
I have been found guilty of running my mouth on issues i didnt fully understand, most especially around people with chronic illnesses . Sometimes you catch yourself saying things you shouldn’t , being insensitive , and or even harming people with words that can’t be taken back. Somewhere in the good book it is said that ‘even a fool is thought wise when they stay quiet”, i beg , if you have no kind words – shut it your mouth!
This week i met an amazing lady, Ms Grace – she is a nurse and founded the Endometriosis foundation in uganda to create awareness about the illness, to advocate for best health care services, to support and find help for women in early stages of their diagnosis of endometriosis.
Did you know that one in every 10 women of reproductive age have endometriosis ( a chronic condition where the inner linning of the uterus grows in other places outside the uterus) often leading to infertility? Endometriosis depends on the female hormone estrogen and is therefore rare after menopause and or before puberty. It has four stages and often grows in the fallopian tubes , ovaries , vagina, bladder, intestines, making it difficult for most women with the condition to become pregnant because of the damage to the sites it occupies.
Did you also know that sever period pains are not normal, that painful sex and irregular periods could be a sign, that pelvic pain , ovulation pain, lower back pain among other symptoms we experience during that time of the month but have chosen to normalize, are absolutely not okay? Grace’s story not only opened my eyes , it also gave me the hope that we can all work together to create awareness about this condition and together find some solutions to avert it.
Some of the ways we can do this together is encouraging ourselves to lead healthy lives , excercise regulary, maintain a healthy diet , get enough rest, if already diagnosed , try pelvic massages, reduce alcohol and Caffeine intake, ans above all BE KIND!
Grace and all the advocates for better health care provision on this matter need both you and i to join the fight and create awareness about the condition. There is never enough noise about a matter as critical as this . And the next time you thing to say an unkind word to someone whose condition you understand not, ……think again!
Life is already punching us from every corner, choose to spread grace and kindness !