July 8th 2026

Hello readers,

I am settling into my new home in PA and traveled quite a bit these first 6 months of this year. I mentioned in my last blog post that I would discuss more about thoracic endometriosis as I still encounter so many people who have no idea that endometriosis can literally infiltrate anywhere in the human body!

Thoracic endometriosis in my experience and in reading the literature can infiltrate the diaphragm and the lining of the lungs. As I may have mentioned in a earlier blog post I was diagnosed with “Asthma” in my late 20’s/Early 30’s. During this time I was also unofficially diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis. It is uncommon to develop asthma at a later stage in life though not unheard of. I was suspicious as it literally came out of no where. I was running in the winter time and I remember my chest getting tight and I had a hard time breathing. After this, I took the rest of the winter off and went to a lung doctor to get testing for asthma. It was positive and I was given an inhaler to use prior to my runs. It never worked.

Also during this time my periods were absolutely horrible. I had those terrible running pains in my pelvic region/lower abdomen that I mentioned in prior blog posts that were debilitating. It took me almost ten more years to put this altogether that this all maybe endometriosis.

During my first surgery for my endometriosis clean out, my surgeon did notice I had endometriosis on my diaphragms, I was 39 years old at the time of my first surgery. This is when is dawned on me that my “asthma” is likely thoracic endometriosis. I was impressed that a lung nurse practitioner of mine in NYC, knew exactly what this was and knew exactly what to look for in terms of worsening signs and symptoms.

During our periods/cycle, even ovulation stage those with thoracic endometriosis are more at risk for pneumothorax, or air in the lungs. Usually resolves on his own but sometimes it can cause lung collapse and you may need a chest tube to remove the air. There are plenty of case reports of this happening to women with endometriosis. The other thing is pain under your rib cage. It legit feels like someone is grabbing you and pulling down on your ribs. it is noticeable during my cycle phases. I am on a long acting inhaler now and this has helped substantially.

Side note, given I had a hysterectomy, I no longer bleed with my period cycle. I have my ovaries though, therefore I still go through all the motions of a period cycle. Thanks to endometriosis, I know exactly when I am ovulating and when I am on my “period”. 

If this story sounds familiar to you and you have other symptoms of endometriosis, I would highly encourage you to see an endometriosis specialist. Do not get discouraged when physicians continue to blow you off. Keep advocating for yourself. Do your research, get the help you need and deserve. It took me over 2 decades to figure this out and as you know I am a nurse practitioner.

In terms of my rheumatoid arthritis, there is a connection with endometriosis shown in recent research. I am curious if I actually have two conditions or is it all under the umbrella of endometriosis. I have been on varying treatments over the last 7 years. I just changed again hoping this treatment sticks. Despite knowing I had rheumatoid arthritis since my late 20’s, early 30’s, I was not ready to go on intense medications with a ton of side effects. I was young and just trying to manage things on my own until I realized i couldn’t do that anymore.

As we recently saw PCOS (polycystic ovarian syndrome) got renamed to PMOS (Polyendocrine Metabolic Ovarian Syndrome). The reason for this change is to reflect that is it not just an ovarian problem but an entire body problem. I am hoping for all of us that suffer with endometriosis that that will also be recognized as an entire body disease rather than uterine disease. I fully believe that this is autoimmune disease with potentially some genetic component. 

I continue to advocate for women to get the help they deserve everyday. I have more and more women who I have known for a long time who will message me to say they got diagnosed. Its shameful and disheartening that we have not had any developments in treatments. We can only hope someday soon that this will change.

Thank you for being here.

Talk soon,

Foxy xoxo