Carla Cressy shares her endometriosis story with us
January 2023
Hello and welcome to our first blog of the year.
A new year can often mean resolutions and making plans to start thinking about fertility treatment, thinking that this year will be my year to become a parent.
I know this feeling all too well. My birthday is on New Years Eve and would always leave me trying to be positive even though another year had passed and I still hadn't managed to get my much longed-for baby. January was always about making plans for acupuncture or a new fitness regime or a diet to get me in the best possible place physically and mentally to get pregnant. Ten of those years came and went. So for all of you out there thinking about this year being "your year" - we hear you, we understand and we are here to help.
What we talked about in January...
The first month of the year has featured some fascinating sessions on Let's all Talk Fertility.
Becky Kearns, aka Defining Mum, joined us for our first session to share with us her experience of parenting via donor eggs after a diagnosis of POI. Becky is an inspiration and I recommend watching this one for anyone who is considering a donor as a route to parenthood.
I often share that it is through a donor egg that I finally got pregnant as I turned 48 years old after 10 long years of trying.
We have also chatted to the incredible Barbara Scott from The Association of Fertility Reflexologists. The knowledge that Barbara has is remarkable, and if you are thinking about or having reflexology to support you on your journey then I recommend delving into this hour long discussion.
Did you know that a fertility reflexologist can help get your cycle on track, relieve symptoms associated with endometriosis, and help with implantation. It's worth finding a Barbara Scott trained reflexologist near you - she is world-renowned for her knowledge and training and I’m delighted to share that she will be at the Fertility Show LIVE in May.
And finally, this week we talked to Sarah Clark from the Hong Tao Clinic (part of the Acupuncture Fertility Network). I first met Sarah at The Fertility Show last year when she was one of our guest speakers. As a long-term user of acupuncture, for fertility and other things, I'm a big fan and it was great to find out more about how acupuncture can support fertility in the planning and when going through treatment.
If you are already a Full Access Pass holder you can watch this talk, the full on-demand library and every other LIVE session throughout the year including our popular "Ask Anything" Q&A sessions. Or if not, click on the button below and sign up!
The Fertility Show - tickets on sale soon!
I’ve mentioned The Fertility Show a few times already in this month's Blog. It takes place on the 20th & 21st May at London Olympia and tickets will be going on sale very soon. Make sure you are following us on social to be the first to hear about tickets, whether you can join us in person or to catch up with all our incredible seminars online. We will be joined by over 70 companies who are all there to help you on your road to parenthood: clinics, holistic therapies, new technology, support groups and much more.
The Fertility Show is a safe and supportive place to talk to clinicians and experts and meet the teams from leading clinics from the UK and all over the world, to hear from the world’s leading experts who join us in our seminar theatres, plus you can chat to fertility ambassadors who will be sharing their stories from the Let's all Talk Fertility Lounge.
One person who will be at the Show and is certainly an inspiration is the incredible Carla Cressy, the founder and CEO of The Endometriosis Foundation, and is our guest for this month’s interview. She is a remarkable woman who is determined to change legislation around endometriosis and ensure that women are offered the chance to freeze their eggs on the NHS before embarking on invasive treatment.
My Endometriosis story started back in 2004 when I was just thirteen. Despite suffering with all the common symptoms of Endometriosis, it took over a year for my mum and I to convince my GP to refer me to see a gynaecologist where I had my first trans vaginal scan. Feeling relieved I’d finally have answers to my crippling pain, the gynaecologist told me everything was normal, that periods are supposed to be painful, and she sent me on my way. I was fourteen at the time. Still, mum and I persisted and every time I had my period, which was every two weeks, I would find myself at the GP surgery seeking answers for my excruciating pain and collapsing episodes.
By the time I reached eighteen, I had trailed seven different hormone pills. Nothing was helping. My symptoms impacted much of my teenage years. My pain and concerns were dismissed time and time again.
I moved away from home with a boyfriend when I was twenty, and again I was continuously back and forth to my new GP, facing the same endless battle with getting a referral to see a gynaecologist. It seemed nobody cared. A few weeks before my twenty-first birthday I discovered my symptoms were mimicking those of cervical cancer – irregular bleeding, pain during sex, pelvic pain. For a long time, I was sure I had cervical cancer. Endometriosis or Adenomyosis were nowhere to be seen on the internet back in 2015.
Despite my worries and persistently asking for help, because of my age I was denied a smear test three times. It wasn’t until I started experiencing bladder and bowel symptoms where I would find myself regularly being admitted to hospital and unable to hold down a job, this was when things started to be taken seriously.
I was twenty-five when I was diagnosed with Endometriosis, over a decade after my symptoms started. My diagnosis came around during an emergency two-part operation to save my life. I was admitted for suspected acute appendicitis, only after removing my appendix we realised it wasn’t the cause of my pain. I spent three weeks in the hospital, septic, unwell, and when I was taken back into surgery a few days after my appendicectomy, doctors discovered stage four pelvic, bladder and bowel endometriosis after cutting me from hip to hip and draining over two litres of blood from my pelvis.
I was later referred to a specialist hospital to continue with my treatment. In October twenty-twenty, aged twenty-nine, I had no other choice than to undergo a total hysterectomy, bladder reconstruction surgery and a bowel resection, leaving me with an ileostomy (stoma) which I was lucky to be able to have reverses in June of last year.
I’m now thirty-one, it’s been eight years since my diagnosis and although I was fortunate enough to be able to freeze a small number of eggs, the uncertainty of my future and the ability to have a biological child lingers over me every single day.
Like most people, I had never heard of Endometriosis. If I had known then what I know now, I know my life could have been completely different.
I set up The Endometriosis Foundation after spending countless days and nights searching for information, support, advice, guidance, and there simply wasn’t any. My ultimate goal for the charity is for it to be everything I never had.
Our official launch event will be a great opportunity to not only introduce the charity, but to also shine light on the many issues people with Endometriosis face. We will be focusing a lot this year on fertility awareness given the current diagnosis time takes on average 8 years, fertility needs to be prioritised. I understand not everybody may want children, but I believe everybody should have the choice.
To anyone concerned for their future fertility you must advocate for yourself. I can’t stress enough how important it is that you thoroughly understand your treatment options and are aware of any risks involved in your treatment for Endometriosis and the effect it may have on your fertility. Our website has lots of helpful information and tips provided by experts and others going through similar experiences, to help guide you through your journey with Endometriosis and fertility.
www.theendometriosisfoundation.org
That's all for this edition - see you soon and take care of yourselves.
Laura x