There’s been a lot of talk about women’s health recently. But there is one common ailment that is not getting very much press. Endometriosis is a common problem that women of reproductive age suffer from. It occurs when tissue from the uterus spreads to other organs. It causes heavy bleeding and cramps during a woman’s period (and in between periods); it can even make women infertile.
The most common treatments are combinations of hormone therapy and pain medicine. Most women can do well with just taking the birth control pill to lighten periods. Some women have it worse.
I have this disease myself. I tried many different birth control pills. I finally just ended up having a hysterectomy because I don’t want children. But there are treatments out there that can help women who want children. They can do surgery to remove as much of the excess tissue as possible while preserving the uterus and ovaries. They call this “conservative surgery.” This can help women have children, but the pain and symptoms will probably return later.
Nearly one in ten women suffers from endometriosis; 176 million women around the world are affected. This is so common, yet it is still misunderstood. Documentary filmmaker Shannon Cohn has made a film to shed some light on this common ailment. “Endo What?” explains the details of this ailment in hopes that it will bring some awareness of endometriosis.
Cohn says that endometriosis puts a $119 billion a year burden on society. This is not just a female problem; this affects everyone. It has been twenty years since Cohn herself was diagnosed, and the treatments have not evolved much. She is hoping that this film will raise awareness among doctors as well as patients.
Here is the trailer for the film:
Featured image via flickr, available under Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 2.0 Generic license.
