Having painful periods and getting diagnosed can be a tough and traumatic experience for anyone and more so when you’re very young. I was 11. To express this, I’ve written a poetry piece – a spoken poetry piece.
You can watch my video here on my YouTube channel or read my piece below:
Spoken Poetry: “Endo…What?!”
“Women have a habit of exaggerating pain.” He said.
“It’s only your period.” He said.
“Now go back home and learn to take it.” He said.“I’ve heard this before” She said
“My daughter does not exaggerate.” She said
“She will not struggle for help like I did.” She saidI was 11
My mum, 46
Two women
A generation apart
But our stories
Were the same.
Actually,
There was a difference.
I had, my mum.
She knew the pain
She knew the fear
She knew the loneliness.
She knew
She knew it all
All too well
And I?
My journey
was about to start.
I, was about to find out.“Let’s refer her to a gynaecologist” He said
“Yes, let’s do that.” She said
“I hope we get answers.” I saidA month went by
And so did another
then another
then another…
NHS waiting lists
leave you
hanging
waiting
wondering.
But time,
is beautiful
It always passes
Your opportunity
always comes.
Mine did too.
I sat there
nervous
Waiting to be asked
Waiting to answer
Waiting to be heard
Waiting to know
Waiting to be treated
Waiting to feel better
Waiting, somewhere
secretly,
for a miracle.
The conversations
flowed.
And so did the tests“How do you feel?” She said
“I feel nauseated, tired and sad” I said
“How often do you change your pad?” She said
“Every hour” I said
“What’s your level of pain out of 10?” She said
“Can it be more than 10?!” I said
I was scared
Will she trust me?
Will she see my pain?
Will she see me
as someone
genuine?
as someone
suffering?
As someone
genuinely suffering?!
Or as just another girl,
exaggerating?!
I wanted to cry
But I wanted to be believed
I wanted to feel better
But I wanted to be believed
Anxiety was taking over
But I needed to be believed.
What if
she didn’t?
What if
I get stuck like this
forever?!
What if
I’ll mourn myself?!
What if
nothing will change?!“You have endometriosis” She said
“En-doh…what?!” I said
“en-do-me-tri-o-sis” She said
“I’ll give you more information” She said
“But, there’s no cure” She said
“But we’ll help you manage it” She said
“But it’ll take time” She said“There’s no cure?!” I said
“So I’ll suffer like this?! Always?! Forever?!” I said
“How will I live?!” I said“You’ll find a way” a quiet voice said
And how could I not?!
My mum became
my guide
my strength
my constant
She went through
so much pain
And now
I felt her pain too.
Just as she
felt mine.
She saw her
in me
But she wanted
better for me
And so she fought
for me.“Thank you mummy” I said
“Just keep fighting” She said
————
If you would like to read more about my endometriosis journey, then you can here:
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I have a podcast too. You can check them out here along with their transcripts or if you don’t wanna read them then they’re available on Spotify and Apple Podcasts too.
