Model urges schools to educate students on endometriosis to help women get diagnosed early

March is endometriosis awareness month and despite the condition affecting one in ten women, many people are still unaware that it even exists. 

Lauren Colfer, 31, from Shortlands in Bromley, lost her kidney as a result of endometriosis and wants more people to be aware of the seriousness of the condition.

Miss Colfer’s endometriosis caused a blockage in the ureter over time, and slowly caused irreversible loss of kidney function, which went almost undetected for a long time, despite her going to the doctor with symptoms not dissimilar to urinary tract infections.

But tests were inconclusive – before an ultrasound scan confirmed the kidney damage.

She said: “I just want people to realise that endometriosis is not just period pain – it is a whole-body disease. Period problems are just the tip of the iceberg.”

Endometriosis (pronounced en- doh – mee – tree – oh – sis) is the name given to a condition where cells similar to the ones in the lining of the womb are found elsewhere in the body.

It is a chronic and often debilitating condition that can cause painful or heavy periods and may also lead to infertility, bowel and bladder problems. Some have pain all the time, not just during their period.

Miss Colfer, who works as a client service specialist and a model, was first diagnosed with endometriosis in 2017, and is currently recovering from an operation where she had excision surgery to remove endometriosis and to have her kidney removed.

She wants more to be done in schools to help educate young girls and encourage sufferers to get diagnosed early.

“It is not normal to need to have a day off work or school for period pain,” she said. 

“Even though that is a sign that something is wrong, it is still brushed off and we are told from a young age that you just have to get on with it.

“I think awareness starts with education and it needs to be taught in schools.

“Kids will be kids and you will giggle when you have your sexual health lessons, but because we don’t give them enough information at a young age they go into adulthood not really having a clue. 

“I’m not saying we need to scare them, but we need to teach kids about it early as it could help them in the future.”

The cause of endometriosis is unknown and there is no definite cure but there are treatments available to help ease the symptoms.

Over the counter painkillers and hormonal contraceptives are the most common treatments.

Excision Surgery, considered the ‘gold standard’ of treatment, which cuts away patches of endometriosis tissue but in more extreme cases, like Miss Colfer’s, the removal of all or part of an organ is required.

Excision surgery is difficult to access and the wait times are long.

Many, including Miss Colfer, have had to turn to private medical care to have surgery with trusted specialists as quickly as possible.

Miss Colfer runs an Instagram page documenting her journey called @its.not.the.endo, that also provides information and support to other sufferers.

Many sufferers have found social media to be a useful tool for sharing their experiences and building a community.

“This whole experience has made me so passionate about advocating for my health and helping other people,” she said.

“I am very open about my experience, but it all started when I made a post one day on Facebook talking about having surgery for endometriosis and a friend of mine pointed me towards a Facebook group that ended up teaching me so much. 

“If I hadn’t been so open, I would have just been in the dark about the whole thing. 

“I am a big advocate for health problems being to be talked about openly. It’s all down to the individual but if talking about endometriosis and periods makes someone uncomfortable then I don’t care, if it means I am helping someone else who really needs it. .

“Social media is very helpful because even if you don’t know anyone in real life who is going through it, you can easily find someone online.

“I am always speaking to people through my Instagram and I try to offer support and guidance to help them navigate through asking for help from their GP. 

“We help ourselves as sharing is like therapy, but we also help other people – sometimes without even realising.”

You can follow Laurens journey here: https://www.instagram.com/its.not.the.endo/For more information on endometriosis please visit: https://www.endometriosis-uk.org/