BREAKING DAWN ON ADENOMYOSIS

When women meet in groups it is either they are discussing about the new trends in town or expressing their opinions about a hot gossip. When a woman decides to open her mouth to speak to a larger audience then it is time to listen because she is bringing forth her pain, suffering, struggles, setbacks and the emotional adrenaline that is attached to her melodramatic journey of life.

                

In recent times, we live in a world where women in the limelight don’t talk much especially when it concerns their private life. If a woman dares to be opinionated then she is branded as either a feminist or attention seeker. But there are certain issues that need to be addressed because it is mostly these issues that affect the fundamental wellbeing of a woman. Issues that affect the health of women are often ignored after an awareness is raised. Health issues such as breast cancer are campaigned for a while and after that it dies down. The question is after the awareness of a particular issue have been raised how often do we come up with a solution to create more awareness that affects the whole wellbeing of a woman?

Two individuals from different countries with different societal cultural and background have had their encounter with a similar health problem that has affected them for a while now. These women who are engage in the entertainment industry have decided to use their celebrity status to create an awareness about a condition which exact cause is unknown but are rather educating the public about their personal experience and the social stigma that is attached to the condition that is adenomyosis.

Gabrielle Union, an American actress has over the years expressed her views about this particular condition which resulted her to be infertile. She found out that adenomyosis had nothing to do with your age because she had seen several world leading IVF doctors to know what actually the problem was until she was correctly diagnosed.

Nse Ikpe Etim,  a Nigerian actress who has starred in many blockbuster films in Nigeria had her own encounter with adenomyosis and she shared her sentiments about how this condition can lead to depression and anxiety. She also mentioned the fact she had to overlook what society was expecting from her and placed a value for herself because her life was more important than that of bearing a child for a full term which she knew it wont be possible.

One would ask; what made these women decide to talk about this condition? Did they feel pressured from society about motherhood? Did they feel the need to explain themselves to society? My guess is these brave women decided to speak because this condition was a silent killer.

Some women have been through it and the need to talk about it brings nothing but shame because the fear of stigmatization and rejection form society is heartbreaking. People have heard about it but have no idea about what it really is.

WHAT ADENOMYOSIS IS ABOUT?

It is a condition in which the inner lining of the uterus(the endometrium) breaks through the muscle wall of the uterus. This condition can cause menstrual cramps, lower abdominal pressure and bloating before menstrual periods. Generally, it is found that, the exact cause of the condition is unknown but several theories as to what causes adenomyosis includes; the uterine inflammation that occurs after childbirth, invasive growth of abnormal tissues from the endometrial cells breaking through the uterine muscle.

Adenomyosis is often complicated and people affected by this condition may bleed excessively and pelvic pain may prevent them from enjoying sexual intercourse. Due to excessive bleeding, people affected by this condition can have anaemia which can therefore reduce iron levels in the body.

THE SUFFERERS & SOCIAL PREJUDICE

            Women who are affected by this condition suffer a lot from depression, anxiety and irritability. Most at times, when a woman gets to a certain age, questions about her fertility comes to existence. This often leads to negative thoughts which at the long run tends to harm the mental development of the woman.

In Africa, women who are of age and are childless are often stigmatized because they can’t give birth sometimes women with no knowledge about the adenomyosis seek help from native doctors. These native doctors also associate the problem with the spirit world which does not yield any positive results. The name and shame continues due to infertility caused by the condition which at times leads to suicidal thoughts.

The situation is no different from the women living in  other continents, unlike some women running to native doctors, some intend to keep it to themselves to live a life of a lie instead of talking about it.

However, the sufferers with this condition are not to be blamed but if the society they live in tend to be supportive and caring most women will discuss the issue and understand the need to encourage women who go through such ordeal.

DEFINITION OF A WOMAN

            There are several definitions of being a woman and that depends on where that woman is coming from based on her cultural background and family values. In the world we live in, a woman’s success can only be defined not based on her achievements in her level of career but her achievements in raising a family and keeping her home. So the mind boggling question is; If a woman is affected by adenomyosis and cannot bare a child full term and decides to choose life instead what how is she defined?

This same society in which these women live in are faced with pressures as to when they will become mothers. If a woman is childless, the social stigma she faces is nothing to write home about. The name calling, the invaders of in-laws, the attitudes and ghost whispering from their colleagues, the spearing eyes from the congregation only turn their world upside down.

If we, as a society only knew the kind of trauma such women go through, then we would do nothing but give them the support and love they need. Sometimes there is no safe haven for these women affected by the condition.

If you ask me who a woman is, I would say a woman is someone who has the courage to speak about her bed of thorns she has slept on for years, she is the one who shows her scars to the world and always ready to tell her story to create an impact on her generation. A woman is someone who has a heart of gold and is forever ready to take someone out there as her own.

            However, it is about time that society change to be generational thinkers. The need to support women who are affected by the condition will encourage more women to talk about it and get the necessary solution at any medical facility.

OVERCOMERS

            Since this issue was raised, the attention has become very less. Adenomyosis is not a condition to get less discussion. It is rather the time to create an awareness for most women to know how to handle themselves when they hear such news.

For Gabrielle Union and Nse Ikpe Etim, they took the bold steps to tell the world about this condition and I believe it is the responsibility of both profitable and non profitable health organizations to make this condition known to the public because women are affected by it daily and some even don’t have any knowledge about it. If the world health organization is willing to make these women as ambassadors for the condition, I believe with their celebrity status, they would be able to raise awareness about the condition and create a safe haven for women who go through stigmatization unaware of their condition.