Dad Can’t Believe How Long It’s Taken To Get His Daughter Diagnosed With Endometriosis — 'How Many Women Suffer Like This?'
There has been more research on male pattern baldness than endometriosis.
Prostock-studio | Shutterstock A concerned dad called out the healthcare industry after years of watching his daughter suffer from a condition that isn’t taken seriously. According to the father, it took nearly a decade for his daughter to receive an endometriosis diagnosis. Unfortunately, she's far from the only woman dismissed by healthcare providers and forced to fight for a diagnosis while enduring pain.
The dad couldn’t believe how long it took for his daughter to be diagnosed with endometriosis after suffering for years.
Endometriosis is a chronic, painful medical condition in which tissue similar to the lining of the uterus grows outside of the uterus in areas where it doesn’t belong. During each menstrual cycle, the tissue lining the uterus thickens, breaks down, bleeds, and exits the body. With endometriosis, the misplaced tissue has no way of leaving the body, causing inflammation, cysts, and scar tissue in the ovaries, fallopian tubes, pelvic lining, and the outer surface of the uterus.
This can result in extremely painful period cramps, irregular periods, pain during intercourse, and pelvic pain that persists outside the menstruation period. According to the World Health Organization, an estimated 10% of women between the ages of 15 and 49 worldwide have endometriosis. That's about 190 million women globally. Unfortunately, many of them go undiagnosed since the condition is often dismissed by healthcare providers as typical menstruation symptoms.
Andy Davies’ 22-year-old daughter is one of these women. She was recently diagnosed with endometriosis after 8 years of painful symptoms with no answers.
"She's had problems since the age of 14, and literally it's been murder to try and get something sorted out where we can find out exactly what's going on," Davies shared in a TikTok. For the last 8 years, his daughter has been in constant debilitating pain, unable to leave her bed for weeks at a time, eat without vomiting, or sleep through the night.
"How many women have been suffering like this?" he asked, adding that it has been extremely difficult for him to watch his daughter deal with endometriosis while healthcare providers failed to take her pain seriously. He said that doctors merely provided his daughter with anti-sickness tablets and sent her on her way with no real answers
"The doctors don't do enough for you guys,” he said, addressing women. "Why are they not doing more for women with endometriosis or polycystic ovaries or anything that affects them like that? I just don’t understand, she’s in serious pain and I know [there are] thousands and thousands of women out there that are suffering and struggling ... with the same sort of thing.”
There are several reasons why many women suffer from endometriosis symptoms without receiving a diagnosis or proper treatment.
A primary reason is a general lack of awareness of the condition in the medical field. In fact, a 2021 study found that there is more research on male pattern baldness than there is on endometriosis. This disparity in research funding makes it hard for women's health concerns to be taken seriously.
Healthcare providers also tend to brush off endometriosis symptoms as those of a typical menstrual cycle. Women are told that period cramps, nausea, bloating, and fatigue are all common during menstruation. However, it is not common to have debilitating pain that keeps you in bed for weeks.
There is also a lack of specific diagnostic tests that can pick up endometriosis. It cannot be detected through a blood or imaging test. As of now, the only way doctors can officially diagnose endometriosis is if they see it with their naked eye during a laparoscopic procedure. According to the Mayo Clinic, the vast majority of endometriosis is superficial, meaning it's not easily visible without surgery.
But even though endometriosis is difficult to diagnose, has little research funding, and can have similar symptoms to typical periods, it does not mean that the pain it inflicts is any less real. Having someone who will listen and validate their pain is a start to changing the way the healthcare industry looks at endometriosis.
While Davies may feel helpless watching his daughter suffer, he is doing more than he can comprehend just by being her advocate.
“Thank you for being the dad that so many of us need and deserve. Thank you for raising awareness. Thank you for asking the questions and supporting her as she deserves,” one TikTok user commented on Davies’ video.
“It’s so refreshing seeing men talk about women’s health! You literally have to fight so much for help when it comes to endo,” another commenter wrote.
In a follow-up video, the dad shared that he is taking his advocacy even further by teaming up with a local media company to work on creating a documentary that raises endometriosis and Polycystic Ovary Syndrome awareness. He encouraged other women to share their stories to be featured.
“I’m just one man, but I’ll do everything I can to help,” he vowed.
Other than a diagnosis and effective treatment plans, women with endometriosis just want to be seen and heard. Their pain is not something that should be brushed under the rug for any reason. The reality is that endometriosis isn’t rare, it’s just been ignored for far too long.
Megan Quinn is a staff writer with a bachelor's degree in English and a minor in Creative Writing. She covers news and lifestyle topics that focus on justice in the workplace, personal relationships, parenting debates, and the human experience.
