My name is Meghan and I was diagnosed with endometriosis in 2023, when I was 25 years old. After my local excision surgeon failed to provide pain relief, I decided to pursue treatment at the Center for Endometriosis Care in Atlanta.
My journey with endometriosis began around the age of ten, when I started struggling with debilitating gastrointestinal symptoms. At the start of my periods, I would often spend days curled up on the couch with severe pain. However, despite the dozens of doctors I consulted with, no one brought up endometriosis and my pain was often dismissed as being “all in my head.”
It wasn’t until I started nursing school and one of my professors taught on endometriosis that I even heard of the condition. As my professor explained the disease, I realized my periods were NOT normal and my inability to function for days at a time WAS a concern, so I made an appointment with a local OBGYN. That appointment led to years of birth control, which naturally did not help but rather resulted in a host of side effects. I struggled through life until I started doing my own research in the hopes that there might be a better option out there for managing my disease.
It was through that Google search that I found Nancy’s Nook and my life was forever changed. I learned all the far-reaching implications of endometriosis and suddenly, not just my painful periods but indeed all my “medical mystery” symptoms were explained. I learned about excision surgery and was blessed to have a local surgeon within an hour’s drive.
After a long six months of waiting, I had surgery in February of 2023. For three months, I felt better than I ever had before in my life. Every one of my symptoms, not just my painful periods but so many others, resolved, and I was living a life I never dreamed possible for myself. By month four, however, it began to change. Symptoms crept back in, periods worsened, and I was left in a worse state than prior to my surgery.
My endometriosis has resulted in an inability to function in my job, personal life, and friendships. As much as I hate to admit it, it often feels like it defines who I am.
My fiancé and I decided to pursue treatment with the Center for Endometriosis Care in the hopes that it will result in long lasting improvement. But it came at an enormous financial cost. When I reached out to MomminWithEndo, my surgery was scheduled in just three weeks and our wedding was only two months away.
When I contacted MomminWithEndo, I said that receiving their help would allow my fiancé and I to build our lives together out from under the shadow of endometriosis and its implications and, Lord willing, start a family together soon. My life and my fertility depended on being able to seek treatment at the Center for Endometriosis Care but as costs mounted, seeking (and more specifically, paying for) care seemed almost as debilitating to our lives as living with endometriosis had been. It was estimated that my surgery will be a minimum of $10,000 but could likely hit $20,000 and that is before travel costs. Paying for it would take everything I had in the bank.
After I found out MomminWithEndo was able to help pay toward my medical bills, I didn’t even have the words to say as my mind and heart were so full! Once I had surgery, I was very ready to heal up, get married, and get back to working with MN Endo Warriors to double down on our fight against this brutal disease!
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