Women's Bodies, Women's Wisdom (186 page)

2
. Celso-Ramon Garcia and Winnifred Cutler, “Preservation of the Ovary: A Reevaluation,”
Fertility and Sterility,
vol. 42, no. 4 (Oct. 1984), pp. 510–14.

3
. M. K. Whiteman et al., “Inpatient Hysterectomy Surveillance in the United States, 2000–2004,”
American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology,
vol. 198, no. 1 (2008): 34.e1–7.

4
. Lisa Lepine et al., “Hysterectomy Surveillance—United States, 1980–1993,”
Centers
for Disease Control and Prevention Surveillance Summaries,
Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report 1997, vol. 46, no. SS-04 (Aug. 8, 1997), pp. 1–16.

5
. Whiteman et al., “Inpatient Hysterectomy Surveillance in the United States, 2000–2004.”

6
. Ibid.

7
. W. Cutler and E. Genovese-Stone, “Wellness in Women after 40 Years of Age: The Role of Sex Hormones and Pheromones,”
Disease-A-Month,
vol. 44, no. 9 (Sept. 1998), p. 526.

8
. All statistics from Thomas G. Stoval, “Hysterectomy,” in Jonathan S. Berek, Eli Adashi, and Paula Hillars, eds.,
Novak’s Gynecology,
12th ed. (Baltimore, MD: Williams and Wilkins, 1996), p. 727.

9
. Heather Boushey, “The New Breadwinners,” in Heather Boushey and Ann O’Leary, eds.,
The Shriver Report: A Woman’s Nation Changes Everything
(Washington, DC: Center for American Progress, 2009), p. 19.

10
. J. C. Gambone and R. C. Reiter, “Nonsurgical Management of Chronic Pelvic Pain: A Multidisciplinary Approach,”
Clinical Obstetrics and Gynecology,
vol. 33 (1990), pp. 205–11; R. C. Reiter and J. C. Gambone, “Demographic and Historic Variables in Women with Idiopathic Chronic Pelvic Pain,”
Obstetrics and Gynecology,
vol. 75 (1990), pp. 428–32.

11
. Reiter and Gambone, “Demographic and Historic Variables.”

12
. Information from Caroline Myss.

13
. Dr. Isaac Schiff (Chairman of the Department of Gynecology at Massachusetts General Hospital) at Grand Rounds, Maine Medical Center, Portland, ME, 1993.

14
. Nancy Petersen and B. Hasselbring, “Endometriosis Reconsidered,”
Medical Self
Care,
May–June 1987.

15
. David B. Redwine, “The Distribution of Endometriosis in the Pelvis by Groups and Fertility,”
Fertility and Sterility,
vol. 47 (Jan. 1987), p. 173.

16
. Supporting evidence can be found in Vaughan Bancroft, C. A. Williams, and M. Elstein, “Minimal/Mild Endometriosis and Infertility: A Review,”
British Journal
of Obstetrics and Gynaecology,
vol. 96, no. 4, pp. 454–50. The role of minimal or mild endometriosis in the etiology of infertility remains unclear, but an increased prostanoid content and macrophage activity in peritoneal fluid may exert an effect by a variety of mechanisms, including altered tubal motility, sperm func tion, and early embryo wastage. Ovarian function may be altered in a variety of ways, including many subtle abnormalities detectable only by detailed investiga tion. Autoimmune phenomena may also be contributory.

17
. John Sampson, “Peritoneal Endometriosis Due to the Menstrual Dissemination of Endometrial Tissue into the Peritoneal Cavity,”
American Journal of Obstetrics
and Gynecology,
vol. 14 (1927), pp. 422–69.

18
. This theory is based on the work of Dr. David Redwine, who along with Nancy Petersen, R.N., is the founder of the St. Charles Medical Center endometriosis treatment program in Bend, Oregon.

19
. Petersen and Hasselbring, “Endometriosis Reconsidered.” See also David Red-wine, “Age-Related Evolution in Color Appearance of Endometriosis,”
Fertility
and Sterility,
vol. 48, no. 6 (Dec. 1987), pp. 1062–63; David Redwine, “Is Microscopic Peritoneal Endometriosis Invisible?”
Fertility and Sterility,
vol. 50, no. 4 (Oct. 1988), pp. 665–66.

20
. Norbert Gleicher, “Is Endometriosis an Autoimmune Disease?”
Obstetrics and
Gynecology,
vol. 70, no. 1 (July 1987); E. Surry and J. Halme, “Effect of Peritoneal Fluid from Endometriosis Patients on Endometrial Stromal Cell Proliferation in Vitro,”
Obstetrics and Gynecology,
vol. 76, no. 5, part 1 (Nov. 1990), pp. 792–98; S. Kalma et al., “Production of Fibronection by Peritoneal Macrophages and Concentration of Fibronection in Peritoneal Fluid from Patients With or Without Endometriosis,”
Obstetrics and Gynecology,
vol. 72 (July 1988), pp. 13–19; J. Halme, S. Becker, and S. Haskil, “Altered Maturation and Function of Peritoneal Macrophages: Possible Role in Pathogenesis of Endometriosis,”
American
Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology,
vol. 156 (1987), p. 783; J. Halme, M. G. Hammond, J. F. Hulka, et al., “Retrograde Menstruation in Healthy Women and in Patients with Endometriosis,”
Obstetrics and Gynecology,
vol. 64 (1984), pp. 13–18.

21
. Christiane Northrup,
Mother-Daughter Wisdom
(New York: Bantam Books, 2005), p. 234.

22
. Conventional insurance is set up to cover only certain treatment modalities and of ten does not cover relatively inexpensive measures to maintain health. Much has been written about the politics of medical treatment, a topic that is beyond the scope of this book. Though all of us end up paying for very expensive conventional medical treatments such as GnRH agonists, individuals with insurance don’t bear this cost
directly
and therefore don’t want to pay for modalities that aren’t covered by insurance.

23
. Francis Hutchins Jr., “Uterine Fibroids: Current Concepts in Management,”
Female
Patient,
vol. 15 (Oct. 1990), p. 29.

24
. A. D. Feinstein, “Conflict over Childbearing and Tumors of the Female Reproduction System: Symbolism in Disease,”
Somatics
(Fall/Winter 1983).

25
. R. C. Reiter, P. C. Wagner, and J. C. Gambone, “Routine Hysterectomy for Large Asymptomatic Leiomyomata: A Reappraisal,”
Obstetrics and Gynecology,
vol. 79, no. 4 (Apr. 1992), pp. 481–84.

26
. An entire body of literature on the healing power of sound is available. Each chakra, for example, is associated with a certain vibration. Healers who use sound may suggest that a person sing certain tones or listen to specially designed music. For more information about this treatment, read: W. David,
The Harmonics of
Sound, Color, and Vibration: A System for Self-Awareness and Evolution
(Marina del Rey, CA: DeVorss and Co., 1985); Kay Gardner,
Sounding the Inner Landscape
(Stonington, ME: Caduceus Publications, 1990).

27
. A. J. Friedman et al. “A Randomized, Double-Blind Trial of Gonadotropin . . . in the Treatment of Leiomyomata Uteri,
Fertility and Sterility,
vol. 49 (1988), p. 404.

28
. Progestin hormone, in the form of Provera or Aygestin, can be taken daily on days fourteen to twenty-eight of the menstrual cycle to decrease excess buildup of endometrial tissue inside the uterus. This treatment sometimes works like a D&C and in fact is sometimes called a “medical D&C.” I recommend this approach for those women whose heavy bleeding is unaffected by dietary change or for whom dietary change is impractical. It is sometimes used in addition to other therapies, such as acupuncture. Each case is individualized.

29
. Alan de Cherney, M.D., chairman of the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Tufts University Medical Center, Boston, MA, is a pioneer in this surgery and has trained physicians throughout the country in this technique.

30
. L. Bradley and J. Newman, “Uterine Artery Embolization for Treatment of Fibroids: From Scalpel to Catheter,”
The Female Patient,
vol. 25 (2000), pp. 71–78.

31
. K. J. Carlson, B. Z. Miller, and F. J. Fowler, “The Maine Women’s Health Study: I. Outcomes of Hysterectomy,”
Obstetrics and Gynecology,
vol. 83 (1994), pp. 556–65.

32
. Susan Rako,
The Hormone of Desire
(New York: Harmony Books, 1996).

33
. L. Zussman et al., “Sexual Response After Hysterectomy-Oophorectomy: Recent Studies and Reconsideration of Psychogenesis,”
American Journal of Obstetrics
and Gynecology,
vol. 140, no. 7 (Aug. 1, 1981), pp. 725–29.

34
. Carlson, Miller, and Fowler, “Outcomes of Hysterectomy.”

35
. J. P. Roovers, J. G. van der Bom, C. H. van der Vaart, and A. P. Heintz, “Hysterectomy and Sexual Wellbeing: Prospective Observational Study of Vaginal Hysterectomy, Subtotal Abdominal Hysterectomy, and Total Abdominal Hysterectomy,”
British Medical Journal,
vol. 327, no. 7418 (Oct. 4, 2003), pp. 774–78.

36
. B. Ranney and S. Abu-Ghazaleh, “The Future Function and Control of Ovarian Tissue Which Is Retained in Vivo During Hysterectomy,”
American Journal of
Obstetrics and Gynecology,
vol. 128 (1977), p. 626; N. Siddle, P. Sarrel, and M. Whitehead, “The Effect of Hysterectomy on the Age of Ovarian Failure: Identification of a Subgroup of Women and Premature Loss of Ovarian Function and Literature Reviews,”
Fertility and Sterility,
vol. 47 (1987), p. 94.

37
. B. J. Parys et al., “The Effects of Simple Hysterectomy on Vesicourethral Function,”
British Journal of Urology,
vol. 64 (1989), pp. 594–99; S. J. Snooks et al., “Perineal Nerve Damage in Genuine Stress Urinary Incontinence,”
British Journal
of Urology,
vol. 42 (1985), pp. 3–9; C. R. Wake, “The Immediate Effect of Abdominal Hysterectomy and Intervesical Pressure and Detrusor Activity,”
British
Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology,
vol. 87 (1980), pp. 901–2: A. G. Hanley, “The Late Urological Complications of Total Hysterectomy,”
British Journal of
Urology,
vol. 41 (1969), pp. 682–84.

38
. J. H. Manchester et al., “Premenopausal Castration and Documented Coronary Atherosclerosis,”
American Journal of Cardiology,
vol. 28 (1971), pp. 33–37; A. B. Ritterband et al., “Gonadal Function and the Development of Coronary Heart Disease,”
Circulation,
vol. 27 (1963), pp. 237–87.

39
. Stanley West,
The Hysterectomy Hoax
(New York: Doubleday, 1994); Harold Goldfarb,
The No-Hysterectomy Option
(New York: John Wiley and Sons, 1990).

Chapter 7

1
. J. Johnson, J. Canning, T. Kaneko, J. K. Pru, and J. L. Tilly, “Germline Stem Cells and Follicular Renewal in the Postnatal Mammalian Ovary,”
Nature,
vol. 428, no. 6979 (Mar. 11, 2004), pp. 145–50.

2
. R. H. Asch and R. Greenblatt, “Steroidogenesis in the Postmenopausal Ovary,”
Clinical Obstetrics and Gynecology,
vol. 4, no. 1 (1977), p. 85.

3
. E. R. Novak, B. Goldberg, and G. S. Jones, “Enzyme Histochemistry of Menopausal Ovary Associated with Normal and Abnormal Endometrium,”
American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology,
vol. 93 (1965), p. 669; C. R. Garcia and W. Cutler, “Preservation of the Ovary: A Reevaluation,”
Fertility and
Sterility,
vol. 42, no. 4 (Oct. 1985), pp. 510–14.

4
. K. P. McNatty et al., “The Production of Progesterone, Androgens, and Estrogens by Granulosa Cells, Thecal Tissue, and Stromal Tissue by Human Ovaries in Vitro,”
Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism,
vol. 49 (1979), p. 687.

5
. B. Dennefors et al., “Steroid Production and Responsiveness to Gonadotropin in Isolated Stromal Tissue of Human Postmenopausal Ovaries,”
American Journal
of Obstetrics and Gynecology,
vol. 136 (1980), p. 997; G. Mikhail, “Hormone Secretion of Human Ovaries,”
Gynecological Investigation,
vol. 1 (1970), p. 5; B. B. Sherwin and M. M. Gelfand, “The Role of Androgen in the Maintenance of Sexual Functioning in Oophorectomized Women,”
Psychosomatic Medicine,
vol. 49 (1987), p. 397.

6
. Mantak Chia and Maneewan Chia,
Cultivating Female Sexual Energy: Healing
Love Through the Tao
(Huntington, NY: Healing Tao Books, 1986), available from Healing Tao Books at
www.healingtao.com/b06.html
.

7
. Frank P. Paloucek and John B. Graham, “The Influence of Psychosocial Factors on the Prognosis in Cancer of the Cervix,”
Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences,
vol. 125 (1966), pp. 815–16.

8
. I. Gerendai, W. Rotsztejn, et al., “Unilateral Ovariotomy-Induced Luteinizing Hormone-Releasing Hormone Content Changes in the Two Halves of the Mediobasal Hypothalamus,”
Neuroscience Letters,
vol. 9 (1978), pp. 333–36.

9
. J. R. Givens, “Reproduction and Hormonal Alterations in Obesity,” in P. Bjorn-torp and B. Brodoff, eds.,
Obesity
(New York: Lippincott, 1992).