As a member of Team EndoFound, I am taking to the streets on a mission to End Endo. 

As someone who has suffered from Endometriosis for 17+ years and spent 16 of those years trying to find a doctor who would treat me, I can tell you first hand how devastating this disease can be. I have spent thousands of dollars on medical procedures trying to figure out what was causing my pain and seen over 15 medical professionals seeking help for what I suspected all along to be this disease (which I had to "diagnose" myself through matching my symptoms to an endometriosis forum since every doctor I had seen always insisted my pain was "normal"). 

Finally, after almost a year of infertility, I found a doctor who would agree to surgery, only to find that not only did I indeed have Endo (stage III) but it was so bad that all of my pelvic organs were adhered to one another, I had a large blockage in my intestines and one of my fallopian tubes was so damaged it had to be removed--the other barely hanging on. Although I am so unbelievably grateful for the doctor I have, this is a clear indication of how grossly overlooked and understudied this disease is by the medical community. No one should have to go through something like this and no one should be continually gaslighted by medical professionals saying there is nothing wrong with you or Endo is not that serious. If you are experiencing pain there is something wrong and all cases of Endometriosis are serious.

 Endometriosis is an extremely painful condition that affects an estimated 200 million people worldwide-----1 out of every 10 women have it and yet on average it takes about 11 years to diagnose-----meaning an introduction to treatments such as surgery and hormonal intervention can be late in the process, greatly increasing the chances of internal organs and fertility already being affected. This is absolutely insane to me and downright unacceptable. It's time to raise awareness, educate the public, increase research, and drastically bring down the number of years for diagnosis so women and girls like me can get the treatment they need sooner.

Let's End Endo!