Individuals with endometriosis need your help now to adapt endometriosis education to online learning, fund cutting-edge research on endometriosis treatment and diagnosis, advocate for endometriosis education on the state and national level, and promote disease recognition in our broader communities.

My Story

I was diagnosed with PCOS in my high school years. I had acne (and still do,) painful periods and a 10lb weight gain/ loss was normal for me. I knew the feeling of having cysts on my ovaries & what kind of pain usually followed. I guess for the past 10+ years, it became almost “normal” for me to feel the way I do.

In February 2016, I was teaching dance and noticed I could not stand up straight without being in copious amounts of pain. I left early to see my doctor and he told me I had an ovarian cyst that was starting to torsion on my right ovary. He then told me to meet him at the hospital where I would be prepped for my first pelvic surgery to remove the cyst in order to save my ovary. 

In surgery, my doctor removed the cyst, but also located endometriosis on my ovaries and other areas. My doctor (an OBGYN) removed most of the endometriosis he found. The endo was so invasive on my bowel that my doctor was not confident he could remove it without causing any damage to my colon. I fully recovered, but still continued to feel those “painful cysts.”

A year had passed, and I noticed yet another cyst was starting to grow. Coincidently on the same exact day only one year later, I was rushed to the hospital to remove another large cyst, only this time on my left ovary. My doctor found more endometriosis on my ovaries and noticed the bowel endo had not grown too much. He removed the endo on my ovaries and said the pain should be gone.

Fast forward to 2020 where I’ve seen countless doctors who’ve told me to try another birth control, (mis)diagnosed me with basically everything besides endometriosis and told me I need to exercise more.. (side note, I am a professional dancer lol). My pain had become so constant, I was missing work, milestones and everyday life events. I finally found the only endometriosis excision specialist who accepted my insurance located in NYC, but she had a 4 month wait list. The only way this doctor would see me is if my endometriosis would show up on a special MRI scan. I know in the endo community how rare it is for endo is to show up on a scan, but I had nothing to lose. 

On the day of my MRI, I had my “normal” amount of pain, but noticed it increased during the scans when they were pressing all over my pelvis... iykyk. I shortly received a phone call saying I had appendicitis, and I needed to go to the ER immediately. My MRI also showed deep infiltrating pelvic endometriosis, which I’ve never seen on a scan before. It is extremely rare for endometriosis to show up on any scans, so I had a feeling my endometriosis was growing at a rapid rate.

Fast forward to the next day where I found out my appendix was okay, and my surgeon wanted to operate sooner rather than later. She knew my endometriosis was the cause of all the pain I was experiencing, and for once I felt heard.

My excision surgery happened on February 23rd 2021, and it was a success. It took me 10+ years and multiple unnecessary surgeries before I was properly diagnosed and treated. By sharing my story and raising money and awareness, I hope to help others who are suffering to receive the support and care they deserve. Every one out of 10 born females have endometriosis. With something so common, the lack of research and understanding for this disease is absurd.