Endometriosis: The Action Month That Nobody is Acting on

Endometriosis: The Action Month That Nobody is Acting on

March is Endometriosis Action Month, yet there is a very limited group of people who are aware of this and the vast majority already of them already suffer or know someone who is suffering from endometriosis. I find myself in the latter category which is why I feel compelled to contribute to Endometriosis Action Month.

I personally have seen the damage it can do, the pain it can cause and I have felt the frustration and hopelessness that the search for a diagnosis and the battle up to and following this causes. It is one of the biggest medical injustices anyone can be put through and it has come to be common practice.

Even large corporations who are honouring Endometriosis Action Month are guilty of including misguided, and to an extent, harmful information through their awareness campaigns, which goes against the concept of an awareness campaign very dramatically.

Endometriosis is described on the NHS website as “where cells similar to those in the lining of the womb (uterus) grow in other parts of the body”. Side effects are listed as heavy periods, severe period pain, pain when using the toilet and pain during or after sex among others.

However, this description does not even begin to cover the reality of the excruciating pain – continuous mental and physical exhaustion, not to mention the medical mistreatment that women face every day which prolongs symptoms and denies them their right to appropriate medical care.

In a condense but more to the point form, endometriosis is when tissue similar to the lining of the uterus grows outside of the uterus and reaches other parts of the body. Once endometriosis begins to grow it does not stop and has even been found growing in places like the chest, the brain and in some cases endometrial tissue has been found growing in the eye sockets.

Debilitating is the word that can most accurately describe endometriosis and its effect on those who are plagued by it. It can take away basic human function like sleeping, eating, working and going to the bathroom and make these activities one of the biggest struggles in someone’s life.

Being that endometriosis affects around 10% of the world’s women, it is a shocking revelation that it is incredibly understudied and there continues to be relatively little known about the condition.

Research articles that are concerned with the attractiveness levels of women with endometriosis, the sexual satisfaction on male partners of women with endometriosis, and qualitative research on the impact of endometriosis on male partners respectively (I am not kidding, I can’t believe it either) are a complete waste of time and money when you consider that an endometriosis diagnosis takes on average just under 10 whole years.

This 10-year wait does not mean the end of the problem either, it means finally having diagnostic surgery and removing these adhesions – the recovery after this – the subsequent regrowth of endo tissue – more surgery – more recovery and then surgery again! Continuing on from this, women with endometriosis are often offered a hysterectomy (removal of the uterus) or medically induced menopause in an attempt to treat the problem – two totally life changing events with massive implications for the patient.

Even treatments aimed at managing pain and “curing” this disease- such as opioids and hormonal contraception- are often considered largely ineffective for many. One woman living with

endometriosis told me “…my hormonal coil hasn’t slowed the progression of my endometriosis, it has simply made the symptoms manageable, at best.”

To give the world’s biggest understatement, it simply isn’t fair.

Another woman living with endometriosis told me that “the hardest part isn’t just the pain, the physical deficits, or the social isolation at the expense of a chronic illness. It is the constant waiting and fighting to be heard”

“It’s the years of waiting for surgery to prove that you are actually sick, only to be told that there is no resolution and it will only continue to spread. A diagnosis is not the end of the fighting”

Endometriosis UK’s message for the 2026 action month is endometriosis doesn’t wait. “Endometriosis doesn’t wait whilst you’re trying to get a diagnosis or access care. It doesn’t wait for your career. Your education. Your social life or your relationships” they state on their website.

The ‘State of Endometriosis Care in the UK’ report can also be found on their website and includes some further evidence of the sheer neglect this disease is treated with. Key findings show that diagnosis waiting times have gone up by almost 18 months since 2020. Also, since 2020 the number of women who have been told they are exaggerating their claims by health professionals has risen, unbelievably, from 75% in 2020 to 82% in 2025. The report also shows more women are being forced to admit themselves to A&E because of their symptoms. It also shows that women are more likely to visit A&E multiple times because of their symptoms.

We can all do our bit to change this. Talking to your friends about Endometriosis Action Month is a great way to bring awareness to the appalling medical treatment that women are facing today. To go another step further, Clarks on Lindsay Street has hosted an Endometriosis UK fundraiser which featured music artist from across the nation.

I want to finish with this: having to watch someone you love being turned away at every opportunity only to continue to get worse is the most frustrating thing I have ever experienced. There are times where I feel that I am taken more seriously about someone else’s symptoms just because of my gender. It is treated as a secondary issue just because it’s a women’s health issue, and it’s abhorrent. There are serious changes that need to be made, and this is not before it is too late, it is already too late for a great number of women. If this article goes even any lengths to drive change on this then it will be the most important piece I will ever write.