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HEATHER: Barbara, can you tell us what it's like to have a teen with
endometriosis?
Also, you are a very involved "Endo-parent;" what can other
parents of young women
with Endo do to help their daughters? BARBARA BAMFORD: To have a teenager with Endometriosis is watching a 10 year old fall to the floor, clutching her stomach with her face turning beet red from the pain. It is spending an 11th birthday in a hospital room while 3 gastrointerologists are telling the parents that their child is not really feeling any pain and that it is all in her head. It is waiting 6 years for a diagnosis while your child suffers from constant stabbing pelvic pain, headaches, nausea and fatigue. It is bringing home a gifted student and athlete from a private school and arranging for home tutoring for 2 1/2 years so that she can graduate with her class. It is watching her teenage years pass by without her experiencing the carefree years of being a teenager. It is having doctors tell her that she was too young to have Endometriosis, that you cannot get Endo before the period begins, that she is a burden to her parents and friends, she is playing truant from school, and all the pain is in her head. It is having a father take early retirement so that he can help with the care of an Endometriosis patient. Parents can get involved by finding the best doctor for their child; one who is knowledgeable about the disease and who is also a kind and compassionate caregiver. By researching at the library and on the Internet, parents can learn all aspects of the treatment and care of Endometriosis, to help a daughter with this enigmatic disease. HEATHER: Barbara, what brought your family here today? BARBARA: We came to the Endometriosis March for Awareness so that no other child or parent would suffer with the misdiagnosis and the uncaring attitudes of some doctors towards teenagers with Endometriosis. We came to show our support and appreciation for such organizations as OBGYN. net, The Endometriosis Association, and the Young Woman's Resource Center at Children's Hospital in Boston, Massachusetts. HEATHER: Thank you, Barbara! Your family's active role in the Endometriosis community is an inspiration to all young women and their families out there who live with this disease! |
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| More from Endometriosis Walk For
Awareness 2000: Speech by Mark Perloe, MD, OBGYN.net Editorial Advisor Speech by Deborah Metzger, MD, PhD, OBGYN.net Editorial Advisor Speech by Mary Lou Ballweg, Endometriosis Association Speech by Marc Laufer, MD Speech by Heather Guidone, OBGYN.net OBGYN.net exclusive interview with Glenda Motta, RN, MPH OBGYN.net exclusive interview with Carla Folz Photos of Walk Participants page 1 Photos of Walk Participants page 2 Photos of the Speakers Photos of the Endometriosis Quilt |
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Interview
