The Social Impact of Endometriosis in Brittanie's Life

“I felt like a lot of my symptoms were ignored, and blown off unfortunately,” states Brittanie Morgan: A 34-year-old woman who was diagnosed with Endometriosis when she was 29. Brittanie is one of the millions of women who experience late diagnoses for conditions that specifically affect women, such as Endometriosis. Her story is representative of what millions struggle through.?

Though Brittanie was formally diagnosed when she was 29, she first started experiencing symptoms when she was 20. During the 9-year gap in which she was undiagnosed, she suffered immense physical pain during her menstrual cycle causing her to miss parties, baby showers, date nights, gatherings, and other social events. She used to make excuses, work or graduate school, as to why she couldn’t come because she was embarrassed to state the real reason. She felt guilty not showing up for her loved ones yet also felt like she would be a burden if she showed up not being able to be fully present.?

She eventually decided to approach a doctor, realizing that her pain was not expected. Additionally, she faced side effects such as bloating, back pain, and fatigue. When she went to the doctor, they were ultimately unable to diagnose Brittanie with anything.

Several reasons contributed to the gap between the start of Brittanie’s pain and her diagnosis. Several of Brittanie’s friends didn’t understand her pain and attributed it to factors such as stress. She didn’t have her health insurance plan in her college years so she didn’t have a primary care physician she could go to. Yet, the biggest reason that contributed to the gap was that Brittanie knew that many doctors didn’t believe her. She “kept going back to the ER; they assumed I just wanted prescription pills”, and that’s what they gave her. At one point, she was even misdiagnosed with Pelvic Inflammatory Disease a year before she got her accurate diagnosis.

While being treated in the hospital for PID, a doctor informed Brittanie that she didn’t need to stay at the hospital at all and could go home. At first, Brittanie was surprised and then became upset, as she had put her entire life on hold in order to get diagnosed in the first place. Surprisingly, that doctor actually ended up being the one to give Brittanie her accurate diagnosis and has been her doctor up until recently when she retired.?

Brittanie received laparoscopic surgery in 2018, which as of now, is the only way to definitively diagnose Endometriosis. It was only after this surgery that Brittanie found out what Endometriosis was. “The only person I knew with [Endometriosis] was Tia Mowry,” she said, jokingly stating that that’s what reassured her that it was a legitimate diagnosis. Other than the laparoscopy, Brittanie has received two other procedures: an HSG test for infertility issues in February 2020 and a second surgery in October 2021 to remove one of her blocked and inflamed Fallopian tubes as a result of her Endometriosis.?

In the past, Brittanie didn’t take medical treatment for Endometriosis and instead opted for a “holistic” lifestyle. And after educating herself on Endometriosis, she decided that she’d instead make lifestyle changes than take medicine such as Tylenol and Advil.?

But, she is trying out birth control, saying that she’s “not sure how she’s liking it just yet,” but that positive changes are present. Despite not wanting to intake other medication, she knows that birth control helps regulate her cycle based on her experiences in college. At one point, her pain was severe enough that she had to make frequent trips to the hospital, and because of that, she is giving herself six months to see the effectiveness of birth control.?

When Chinmayee, our research intern, asked if there were things Brittanie wishes she could have changed about her whole experience, Brittanie states that she wished her doctors validated her concerns instead of disregarding nearly everything she told them. “I’m not mentally insane, I’m not having a psychotic episode, I know something is wrong with me.” She says that Endometriosis has really taught her to listen to her body.?

Brittanie also wishes that surgery wasn’t the only option for diagnosis, that people are open to sharing their menstrual cycle experience, and that there be a definitive cure for Endometriosis. Because even though surgery can remove some cells, the disease can still pop back up again. Though there are so many things she wishes she could change about her condition, she’s learning to live with and embrace her new reality.?

Finally, she says that the only not-so-bad part (firmly stating that there is NOTHING good about Endometriosis) of Endometriosis is finding a community in EndoBlack. They understood what she was going through and gave her the support system that she’s been looking for for ages.

At IndyGeneUS AI, we understand Brittanie’s struggle. We are devoted to building a supportive, strong, and resilient community for women who struggle with PCOS, Endometriosis, and Uterine Fibroids. And every day, we move closer to that goal.