “Will I be sick that day?”. Post-surgery, I have gotten such great care from everyone at the Seckin Endometriosis Center, including diet information and other resources to ensure a pain-free future–the doctors and staff are truly invested in my quality of life overall. (You need only see all of the work they’ve done with EndoFound to see how committed they are to education, prevention, and successful intervention when it comes to endometriosis. Attend a conference if you can–I still learned so much despite all the research I had been doing on my own!) My only regret is not seeing Dr. Seckin and his team sooner, thinking of how my pain-free life could’ve started earlier, but for now, I’ll just focus on telling everyone I know about them and making sure my fellow endometriosis sufferers don’t wait to find relief!

Sheena