This month we have a guest post from Hollie about her battle with endometriosis and how it impacted her physical and mental health. Hollie is 27 years old and from Kildare and her aim is to spread awareness on how chronic illness affects day to day life
By Hollie Barror
If I could say one thing to my younger self in this moment it would be:
“Everything is going to be okay girl, you got this you’re a warrior”.
I’m usually very private about certain things but I’ve suffered in silence with endometriosis over the last few years, and I need to speak out now to raise awareness that suffering with daily pain is not normal. Having Endometriosis taught me about strengths I never knew I had. It takes an average of seven to 10 years for someone to be diagnosed with Endometriosis. After 12 years of painful periods, I was finally diagnosed at the age of 24 via laparoscopy.
It took eight years to finally get answers as to why I’d faint, vomit, have cold/hot sweats, and bloating. Not to mention the heavy period clots which would cause leaks at home, school, college, work and public places. Other organs in my body are now suffering due to this incurable disease being mistreated. There were many other factors being blamed despite the fact I had a chronic illness. This saddened me a lot.
Now just two and a half years later I have an emergency Ileostomy bag (Stacey the Stoma). This little lady saved my life but also nearly took it away as quick too.
I ended up with a severe abscess of bacteria after my Stoma procedure, which led to septic tissue being removed and an abdominal fistula being created to drain toxins from my body. This surgery was a huge shock which caused my whole body to become very malnourished.
Through hard work and consistent dedication to myself, my body and my mental health I have finally reached a point now where I can see the “light at the end of the tunnel” I was told over and over about. This leads me to talk about the time and acceptance stage. This is a slow painful stage because you have the time to reflect and think back over everything you’ve experienced so far in life and now you must accept it. And that my friend takes quite a bit of time.
But one day you’ll wake up and feel like the new healthier better version of yourself. Just always remember: Time is precious and for some it’s painful, but it is truly beautiful. Once you have done this hard work on yourself you will thank yourself for not giving up or turning back when you wanted or needed to the most.
Minding My Mental Health
I told myself a lot of things which helped support my mental health during this time.
- Difficult challenges are temporary, they create resilience and strengths you never knew you had.
- Life is about bouncing back, finding your happiness again and you will encourage others along the way
- I keep repeating to myself good things unfortunately take time. Tough circumstances are character building.
- I am so confident things will work out.
- I am so happy to be healthier and in much less pain than before. I am grateful for the strength and determination I have every day to keep going on. I am also extremely lucky and blessed to be surrounded by the best specialist doctors, my support circle of family and the greatest friends any chronically ill girlie could ever ask for.
3 Things That Also Help My Mental Health
Gentle Exercise
I practiced short easy walks building my muscles alongside physical therapy, sea swims, yoga and light Pilates. Acupuncture and Meditation were also helpful. Running low pace for short distances also worked while wearing supported belts to support my STOMA bag Stacey.
Journalling
I journaled EVERYTHING for years and now I get to look back at all the progress I have made, the hard knocks that I thought I would never get through.
Asking for help
You can’t fight all the dark clouds alone, asking for HELP was the most important aspect of my whole recovery.
A big thanks to Hollie for being so generous in sharing her story.
