So sorry you’re going through this. A good friend of mine has endo and I see how awful an impact it has on her life, struggling to manage pain and taking sick days. I thankfully don’t struggle too much these days with period pain, but I used to. At 43, I’m hoping my period days are numbered now! One of the other difficulties I experience around menstruating is managing hygiene when being active, especially during events when you’re out on the bike for a number of hours, sweating, sometimes wet and muddy, having to manage heavy blood flow, or even just somewhere to change a tampon and clean up, can be pretty anxiety provoking. It’s refreshing to see other people like you on social media being upfront about struggling with health issues because so many vloggers or content creators I follow are going off travelling, doing big events, doing big miles, and I often feel that’s what I SHOULD be doing, but I struggle with fatigue from an auto inflammatory condition, and know I’m never going to achieve that… and that if I do a 100 mile week, I’ll probably have a fortnight of sleeping every hour I’m not at work. There is comfort in knowing other people just want to go out and ride their bike and if it’s 10 miles, great. If it’s 20 miles, wonderful. I have this ongoing battle that if I can’t get out and do 30 miles each time I ride, I’m not a proper cyclist. It can be hard to get your head into just focusing on what’s right for you. Thanks for sharing. ❤
thank you for sharing your struggle; it means so much to me as a fellow chronic pain sufferer to feel seen in the world of cycling. i'm an AMAB, non-binary person, so i don't have any personal experience with menstrual pain, but i do suffer from a hypermobility spectrum disorder that creates all kinds of excruciating joint pain in my knees, wrists, and back, especially. i can certainly speak to how hard it is to be stuck in bed when your friends are all out having awesome, adventurous experiences on their bikes. i think that maybe, the pain (while i wouldn't wish it on anyone), isn't even the hardest part, it's the feeling of missing out on the good parts of life, the parts that are supposed to give you the strength to keep going. passing up on bike rides in good weather with good people sucks! it sucks SO bad! talk about depression as a comorbidity lmao. at any rate, you are seen and you are not alone. i hope there are easier, bikier times ahead for us both.
Glad you chose to make this a video for all the reasons you touched on. As a society we've a long way to go regarding invisible conditions and acknowledging the impacts--physically and mentally--they have on a person. People who would never openly dismiss someone hobbling around on a broken ankle think nothing of telling you "you just need to..." or worse tell you the pain is in your head. I have two teenage daughters including an athlete and I have to sheepishly admit to, as a man, having had my eyes opened to the impacts of period pain through watching their struggle esp. during a season, when iron is low, etc. It needs to be more openly talked about. It takes a very strong person to be publicly vulnerable when in that much pain--kudos to you. Hope you can identify a treatment that gives you more relief.
Thank you for making this. Pain is definitely a limiting factor for many of us when it comes to cycling. I developed severe levator syndrome in 2021 which kept me off my bike for 6 months. It totally affected my fitness since the pain was constant and very intense for most of that. I spent most of that time thinking I’d never ride a bike again. I was able to find a physical therapist who specializes in pelvic floor disorders (a retired cross racer) and she helped me find relief. Being prescribed physical therapy for extreme perineal pain was a really weird thing to wrap my head around. Since then I’ve had long periods of remission and brief relapses, usually lasting a couple of weeks. This week, I was able to go on four rides, which is the most I’ve been able to string together in almost two years. I definitely have empathy for anyone who has to plan their activities around their pain, and although this experience has totally changed my life, it does make me appreciate my rides a lot more.
I am so sorry to hear this. My ex wife suffered very badly with endometriosis pain, resulting in a couple of inpatient hospital visits in the early hours of the morning with suspected appendicitis. Turns out she has endometriosis on her appendix. My own period pains were horrendous, so I can only imagine what both you and she are going through. Oh, and Drs who say you should go and exercise have clearly never suffered from awful period pains; exercising used to have me at passing out point when I had periods. You have my full sympathy and thank you for talking so openly about a subject which is often ignored - at best.
Thanks for talking about this. As a guy, I don't really know what to say except I hope that a cure is found for endometriosis because fuck me everytime I hear someone who suffers from it talking about it it sounds so awful 😞.
Sending you so much love and props for being vulnerable. 💪🏻 I hope you can find a doctor that can help you find a solution to this period bullshit. I hate periods with a passion too. ❤
Thank you very much for posting this. I’ve been dealing the chronic pain again this year and have had to watch the entire too-short cycling season pass by without me being able to ride at all. You’re a strong person and I’m proud of you for persevering 💜
Man I feel for you. I also deal with constant pain that isn't even on a schedule, probably exactly like yours, it shows up at the worst times...stressed times. You feel like your just a lazy whatever because your innards are delicate. I'm going to match your vulnerability by giving period advice to a woman (I'm an old dude). I cringe at doing it because you've probably tried everything.....but maybe being you, you haven't tried this. I recall both my wife and one of my daughters having tough periods over the years. If memory serves being on "the pill" helped regulate some part of the problem and left her with a less traumatic time. Migraines would lesson and the pain. May seem silly but It might be worth looking into. You can join the list of the unpopular"who cares" issues like long covid, my gut issues, and the like. So sorry. Keep being vulnerable - "that" doctor may be watching. Thank you to all the lovely's that carry this burden. We the men would have quit long ago. Peace
I'm dealing w chronic pain in my piriformis that comes and goes over past year. And its on my stronger leg, that never was fractured. It sucks, because it affects my pedaling. I know its not the same, but piriformis is the buttock muscle so it is a literal pain in the arse. Any hoo, best to you moving forward
My ex wife had surgery for something similar and she was very happy she did but it took a while to get over it ,but she did so be careful but do what you have to.
Sorry to hear you've been suffering so. The bottom line - get a sympathetic gynecologist whose advice you trust, and get the tests because without a proper diagnosis any treatment is just guesswork. Anti-inflammatories first line then various options including oral contraceptives or other hormonal treatment. These will help control symptoms of endometriosis (if that's the cause). But do please get a diagnosis. I'm sure all will be wishing you well...
The human body is a marvelous machine that works amazingly well until the moment it doesn't. Physicians who can't empathize and whose advice is unhelpful (or worse, dismissive) have no business in the profession. Best of luck in finding someone who'll help you find treatment that works for you.
So sorry you’re going through this. A good friend of mine has endo and I see how awful an impact it has on her life, struggling to manage pain and taking sick days. I thankfully don’t struggle too much these days with period pain, but I used to. At 43, I’m hoping my period days are numbered now! One of the other difficulties I experience around menstruating is managing hygiene when being active, especially during events when you’re out on the bike for a number of hours, sweating, sometimes wet and muddy, having to manage heavy blood flow, or even just somewhere to change a tampon and clean up, can be pretty anxiety provoking.
It’s refreshing to see other people like you on social media being upfront about struggling with health issues because so many vloggers or content creators I follow are going off travelling, doing big events, doing big miles, and I often feel that’s what I SHOULD be doing, but I struggle with fatigue from an auto inflammatory condition, and know I’m never going to achieve that… and that if I do a 100 mile week, I’ll probably have a fortnight of sleeping every hour I’m not at work. There is comfort in knowing other people just want to go out and ride their bike and if it’s 10 miles, great. If it’s 20 miles, wonderful. I have this ongoing battle that if I can’t get out and do 30 miles each time I ride, I’m not a proper cyclist. It can be hard to get your head into just focusing on what’s right for you.
Thanks for sharing. ❤
thank you for sharing your struggle; it means so much to me as a fellow chronic pain sufferer to feel seen in the world of cycling. i'm an AMAB, non-binary person, so i don't have any personal experience with menstrual pain, but i do suffer from a hypermobility spectrum disorder that creates all kinds of excruciating joint pain in my knees, wrists, and back, especially. i can certainly speak to how hard it is to be stuck in bed when your friends are all out having awesome, adventurous experiences on their bikes. i think that maybe, the pain (while i wouldn't wish it on anyone), isn't even the hardest part, it's the feeling of missing out on the good parts of life, the parts that are supposed to give you the strength to keep going. passing up on bike rides in good weather with good people sucks! it sucks SO bad! talk about depression as a comorbidity lmao. at any rate, you are seen and you are not alone. i hope there are easier, bikier times ahead for us both.
Glad you chose to make this a video for all the reasons you touched on. As a society we've a long way to go regarding invisible conditions and acknowledging the impacts--physically and mentally--they have on a person. People who would never openly dismiss someone hobbling around on a broken ankle think nothing of telling you "you just need to..." or worse tell you the pain is in your head. I have two teenage daughters including an athlete and I have to sheepishly admit to, as a man, having had my eyes opened to the impacts of period pain through watching their struggle esp. during a season, when iron is low, etc. It needs to be more openly talked about. It takes a very strong person to be publicly vulnerable when in that much pain--kudos to you. Hope you can identify a treatment that gives you more relief.
Thank you for making this. Pain is definitely a limiting factor for many of us when it comes to cycling.
I developed severe levator syndrome in 2021 which kept me off my bike for 6 months. It totally affected my fitness since the pain was constant and very intense for most of that. I spent most of that time thinking I’d never ride a bike again. I was able to find a physical therapist who specializes in pelvic floor disorders (a retired cross racer) and she helped me find relief. Being prescribed physical therapy for extreme perineal pain was a really weird thing to wrap my head around. Since then I’ve had long periods of remission and brief relapses, usually lasting a couple of weeks.
This week, I was able to go on four rides, which is the most I’ve been able to string together in almost two years. I definitely have empathy for anyone who has to plan their activities around their pain, and although this experience has totally changed my life, it does make me appreciate my rides a lot more.
I am so sorry to hear this. My ex wife suffered very badly with endometriosis pain, resulting in a couple of inpatient hospital visits in the early hours of the morning with suspected appendicitis. Turns out she has endometriosis on her appendix. My own period pains were horrendous, so I can only imagine what both you and she are going through. Oh, and Drs who say you should go and exercise have clearly never suffered from awful period pains; exercising used to have me at passing out point when I had periods. You have my full sympathy and thank you for talking so openly about a subject which is often ignored - at best.
Thanks for talking about this. As a guy, I don't really know what to say except I hope that a cure is found for endometriosis because fuck me everytime I hear someone who suffers from it talking about it it sounds so awful 😞.
Sorry that you suffer so badly with this. But well done for talking about it and being so open about it.
i know it isn't easy to make and then publish this kind of video. thank you for sharing this despite the nonsense taboo.
Sending you so much love and props for being vulnerable. 💪🏻 I hope you can find a doctor that can help you find a solution to this period bullshit. I hate periods with a passion too. ❤
Thank you very much for posting this.
I’ve been dealing the chronic pain again this year and have had to watch the entire too-short cycling season pass by without me being able to ride at all.
You’re a strong person and I’m proud of you for persevering 💜
Thank you for sharing this. It is appreciated!
You're awesome for moving forward, and thank you for sharing.
Man I feel for you. I also deal with constant pain that isn't even on a schedule, probably exactly like yours, it shows up at the worst times...stressed times. You feel like your just a lazy whatever because your innards are delicate. I'm going to match your vulnerability by giving period advice to a woman (I'm an old dude). I cringe at doing it because you've probably tried everything.....but maybe being you, you haven't tried this. I recall both my wife and one of my daughters having tough periods over the years.
If memory serves being on "the pill" helped regulate some part of the problem and left her with a less traumatic time. Migraines would lesson and the pain. May seem silly but It might be worth looking into.
You can join the list of the unpopular"who cares" issues like long covid, my gut issues, and the like. So sorry.
Keep being vulnerable - "that" doctor may be watching.
Thank you to all the lovely's that carry this burden. We the men would have quit long ago.
Peace
I'm dealing w chronic pain in my piriformis that comes and goes over past year. And its on my stronger leg, that never was fractured. It sucks, because it affects my pedaling. I know its not the same, but piriformis is the buttock muscle so it is a literal pain in the arse. Any hoo, best to you moving forward
My ex wife had surgery for something similar and she was very happy she did but it took a while to get over it ,but she did so be careful but do what you have to.
You are strong talking about this
Look into using Turmeric in relieving the pain/cramps, I know it helps me with diverticulitis.
Heard. Thank you for putting this out there.
Thank you so much!
Thanks!
Thank you, Harry!
Please look into menstrual suppression. It's a really valid therapy for painful periods, endometriosis, and generally not problematic.
Assigned??
Sorry to hear you've been suffering so. The bottom line - get a sympathetic gynecologist whose advice you trust, and get the tests because without a proper diagnosis any treatment is just guesswork.
Anti-inflammatories first line then various options including oral contraceptives or other hormonal treatment. These will help control symptoms of endometriosis (if that's the cause). But do please get a diagnosis.
I'm sure all will be wishing you well...
The human body is a marvelous machine that works amazingly well until the moment it doesn't. Physicians who can't empathize and whose advice is unhelpful (or worse, dismissive) have no business in the profession. Best of luck in finding someone who'll help you find treatment that works for you.
My wife used to suffer from really bad periods it's not funny
my taint/perineum hurts after riding my bike after a taking a break from riding.
First