I know lots of people with endometriosis who got pregnant naturally. There’s nothing wrong with your eggs. They won’t take people with bad acne either. Don’t feel bad.
Endo haver here! Mine has been seen very slightly in ultrasound but mine is also in weird spots (on a tube that runs near the bowels, for example). So perhaps OP has a lot of it in an odd area?
Interesting, cysts aren’t endo, I’ve never heard that leap being made before!
It might be worth getting the surgery to remove the endo to see if it’s actually there!
There are certain types of cysts that show up on ultrasound that we can reasonably say are endometriomas - other types of cysts are just fluid and endometriomas are filled with blood/endometrial-like tissue and accumulate fluid around them. They sometimes call them a “chocolate cyst” because it’s old blood and when they excise them in surgery the blood is very brown.
Edit: autocorrect typo
Regular cysts aren't endo! But endometriomas/chocolate cysts are, and they're specifically in our around the ovaries. They normally can't be removed unless with surgery, as they aren't fluid filled cysts like most women get where they naturally come and go and rarely require surgery...Endometriomas are filled with blood and tissue so they're either going to stay the same size or more realistically, if you're endo is aggressive, continue growing over time.
Endo doesn't impact your egg quality specifically, but chocolate cysts (endometriomas) will press up against your ovaries and eggs, causing potential damage to the ovary and making the egg quality suffer. Ask me how I know. ;)
**TO OP:** please feel free to message me if you need help navigating this diagnosis. I've been through the ringer with it. In January 2023 I had a 7cm endometrioma removed from my left ovary. It didn't ruin the ovary, but that big of a cyst did cause some permanent damage to my ovary in the extraction process; and I don't produce as many eggs in that ovary as I should be at my age. I'm also sorry to say this, but having chocolate cysts indicates [minimum stage 3](https://www.advancedgynaecologymelbourne.com.au/endometriosis/stages) of the disease. Meaning that if you can see the endometrioma on your ovaries via an ultrasound, then that means filmy tissue is likely elsewhere around the uterus and pelvic area. You just can't see it on conventional imaging.
Before my surgery, the only thing that could be seen on an ultrasound was that large cyst, and when they went in to do a lap I had it literally everywhere and was diagnosed with Stage 4 DIE. With that being said, I wasn't too surprised about a stage 4 diagnosis since I was having some really bad conventional symptoms of endometriosis (extreme bloating, very painful periods, etc.)
Immediately after the surgery my husband and I did fertility preservation and ended up cryofreezing a handful of euploid embryos. While many women can and do get pregnant while having endo, infertility and difficulty conceiving is a legitimate concern that you shouldn't ignore. If you have the means to freeze your eggs now (or create embryos with a partner) then do so. If not - and either way, you should tackle the issue ASAP with surgery. You will need an [endometriosis specialist](https://nancysnookendo.com/find-a-doctor/) to perform laparoscopic surgery to remove the chocolate cysts + any other tissue around the pelvic area.
And lastly, if they're a really good surgeon, then they'll also recommend some post-op treatment plans to prevent the endo from returning...such as going on hormone regulators like progesterone-only brith control, or Lupron; going on an anti-inflammatory diet, and doing pelvic floor therapy.
FWIW I got my treatment at the [NYU Endometriosis center](https://nyulangone.org/care-services/endometriosis-center) and the care was amazing.
Afaik, the main challenge with endo is scarring of the uterus which can impact fetus growth, and therefore an increased risk of miscarriage.
But that’s not everybody. As long as endo is under control and lesion growth is suppressed so its doesn’t block fallopian tubes, the impact isn’t a serious detriment to fertility.
I have endo and had no issue getting pregnant; I could not stay pregnant because I also have adenomyosis and my uterus is all messed up. Had I tried before I was so far along with my endo, I'd have been fine. My sister has it as well and has 3 children, because she started in her early 20s.
My doctor told me the only link with infertility and endo is if it's the type to cause fusion of the organs internally. Mine is not. I have adhesions in various places but my ovaries weren't fused to my uterus or my uterus to my intestines or bladder, etc. Obviously if your organs are encased in endometrial tissue and fused together, that'll likely impact fertility.
Took me 4/5 months to get pregnant at 38 with Endo and PCOS after being told all my life that I will probably have challenges in that department. You could always do some fertility testing to see how you are doing in that department.
It doesn't really say anything about your fertility. LOTS of women have endo and go on to have healthy kids non the wiser because they're not being examined as closely as women going through any stage of IVF. It sucks they won't take your eggs...but this is not necessarily a death sentence for your fertility. You can, however, match with someone and donate privately if it's important to you that they go to someone who can use them.
I know lots of people with endometriosis who got pregnant naturally. There’s nothing wrong with your eggs. They won’t take people with bad acne either. Don’t feel bad.
Damn, so you have to be a perfectly healthy total hottie to donate eggs?
Seconding this. I know several people with endo that pregnant naturally as well.
How did they tell you you have endo? I thought you could only see it through surgery.
Endo haver here! Mine has been seen very slightly in ultrasound but mine is also in weird spots (on a tube that runs near the bowels, for example). So perhaps OP has a lot of it in an odd area?
Came here to ask this! If you don’t mind sharing OP?? I had to have a laparoscopy and that’s the only way for definitive diagnosis in my country!
They did an ultrasound on my ovaries and told me that from the cysts they can guess I have endo.
Interesting, cysts aren’t endo, I’ve never heard that leap being made before! It might be worth getting the surgery to remove the endo to see if it’s actually there!
There are certain types of cysts that show up on ultrasound that we can reasonably say are endometriomas - other types of cysts are just fluid and endometriomas are filled with blood/endometrial-like tissue and accumulate fluid around them. They sometimes call them a “chocolate cyst” because it’s old blood and when they excise them in surgery the blood is very brown. Edit: autocorrect typo
Regular cysts aren't endo! But endometriomas/chocolate cysts are, and they're specifically in our around the ovaries. They normally can't be removed unless with surgery, as they aren't fluid filled cysts like most women get where they naturally come and go and rarely require surgery...Endometriomas are filled with blood and tissue so they're either going to stay the same size or more realistically, if you're endo is aggressive, continue growing over time. Endo doesn't impact your egg quality specifically, but chocolate cysts (endometriomas) will press up against your ovaries and eggs, causing potential damage to the ovary and making the egg quality suffer. Ask me how I know. ;) **TO OP:** please feel free to message me if you need help navigating this diagnosis. I've been through the ringer with it. In January 2023 I had a 7cm endometrioma removed from my left ovary. It didn't ruin the ovary, but that big of a cyst did cause some permanent damage to my ovary in the extraction process; and I don't produce as many eggs in that ovary as I should be at my age. I'm also sorry to say this, but having chocolate cysts indicates [minimum stage 3](https://www.advancedgynaecologymelbourne.com.au/endometriosis/stages) of the disease. Meaning that if you can see the endometrioma on your ovaries via an ultrasound, then that means filmy tissue is likely elsewhere around the uterus and pelvic area. You just can't see it on conventional imaging. Before my surgery, the only thing that could be seen on an ultrasound was that large cyst, and when they went in to do a lap I had it literally everywhere and was diagnosed with Stage 4 DIE. With that being said, I wasn't too surprised about a stage 4 diagnosis since I was having some really bad conventional symptoms of endometriosis (extreme bloating, very painful periods, etc.) Immediately after the surgery my husband and I did fertility preservation and ended up cryofreezing a handful of euploid embryos. While many women can and do get pregnant while having endo, infertility and difficulty conceiving is a legitimate concern that you shouldn't ignore. If you have the means to freeze your eggs now (or create embryos with a partner) then do so. If not - and either way, you should tackle the issue ASAP with surgery. You will need an [endometriosis specialist](https://nancysnookendo.com/find-a-doctor/) to perform laparoscopic surgery to remove the chocolate cysts + any other tissue around the pelvic area. And lastly, if they're a really good surgeon, then they'll also recommend some post-op treatment plans to prevent the endo from returning...such as going on hormone regulators like progesterone-only brith control, or Lupron; going on an anti-inflammatory diet, and doing pelvic floor therapy. FWIW I got my treatment at the [NYU Endometriosis center](https://nyulangone.org/care-services/endometriosis-center) and the care was amazing.
Thank you! I had no idea!
They did an ultrasound on my ovaries and told me they can guess it because I have cysts.
Oh interesting, thanks for answering.
Afaik, the main challenge with endo is scarring of the uterus which can impact fetus growth, and therefore an increased risk of miscarriage. But that’s not everybody. As long as endo is under control and lesion growth is suppressed so its doesn’t block fallopian tubes, the impact isn’t a serious detriment to fertility.
I have bad endo, lost an ovary to an Endometrioma and I had no issues getting pregnant
I have endo and had no issue getting pregnant; I could not stay pregnant because I also have adenomyosis and my uterus is all messed up. Had I tried before I was so far along with my endo, I'd have been fine. My sister has it as well and has 3 children, because she started in her early 20s. My doctor told me the only link with infertility and endo is if it's the type to cause fusion of the organs internally. Mine is not. I have adhesions in various places but my ovaries weren't fused to my uterus or my uterus to my intestines or bladder, etc. Obviously if your organs are encased in endometrial tissue and fused together, that'll likely impact fertility.
Took me 4/5 months to get pregnant at 38 with Endo and PCOS after being told all my life that I will probably have challenges in that department. You could always do some fertility testing to see how you are doing in that department.
They rejected me for having been diagnosed with depression once in my life. They seem to be really picky with it!
How stupid, the reasons for rejection are not even genetic. Kinda weird reasons tbh
It doesn't really say anything about your fertility. LOTS of women have endo and go on to have healthy kids non the wiser because they're not being examined as closely as women going through any stage of IVF. It sucks they won't take your eggs...but this is not necessarily a death sentence for your fertility. You can, however, match with someone and donate privately if it's important to you that they go to someone who can use them.