The Doctor Will See You Now
Recognizing and Treating Endometriosis
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- $19.99
Publisher Description
Endometriosis materializes when the endometrium – the tissue that lines the inside of the uterus – sheds, but does not exit a woman’s body during her period. Instead, it grows outside of the uterus, spreading to organs and nerves in and around the pelvic region. The resulting pain is so physically and emotionally insufferable that it can mercilessly dominate a woman’s life. The average woman with endometriosis is twenty-seven years old before she is diagnosed. It is one of the top three causes of female infertility. The pain it emits can affect a woman’s career, social life, relationships, sexual activity, sleep, and diet. It is incurable, but highly treatable. Unfortunately, though, it is rarely treated in a timely manner, if at all, because of misdiagnoses and/or a lack of education among those in the medical community.
This book gives hope to everyone connected to endometriosis. That includes every woman and young girl who has it, and the women and men in their lives – the mothers, fathers, husbands, children, and friends – who know something is wrong, but do not know what it is or what to do about it. This book is written at a level that everyone with ties to this disease can relate to and understand, but it is also for doctors with good intentions who lack the knowledge of how to diagnose or treat it.
The Doctor Will See You Now is for women determined to let the world know their stories so that every woman with this disease – from the thirteen-year-old girl who is being told that her pain is “part of becoming a woman” to the woman who has been misdiagnosed for decades – knows she is not alone.
Yes, her pain is real.
No, she is not crazy.
Yes, there is hope.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Seckin, a well-known gynecologist and surgeon who specializes in treating endometriosis, brings valuable and long-overdue attention to this debilitating disease, estimated to affect 176 million women worldwide. Seckin explains that the condition occurs when the endometrium sheds and, instead of exiting the body during menstruation, spreads outside the uterus to other organs and nerves in the pelvic area. In separate, concise chapters, the author addresses potential problems experienced with periods, "killer cramps," sex, bowel movements, neuropathy, fertility, and fatigue. He also weaves in the case histories of a number of his patients, many previously misdiagnosed by other physicians. Diagnosis often takes more than a decade; endometriosis, Seckin points out, is not a required subject in most medical schools. Moreover, he feels that many physicians are unaware of what he considers the "gold standard" for endometriosis treatment: laparoscopic deep-excision surgery. The method, he claims, is preferable to laser surgery (which may allow the inflamed tissue to grow back) or hysterectomy, which not only thwarts the possibility of bearing children but also does not address the spread to other organs. This comprehensive text, as the author hopes, is likely to raise awareness among other physicians and among general readers, particularly women who will now have the knowledge necessary to become powerful self-advocates.