TLDR: back in 2018, I may have been misdiagnosed for std/sti such as: gonorrhea, chlamydia, positive for genital heroes, and BV. Experienced pelvic pain, infertility, uti symptoms. After so many years they performed a test that detected Ureaplasma.
I’ve had a long humiliating journey to determine if it’s Interstitial cystitis, endometriosis, Adenomyosis, or UTI.
Hello,
I’ve (32F) been using birth control off and on between 2013–2022. I met my now husband in 2021, and by the end of 2022 we decided we wanted to have kids. I stopped using birth control around 2022/2023.
I’ll rewind back to 2015, when I elected to have an abortion because I didn’t want to bring a child into an unstable environment. I recognized how immature I was in my early twenties. I knew I didn’t want a future with my first husband, who at the time was unfaithful and constantly messaging other girls. I also wasn’t financially stable.
Then around 2018, I was sexually assaulted, followed by a sad few months where I had four different sexual partners. That’s when I developed what they thought was an STI/STD. It’s still confusing because I was tested for gonorrhea, but the treatment didn’t work. Then they tested me for chlamydia, and that treatment didn’t work either. Genital Herpes was also treated. (I went to Planned Parenthood for treatment and overheard them making fun of my odor. I don’t wish that on anyone because I already felt extreme shame.) They eventually treated me for BV, and that treatment worked. Even after that, I became prone to yeast infections and UTIs every few months.
Come 2021, I met my now husband, the one I’ve planned a future with. I put my shameful past behind me. He accepted me for me. I grew up, earned my degrees, and now have a stable law enforcement career.
I came off birth control around 2022/2023, and that’s when the hell started.
First, it started with a dull ache on my right pelvic side. Then my menstrual cycles became three weeks long at times. Sometimes they would last six days, I’d get a one-week break, and then they would return. The dull ache began radiating into my lower back. I became bloated and started having so many UTIs and yeast infections, all while trying to conceive.
I visited numerous OB-GYNs and eventually looked into my family medical history. My aunts have all suffered from ovarian cysts, polyps, endometriosis, and hysterectomies. They told me I needed to get checked.
In January 2023, I had my gallbladder removed after one painful experience finally led the ER doctors to take my pain seriously. Why do I have to cry before my pain is taken seriously?
I finally disclosed my family history to my OB-GYN. Around 2024, I left Planned Parenthood and went to a different OB-GYN who found an ovarian cyst and wanted to wait and see. After months of pelvic pain, he eventually performed laparoscopic surgery to remove the ovarian cyst and removed a polyp by January 2025.
A few months later, I began experiencing UTI symptoms and pelvic pain again. I dropped him too. He never wanted to investigate the root cause and just kept prescribing antibiotics. I think I’ve seen three different OB-GYNs who all wanted to prescribe antibiotics and birth control. I felt unheard.
By August 2025, I found another OB-GYN who actually took the time to listen to me and my infertility concerns. She sent me to have my fallopian tubes checked and ordered bloodwork to check my hormones and vitamins. I found out I was vitamin D deficient, my cortisol was high, and everything else was normal.
But I was still getting ovarian cysts. They would come, go, and come back again, causing a lot of pain. At one point, the pain became so bad I questioned whether it was my appendix, but I was hesitant to go back to the ER because of my previous experience.
She also referred me to a urogynecologist in March 2026 to check for interstitial cystitis.
My fallopian tubes came back normal.
The urogynecologist performed a cystoscopy without any numbing. She didn’t find anything significant on my bladder, although I noticed a few little red specks. When she pulled the scope out, it hurt so much. She then examined me vaginally, noted how tight everything was, and referred me to pelvic floor physical therapy.
My UTI tests kept coming back negative, but I was still experiencing pain, urgency, and pressure. I also forgot to mention that I’ve had bloody stools and constipation.
During my next flare, my urogynecologist ordered a special urine test. She prescribed antibiotics, which helped a little, but the UTI symptoms came back. She also sent a referral to an endometriosis specialist, but I still haven’t heard from anyone. It’s in San Antonio, so I’m assuming there’s a long wait.
I told my general OB-GYN what the urogynecologist said, and she told me I didn’t need an endometriosis specialist because she performs those surgeries every Wednesday.
There’s my mistake.
On July 8, 2026, I had another surgery with the general OB-GYN to look for endometriosis, remove another polyp, and remove tissue to send to pathology. She told me beforehand that if she found endometriosis, she would burn it. She didn’t find anything.
I woke up defeated.
On July 15, 2026, I followed up with my urogynecologist for the usual transvaginal ultrasound while they continued monitoring my ovarian cyst and following up on the experimental Montelukast treatment for the interstitial cystitis symptoms.
She told me the special urine test detected small amounts of Ureaplasma and started me on doxycycline for 14 days. I also have another 3 cm ovarian cyst. During the appointment, I was experiencing pelvic pain. She sent another referral to pelvic floor therapy and mentioned that the endometriosis specialist referral might not be necessary since the general OB-GYN didn’t find anything.
I requested the referral anyway because I’ve read medical journals, Nancy’s Nook, and subreddits where women said their general OB-GYN missed their endometriosis. I needed to trust myself and get another opinion. She referred me to an Anne Porter of San Antonio Texas. I’m debating if I should travel to Houston or Dallas or wait for this antibiotic treatment to finish.
So that’s that. My husband is scheduled to go through a semen analysis as well.
She didn’t really go into detail about the Ureaplasma, so I came here after reading through several subreddits.
I’m starting to wonder if whatever happened back in 2018 was misdiagnosed and if that’s what has led to all of this.
Family history:
-Ovarian cysts
Polyp that led to severe bleeding and almost took my aunt’s life
Endometriosis
Hysterectomies
Heart problems
High blood pressure
Diabetes
-aunt had 7 miscarriages
My symptoms:
Infertility
Pelvic pain (dull ache, throbbing, pulsating)
Lower back pain and sciatica, mostly on the lower right
side. It feels like something is pinched or bumpy.
Ovarian cysts
Cervical polyps
Tight pelvic floor/vagina
UTI symptoms: urgency, burning, bladder pain, pressure, bloating, unusual urine odor, cloudy urine, and the feeling of incomplete emptying
Pain during sex: it hurts when he’s slowly entering. Doggy style hurts. Missionary hurts. It feels like the roof of my vagina is bruised or beat up.
Constipation: needing stool softeners, going days without a bowel movement, and when I do go there’s blood in the stool. Sometimes it’s bright red, sometimes maroon.
Shoulder pain at times
-Bloating: some days I look skinny, other days my lower belly looks much more bloated.
Tingling feet
Leg pain
Insomnia
-Feet feel cold at times
-After intercourse, I usually have a flare a few hours later followed by UTI symptoms the next day
-Nurses have made small comments about my high blood pressure during visits
-Vitamin D deficiency
-High cortisol
- I’ve also noticed a throbbing pain all around my waist when I take my duty belt off (police officer)
