Endometriosis: Sisterhood of the Travelling Tissue.

This student blog post is written by Abbegayle M. and is about endometriosis! This disease is often not talked about but is remarkably common! Do you want to learn more about this potentially debilitating disease? Take it away, Abbegayle!

I hesitated to write about this topic at first. I grew up surrounded by the idea that menstrual cycles were something to keep quiet about or something discussed behind closed doors, if at all. But that silence is exactly what keeps people misinformed.

I was diagnosed with endometriosis this year, a diagnosis I never expected. Looking back, I had been experiencing symptoms throughout high school, but I never thought to question them. I assumed everything I was feeling was “normal.” After all, I believed everyone was experiencing the same thing as me, so who was I to complain? I convinced myself that I just had a low pain tolerance, that I needed to push through it and be stronger. I had heard of endometriosis before, but I never took the time to understand it because I didn’t think it applied to me. Now, I’m realizing just how wrong that assumption was. I want to take the time to learn so that I can have some control over something that I seemingly have never had control over.

Endometriosis is a condition where tissue similar to the endometrium, the lining of the uterus, grows outside of where it’s supposed to (“Cleveland Clinic”, 2024). To understand why this causes so many problems, it helps to first understand what the endometrium normally does.

The endometrium has one main job: to prepare the uterus for a possible pregnancy (“Cleveland Clinic”, 2025). Over the course of the menstrual cycle, hormones like estrogen and progesterone signal the lining to thicken, creating an environment where a fertilized egg could implant. If no pregnancy occurs, hormone levels drop, and the thickened lining sheds. It’s a continuous cycle of building up and breaking down, very “out with the old, in with the new.” In endometriosis, tissue similar to this lining appears outside the uterus, often on the ovaries, fallopian tubes, or other areas within the pelvic cavity (“Cleveland Clinic”, 2024). On its own, misplaced tissue might not sound like a major issue. The real problem is that this tissue continues to behave exactly like it would inside the uterus. Each month, it responds to hormonal changes, thickening when hormone levels rise, and breaking down when they fall. But unlike the lining inside the uterus, this dead tissue has nowhere to go.

When endometrial tissue sheds inside the uterus, it exits the body. When it sheds elsewhere, it becomes trapped. The immune system activates in response to the dead cells, triggering inflammation in an attempt to clean up the debris (Bulun, 2019).

Figure: Diagram of adhesions and endometrial growths outside the uterus. The diagram illustrates how endometrium-like tissue can attach and grow on pelvic organs and form adhesions, which can cause organs to stick together. Image from Ontario Medical Imaging Group (n.d.).

This process repeats with every cycle. Month after month, the body is dealing with internal bleeding, inflammation, and irritation in places where this activity was never meant to occur. Over time, this repeated inflammation can lead to the formation of scar tissue, known as adhesions (Watson, 2024). These adhesions are bands of tissue that can cause organs to stick together, something that is as uncomfortable as it sounds. They can create a painful pulling sensation, restrict movement, and, in some cases, interfere with the function of nearby organs like the intestines or bladder, as well as the uterus. Beyond the physical pain, adhesions and chronic inflammation can also have a significant impact on fertility. Endometriosis can affect egg quality and interfere with the implantation of an embryo, contributing to infertility in an estimated 30–50% of individuals with the condition (Massachusetts General Hospital, 2022).

Despite how disruptive and impactful this condition can be, the exact cause of endometriosis is still unknown. Because of this, there is currently no cure. However, there are ways to manage the symptoms. Pain management often involves anti-inflammatory medications, such as ibuprofen, which help reduce the body’s inflammatory response (Surrey. 2023). Hormonal treatments, like birth control, are also commonly used. When taken continuously, these treatments can prevent the hormonal fluctuations that trigger the thickening and shedding of endometrial tissue, essentially stopping the cycle before it starts. You can’t have a painful period if you don’t have a period at all! In more severe cases, surgical intervention may be necessary. This typically involves minimally invasive procedures to remove or destroy the endometrial tissue implanted in the pelvic cavity. While surgery can provide relief, it is not a permanent solution, as the tissue can return over time.

What I’ve taken away from my research on this topic is not only a better understanding of my condition and the condition that plagues so many people, but also that menstrual health and discussions around it should not be shameful. I dismissed pain and learned to tolerate the signals my body was sending me, screaming to say that something was wrong. Ignoring them did not make them go away; it only delayed my understanding.

In reflection, the silence that follows topics related to menstrual health is not protecting people; it is leaving them without information to recognize that something is wrong. If anything, learning about endometriosis has made me more aware of how important it is to ask questions, seek answers, and challenge the idea of “normal”. Don’t suffer in silence.

Works Cited:

Bulun, S. E., Yilmaz, B. D., Sison, C., Miyazaki, K., Bernardi, L., Liu, S., Kohlmeier, A., Yin, P., Milad, M., & Wei, J. J. (2019). Endometriosis . Endocrine Reviews, 40 (4), 1048–1079. https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC5805548/

Cleveland Clinic. (2024). Endometriosis: Causes, symptoms, diagnosis & treatment. Available: https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/diseases/10857-endometriosis

Cleveland Clinic. (2025). Endometrium: Anatomy, function & conditions. Available: https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/body/endometrium

Massachusetts General Hospital. (2022). Endometriosis and its impact on fertility. Available: https://www.massgeneral.org/obgyn/fertility/news/endometriosis-and-its-impact-on-fertility

Mayo Clinic Staff. (2024). Endometriosis: Symptoms and causes . Mayo Clinic. Available: https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/endometriosis/symptoms-causes/syc-20354656

Ontario Medical Imaging Group. (n.d.). Endometriosis. Available: https://www.omig.ca/conditions3/endometriosis2

Surrey, E. (2023). Endometriosis 101: The 4 stages & treatment options. CCRM Fertility. Available: https://www.ccrmivf.com/blog/four-stages-of-endometriosis/

Watson, S. (2024). Endometriosis adhesions: Symptoms and treatment tips . WebMD. Available: https://www.webmd.com/women/endometriosis/endometriosis-adhesions