William Croyle is a former writer with the Cincinnati Enquirer. He is the author of 11 books, including co-author with Tamer Seckin, MD, of The Doctor Will See You Now: Recognizing and Treating Endometriosis and EndoMEtriosis: A Guide for Girls.
Jenn Morel’s joy during a phone conversation last month was infectious. Her positive energy palpable. Her humor sparkling. These attributes were somewhat astonishing considering the pain she was in just seven months ago that halted her…
Chloe Scharffenberg has had three endometriosis surgeries in the last five years. She will have a colonoscopy and endoscopy next month to determine if the disease is affecting other areas of her body. The last two surgeries were excision, considered…
Mabila Kalala Ghislaine’s health situation is simple to explain. The solution, however, is complex. “There is a name for my pain, but there is so much ignorance about it here,” she said. “I’m struggling. My life…
In January 1988, a group of faculty and students from Tufts Bay State Medical Center in Springfield, Massachusetts, drove four hours southwest one day to observe Dr. Harry Reich in action. Dr. Reich was a gynecologist with a practice in Kingston,…
Tickets for EndoFound’s annual Medical Conference and Patient Day are selling quickly, though registrations are still open for both. The organization’s signature Medical Conference and Patient Day will each be two-day events with…
“Twenty-four years.” Callie Greenberg repeated that phrase during an interview last month about her endometriosis journey. She was referring to the 24 years it took before, one day, she finally found a doctor who showed her compassion,…
Brionna Kirkendoll felt severe pelvic pain when she had her first period at 14. Doctors initially told her it was gas. When the pain didn’t subside, they wasted no time putting her on birth control—and kept her on it for nearly…
The first six lines of Ayten Soylu’s somber ballad “Breathe” directly and poignantly express what women worldwide with endometriosis are crying out from the depths of their souls: I want to breathe Not just survive Do you…
For roughly the first six years that Ren Schulz experienced debilitating pelvic pain and other symptoms, she saw the same gynecologist, hoping with each visit that she’d finally find relief. “I started seeing her when I was a teenager,…
Maddison Stanley has been down a vicious health road that few women her age can imagine. “It’s been difficult and emotional,” Stanley said. “I wouldn’t wish it on anyone. I hope things change with this disease…
Jamie Kronstadt, 35, suffered from severe endometriosis symptoms for 20 years before having excision surgery in September near her Massachusetts home. But six hours after the hospital discharged her, she was vomiting and in agonizing pain.…
Emorie Harty fought through tears as she told her gut-wrenching story of having a hysterectomy five years ago at the age of 25. Before her surgery, she’d suffered from endometriosis for nearly 13 years without a diagnosis. But she’s…
As Gianna Peko pushed her weary body through Central Park toward the New York City Marathon finish line, nearly five hours after she began the race on Staten Island, the magnitude of her accomplishment hit her. “It’s hard to explain…
On May 8, Mara Wilson returned to the auditorium at Dolores Huerta Middle School in Burbank, California, where she had been a student 25 years prior. The actress and writer was there with three other ENPOWR educators to teach approximately…
Robert McNally has known his sister-in-law, Jenna Knoblauch, since she was a teenager, when her endometriosis symptoms started. Aware of the pain and grief the disease has caused her, McNally applied this past spring to run the New York City…
Gianna Peko had a blood transfusion when she was 13 after losing a significant amount of blood during her menstrual period. It was a sign of what her life would be like for the next decade. “When I would get my period, it was horrible—middle…
Nearly all stories from endometriosis patients about their journeys with the disease have a level of incredulity. It could be the time it took for them to get diagnosed, the imprudent comments made by their healthcare providers, or the ineffective…
Patrick McCoy and Caileigh Cashman have been together for a little more than three years. Caileigh had been dealing with endometriosis symptoms well before they met, and Patrick knew something was wrong pretty quickly in their relationship.…
On November 2, Elsa Smith will run for EndoFound’s Team EndoStrong in the New York City Marathon. On November 6, she will have her second endometriosis excision surgery, hoping it will end the pain that’s gripped her for most of…
When Starlynn Dris’ doctor told her a few years ago that she had endometriosis, Dris held the news close to heart, not even revealing it to family and friends. “I just felt it was very personal,” she said. Now that EndoFound’s…
Jillian Lye had endometriosis symptoms when she was a teenager, but she wasn’t concerned. She had friends whose periods seemed to be much worse. “I was on a junior national squash team in Singapore from ages 11 to 19. I was training…
Rachel Bae’s menstrual cycle didn’t start until she was almost 17. Some of her periods in high school were heavy and painful, while others didn’t bother her. When they did hurt, she couldn’t do much about it.…
Kasey Malanga ran her first-ever marathon on April 6 at the Delaware Running Festival. Eleven days later, she had her first (and, hopefully, last) endometriosis surgery. Today, she’s gearing up for the New York City Marathon on November…
When Raya Pezzillo was in college and told by a doctor that she likely had endometriosis, she put off surgery, hoping she could graduate first. But she also had another reason for delaying it. “I was trying to convince myself that there…
EndoFound’s Team EndoStrong has become a fixture at the New York City Marathon. The race on November 2 will be the team’s eleventh consecutive year as a charity partner with the marathon, and Clare Murphy expects it will be one…
Gabrielle Morgan Rodman has been battling horrific endometriosis symptoms every month for 23 years. Her stories are heartbreaking and, in some cases, mind-blowing. One, in particular, occurred a decade ago, when she told a gynecologist that…
Elsie Hewitt said she always had bad periods growing up, but she thought they were normal and was “taught to power through them.” “I think that there were a handful of times throughout my teenage years and my early twenties…
Pamela Bove suffered from severe endometriosis symptoms for 16 years before finding out in 2022 that she had the disease. She stumbled upon the eventual diagnosis as an administrative assistant in a minimally invasive gynecological surgery…
In the fall of 2022, Taylor Burchard moved from her Washington State home to Palo Alto, California, for an internship at a science research center. She loved the work, but after just three months, she reluctantly had to give it up and return…
Rachel Seifried’s endometriosis story is most unusual. The disease grew silently until she was in her mid-30s, wreaked havoc on her body for two years, and has not been a problem since a hysterectomy 10 years ago. Today, having told few…
In his critically acclaimed book, The Doctor Will See You Now, EndoFound co-founder Dr. Tamer Seckin states: “A woman’s pain level plays no role in determining her stage. Someone with stage IV (severe) endometriosis may feel little…
Endometriosis patients struggling with the disease need to “fill their bucket” with support, whether it comes from doctors, family members, support groups, or therapists, according to Dr. Danielle Luciano. “Because endometriosis…
Sierra Demas spent most of 2024 locked in her apartment, isolated from the world. No job. No school. No gatherings with family or friends. Endometriosis had a physical and mental grip on her that was inescapable. “It was very hard. I…
Most women with endometriosis, beginning with their first menstrual periods as young girls, suffer for years without knowing the source of their ravaging pain and other symptoms. During their desperate pursuit for answers, doctors repeatedly…
This summer, 30-year-old Erin Swisher will have a high-risk hysterectomy that will also include removing endometriosis and adenomyosis. She’s been through six surgeries, doesn’t know if this one will be the last, and admits she’s…
I underwent excision surgery three weeks ago, and I wish I could say I finally have all the answers I’ve been looking for, but I only have one: I have endometriosis. And for now, that will have to do. After all, that alone was like finding…
Jennifer Fox has been battling endometriosis symptoms since her first period in eighth grade nearly three decades ago. From having to pull off a running trail as a teenager and curl up in a fetal position until the pelvic pain subsided so she…
Throughout her teen years and into her mid-20s, Sabrina Sarro had significant menstrual pain the first two days of her period each month, though it wasn’t debilitating or concerning enough to seek treatment aside from over-the-counter…
Though just 23 years old, Rachel Ratelle already knows firsthand how life-changing endometriosis can be. That’s why she’s taken it upon herself to host a fundraiser in her hometown of San Diego this month to raise money for EndoFound.…
Nikki Bolden’s endometriosis symptoms began more than a decade ago with her first period at age 12. “I had a feeling something wasn’t right,” she said. “It was the start of a long journey of going to different…
As a teenager in the late 1990s, Stacy Webster had horrible stomach aches. For that, doctors correctly diagnosed her with irritable bowel syndrome. At the same time, starting with her first menstrual cycle, Stacy had severe cramps and painful…
At 38 years old, Melissa Dean has had eight surgeries for endometriosis, including a complete hysterectomy, and she expects she’ll need a ninth. “Endometriosis is a beast,” Dean said. “It behaves like cancer but doesn’t…
Paolo Vercellini, MD, a professor at the University of Milan and gynecologist specializing in endometriosis and adenomyosis management, will receive the Harry Reich Award at EndoFound’s 16th annual Medical Conference and Patient Day.…
Dr. Ceana Nezhat, a world-renowned specialist in endometriosis and minimally invasive surgery, will receive the Harry Reich Award at EndoFound’s 16th annual Medical Conference and Patient Day. The conference will be on Friday and Saturday,…
About five years ago, Natalie A. Solomon paused amid her decades of traumatic health issues and asked the question so many in her situation have asked: God, what do you want from me? The answer may lie in her own words on her website: Helping…
Alide Flores Urich Sass began having excruciating periods at 15. She often couldn’t move and spent days at a time in bed. It hurt to go to the bathroom. Her sole comforts were large doses of ibuprofen and a plastic bag of hot water pressed…
The beginning of Madeline Settles’ journey with endometriosis was similar to what other women with the disease have experienced. “As a teenager and in college, I knew I had extremely painful periods, but I was really naïve…
Emma Gonzales and her husband met with an IVF specialist a year ago to try to conceive their first child. This past February, that dream ended. With endometriosis ravaging her body, Gonzales had to have a complete hysterectomy. “It’s…
Several college students and campus organizations contacted EndoFound this year about bringing endometriosis educational and fundraising events to their schools. EndoFound has responded by creating the ENPOWR College Ambassador Program, which…
Nearly 650 individuals watched the National Institutes of Health’s online endometriosis roundtable “Beyond the Lesion: Charting New Paths” live on Aug. 19. This 90-minute discussion with top experts is one of several the NIH…