Endometriosis is rarely as simple as having painful periods.
Looking for endometriosis support that goes beyond a single appointment? At Nurturing Life, I work with women with endometriosis through acupuncture and Chinese medicine at my Tecoma clinic, along with online lifestyle support available worldwide.
My approach to supporting women with endometriosis is broader than acupuncture alone. I look at what is happening across your cycle, symptoms, digestion, sleep, stress, food, movement and everyday routine. From there, we work out where it makes sense to start.
I provide realistic suggestions that are sustainable and won’t mean entirely overhauling your entire life.
When you are already dealing with managing your symptoms, being given another long list of things you “should” be doing for your health isn’t particularly helpful.
What is endometriosis?
Endometriosis is a chronic condition where tissue similar to the lining of the uterus grows outside the uterus. It is associated with inflammation and can affect areas throughout the pelvis and, less commonly, other parts of the body.
Endometriosis affects around 1 in 7 Australian women and people assigned female at birth by their late 40s.
Symptoms vary considerably from one person to another and may include:
- painful periods
- pelvic, abdominal, back or leg pain
- heavy or irregular bleeding
- bloating and digestive symptoms
- bowel or bladder symptoms
- pain during or after sex
- fatigue
- fertility difficulties
Some people have extensive endometriosis with relatively few symptoms, while others experience substantial symptoms.
Endometriosis also isn’t something that has been diagnosed from symptoms alone- this is only starting to change more recently. Ultrasound is commonly used as a first-line investigation, although a normal ultrasound does not necessarily rule out endometriosis. Laparoscopy has been the most common way to obtain diagnosis and can form part of the treatment.
Endometriosis is an inflammatory condition
One reason I take a whole-person approach to endometriosis is its relationship with inflammation.
That doesn’t mean inflammation is the only thing happening, or that simply eating an “anti-inflammatory diet” treats endometriosis. Endometriosis is far more complex than that.
What it does mean is that when I work with someone who has endometriosis, I am interested in the wider picture.
What are you eating regularly? How is your digestion? Are you sleeping well? Are you moving enough, or perhaps pushing yourself too hard? How much stress is your body dealing with? What happens to your symptoms at different points in your cycle?
These are areas where we have room to make practical changes.
Where lifestyle support fits
There is growing interest in diet, exercise and other lifestyle strategies for people living with endometriosis.
The research isn’t strong enough to tell us there is one particular diet everyone with endometriosis should follow. In Chinese Medicine there is never “one diet” or “one thing” that people with a condition should do to improve- as often one condition can be caused by a number of different causes. So finding out the underlying patterns for your specific presentation is key to getting lasting change.
A 2024 review found that evidence for lifestyle interventions remains limited and that there isn’t enough evidence to recommend a single superior diet for endometriosis. Research into dietary interventions has also been affected by small studies, differences between interventions and moderate to high risk of bias.
So I don’t give every woman with endometriosis the same restrictive food list.
Instead, we look at your current diet and lifestyle and work from there.
The aim is to build a way of eating and living that supports your general health while considering the inflammatory load your body is dealing with.
Depending on what is happening for you, this might mean looking at food quality and variety, fibre, fats, blood sugar, digestive health, alcohol intake, sleep, stress, histamine tolerance, movement or recovery.
It doesn’t all need to change at once.
Often, small changes that you can continue doing are far more useful than following an extremely restrictive plan for a few weeks and then abandoning it.
Why I offer online support for endometriosis
There is only so much lifestyle education we can fit into an acupuncture appointment.
This is where my online support is particularly useful.
Nurturing Life Online gives us more space to work through the lifestyle side of your health. Rather than leaving an appointment with a handful of suggestions and trying to remember everything, you have structured information that you can work through at home.
We can explore areas such as:
- food and nutrition
- inflammation and everyday dietary choices
- digestion and bowel health
- sleep and recovery
- stress and nervous-system load
- movement
- menstrual health and understanding your cycle
- habits and environmental factors that may be worth changing
Most importantly, we don’t need to tackle everything at once.
If you are already exhausted, in pain and overwhelmed, handing you 25 new health rules isn’t going to make life easier. We work out what deserves your attention first and build from there.
Online support also means you don’t need to travel to the clinic every time you need guidance. This can be particularly useful when pain, fatigue, work or family commitments make frequent appointments difficult.
Acupuncture and endometriosis
For women who attend my Tecoma clinic, acupuncture can also form part of their overall care. For women who I see online, there are points I will be recommending for your specific presentation which will allow you to perform acupressure at home regularly.
Instead, acupuncture is one part of the support I provide.
There is research examining acupuncture for endometriosis-related pain and quality of life. Some systematic reviews have reported promising findings, but the evidence has limitations including small study numbers, variation between acupuncture protocols and differences in study quality. One 2023 systematic review concluded that there was insufficient evidence to determine the overall effectiveness of acupuncture and moxibustion for endometriosis, despite positive findings in individual studies.
One limitation of acupuncture research is that studies often use a standardised treatment protocol so every participant receives the same acupuncture points. This makes research easier to control, but it does not always reflect clinical practice. In Chinese medicine, two people with the same medical diagnosis may have different presenting patterns and would therefore receive different treatments. Standardised protocols may not capture how individualised acupuncture is used in practice, which is important when interpreting study results.
Chinese medicine looks at the individual
Two women can both have a diagnosis of endometriosis and have completely different experiences.
One might have severe period pain and heavy bleeding.
Another might be struggling more with bloating, bowel symptoms and fatigue.
Someone else may have relatively manageable periods but be navigating fertility treatment.
That difference matters.
When you work with me, I want to understand your whole health picture rather than reducing everything to the word “endometriosis.”
We look at your menstrual cycle, pain patterns, digestion, sleep, energy, stress, medical history, medications, fertility goals where relevant, and what you are realistically able to change in your current life.
From there, I develop an individual plan for your care.
Working alongside your medical care
Chinese medicine and lifestyle support do not replace any other medical assessment or treatment for endometriosis you might have.
I encourage women to maintain appropriate care with their GP, gynaecologist and other health professionals. Depending on your circumstances, medical management may include pain medication, hormonal treatment, surgery, fertility care or other approaches.
My role is to provide another layer of support alongside that care.
That may involve acupuncture at my Tecoma clinic, Chinese medicine, dietary and lifestyle guidance, or ongoing online support.
Getting started
All women joining Nurturing Life Online begin with an initial consultation, either in person at my Tecoma clinic or via telehealth.
This gives me the chance to understand what is happening for you before recommending where to start.
Endometriosis is complex. Your support should be individual too.
If you are looking for support with endometriosis and would like to explore acupuncture, Chinese medicine or online lifestyle support, you can book an initial appointment with me to get started.