I am walking 8k everyday for 8 days for Endometriosis UK in solidarity with those on their journey to diagnosis and beyond. Here is my story:

I have suffered from severely heavy and painful periods since the age of 12, along with regular pain in the tummy and back. I have spoken to multiple doctors countless times about this and as a result have been given many different pills, tried different ways of taking the pill and was also wrongfully diagnosed with Pelvic Inflammatory Disease when visiting A&E due to being in an unbearable amount of pain. I had a particularly horrible flare up in 2020 where I found myself crying in the toilets of my workplace on a daily basis because I felt so helpless.

I visited a specialist who told me that I have stage 4 endometriosis which is also growing dangerously close to my left kidney. He also told me that if I left it any later then there would have been a possibility of needing to remove my kidney; hearing all of this information at such a young age was terrifying. I then started my journey with my consultant to have 2 surgeries in the space of 3 months. 

There are many times that I have felt so helpless and lost, especially towards the start of my journey when I was completely clueless about endometriosis.

The average time to diagnose endometriosis is 8 years. If I was properly educated on the signs and symptoms of this extremely common condition, perhaps I would have suffered less. However, my goal now is to raise awareness and to support those that are suffering like I was.

This is why I'm Walking for Endo in July, 8k everyday for 8 days. For more information about endometriosis, please visit Endometriosis UK where there is lots of useful information, help and support.