Lauren Jeffries was just 20 years old when she began experiencing “strange” symptoms that neither she nor her doctor could explain.
The young woman suffered for months from “sharp and stabbing” pelvic pain that invaded her in waves, endless itching in her private parts and a feeling that she “constantly” needed to go to the bathroom.
Not only did her primary care doctor not give her a diagnosis, he told her she might have an STD and suggested she get pregnant to “solve” all her problems.
Speaking to FEMAIL, the now 31-year-old woman reflects on the arduous journey she went through trying to find out what was wrong with her.
“I thought I had a urinary tract infection (UTI) so I went to my GP for medication, but the pain only got worse,” she said. “I went back several times and kept getting misdiagnoses.”
Lauren felt like her doctor was throwing diagnoses against the wall and hoping one would come true, from suggestions that she had an unplanned pregnancy to sexually transmitted diseases.
“I felt so unappreciated and misunderstood; I don’t know why he thought I had an STD.” “I had no symptoms, just a lot of pain and fatigue,” he said.
“When I was finally diagnosed with endometriosis a year later, my doctor told me I should consider getting pregnant because he said it would help with my pain.”
That strange advice is a common myth about endometriosis that has no scientific basis.
Lauren Jeffries was just 20 years old when she began experiencing “strange” symptoms that neither she nor her doctor could explain.
The young woman suffered months of ‘sharp and stabbing’ pelvic pain that came over her in waves, endless itching in her private parts and she felt like she ‘constantly’ needed to go to the bathroom.
Lauren said she was only 21 and still in college when her doctor suggested she get pregnant.
“I had seen this doctor my whole life and I just realized that he didn’t really care about me or what I was going through.
‘I worked part-time and lived with my parents; I wasn’t in a position to have a baby. It’s crazy to say it.
“We had an argument about it because I told him it was a myth, but he doubled down.”
She was stunned by her own doctor’s lack of education about this disease, which can lead to life-threatening complications.
“It’s like I’m grasping at straws,” he said.
He subjected her to a dozen random tests over six months, including an “intrusive” and “horrible” endoscopy, which involves inserting a camera into the body.
Endometriosis, which affects one in ten women, develops when tissue lining the uterus grows in other parts of the body.
Lauren said she was only 21 and still in college when her doctor suggested she get pregnant.
It can cause bleeding, inflammation, and if left untreated, can lead to infertility.
While there are medications that can reduce debilitating symptoms, patients cannot become pregnant while taking them.
Patients with endometriosis wait, on average, more than eight years from the onset of symptoms to receive a diagnosis.
Lauren said her pain was similar to a “sharp, stabbing” sensation that made her “double over” until it passed.
“Other times, I would feel a stabbing pain, or just something that would never go away,” he said.
When her GP still couldn’t figure out what was wrong, she was referred to a gynecologist.
‘My doctor might as well have said, ‘Oh, this is too hard for us.’ Obviously we don’t know what’s going on, so we give up,’ Lauren said.
When Lauren went to the gynecologist, he immediately suggested that the young woman might have tissue growing in her bladder and booked her in for exploratory surgery a few months later.
Lauren said her pain was similar to a “sharp, stabbing” sensation that made her “double over” until it passed.
‘My symptoms got worse before surgery: I was bleeding all the time and extremely fatigued.
‘My friends and family also told me I looked very bad.
“It was mentally exhausting knowing there was nothing I could do. But I was lucky to go to a private hospital: many women who go through the public health system wait years.’
Lauren said her pain was often so bad that all she could do was curl up.
‘I felt very frustrated because I missed a lot. It was unfair. I kept thinking, ‘Why is this happening to me? Why do I have to deal with this when no one else does? Why am I different?’
‘I missed a lot of social events and spending time with my friends because I couldn’t leave my room. I felt segregated from other people.’
Lauren hoped her symptoms would go away after surgery, but they didn’t.
Doctors removed endometrial tissue from Lauren’s bladder, bowel and uterus.
Lauren hoped her symptoms would go away after surgery, but that wasn’t the case.
Lauren was worried that the pain would “last forever,” but her doctor later prescribed her “life-changing” medications.
‘I was still in pain every day after the operation. I was confused, my mom was confused, nothing made sense.
“The symptoms were not as severe as before surgery, but the pelvic pain persisted.”
He was worried that the pain would “last forever,” but his doctor later prescribed him “life-changing” medications.
Two years after her surgery, Lauren was prescribed Visanne, a medication that shrinks endometrial tissue and reduces associated symptoms, such as pelvic pain and painful menstruation.
‘Visanne changed my life. “I lived in pain every day for a long time, but this medication gave me my life back,” Lauren said.
‘I feel like one of the lucky ones. My life has completely changed. My hope is that now other women can also live a normal life.’
Lauren shared that while she’s not sure she wants to have children, she was worried that the illness would be a barrier to starting a family.
‘It’s a difficult conversation I’ve had with previous partners.
“Now I’m 31 years old and deep down I’m always thinking if it will be too late, if I won’t be able to have a child.”
Around 1 million Australian women live with endometriosis.
The condition causes 40,000 hospital admissions each year and leaves hundreds of thousands of women regularly suffering pain.