March is Endometriosis Awareness Month
A globally recognised month for endometriosis, March was last year officially declared by Governor General Sir Patrick Allen as Endometriosis Awareness Month, following a petition from the local BASE (Better Awareness & Support for Endometriosis) Foundation.
Executive director and co-founder of the Foundation, Shauna Fuller-Clarke, said that one in eight girls and women worldwide are affected by the disease, and nationally over 100,000 females, many unknowingly, have the condition.
Endometriosis is an often-painful disorder in which tissue that normally lines the inside of the uterus — the endometrium — grows outside the uterus. It most commonly affects the ovaries, bowel, or the tissue lining the pelvis. Rarely, endometrial tissue may spread beyond the pelvic region.
The primary symptom of endometriosis is severe pelvic pain often associated with the menstrual period. Common signs and symptoms of the disease may include painful periods (dysmenorrhea); pain with intercourse; pain with bowel movements or urination; excessive bleeding during menstruation or bleeding between periods, and infertility. Other symptoms may include fatigue, diarrhoea, constipation, bloating or nausea, especially during menstrual periods.
