Question:
First of all, I want to thank you all for responding so quickly and getting me a lot of initial information on this hideous condition so quickly and efficiently! No wonder so many of your messages to one another are so loving and grateful. In looking around further on the Net, I found the following additional information. It's a Pelvic Congestion Syndrome Fact Sheet posted by the Society of Cardiovascular & Interventional Radiology. It's rather long, but here it is if you're interested.

Answer: There are many causes of chronic pelvic pain. Some can be easily diagnosed and treated, but in some cases the cause is difficult to determine and women have reported suffering pain for months and even years. Doctors estimate that in about half the cases, the cause of the pain is varicose veins in the pelvis, which often goes undiagnosed. Varicose veins are twisted, swollen or stretched veins that can cause severe pain. The blood in the large veins that drain the ovaries normally flows in an upward direction towards the heart. In the case of varicose veins of the pelvis, the valves in the vein that control blood flow are not working properly. The blood flows away from the heart and pools in the veins around the ovaries, the uterus and other pelvic structures. This can cause these veins to swell and become painful.