For Week 5, I'd like to emphasize one of the goals of the Million Woman March for Endometriosis and I'd like to explain how it would change the lives of endometriosis patients.
I would like to begin by informing you of all of the goals of The Million Woman March for Endometriosis. They are all wonderful goals and choosing one was difficult, because they will all make such a huge impact.
Goals:
Empower
• To unite women and their supporters to take a stand against endometriosis
Educate
• To raise awareness about endometriosis and its effects on women and girls
• To educate and train members of the medical community, in order to promote early detection and improved treatment
Effect Change
• To educate the public and medical professionals about endometriosis
• To find a cure for endometriosis, and to develop non-invasive diagnostic tests
• To improve health screenings for endometriosis among girls and young women in public schools
• To educate our government and congress to allocate funding for endometriosis
You can find the goals here at:
http://www.millionwomenmarch2014.org/our-goals/
The goal that I have chosen to focus on is "Effect Change".
I feel that by effecting change in regards to endometriosis that it will greatly impact all who suffer from this disease. By educating the public and medical professionals about endometriosis (endo), we are creating change. Many have never heard of endometriosis, therefore they have no idea what it is, what it involves, or what it means to the person who is suffering with endo. At minimum, others will have an understanding of what endometriosis is and hopefully how it affects the patients who suffer. By educating the medical professionals, patients who suffer from endo will have more effective treatment options.
Finding a cure for endometriosis would certainly impact every endo patient. This would mean they could live a normal, pain free life, work normal job hours, keep plans and arrangements and carry on normal daily tasks that many who suffer currently find difficult to do at times. Developing non-invasive diagnostic testing would eliminate so any surgeries. Currently the only way to diagnose endo is through surgery.
Improving health screenings for endomtriosis and conducting them in public schools could help to eliminate the time lapse of diagnosis that occurs. Currently, the average diagnosis takes 6-10 years after symptoms begin to occur. This is unacceptable. In some cases irreversible damage can already have taken place before you even have a diagnosis. This would greatly impact an endo patients life, by saving time in diagnostics and beginning effective treatments as early as possible.
Allocating funding and working with government in regards to endometriosis would be extremely helpful as more research and treatment options would become available. It would bring more acceptance and attention to this disease. Patients who suffer from endometriosis should not be treated any differently than a patient with any other illness. Allocating funding would open many doors for endo patients.
I do feel that we are already effecting change! The more awareness and attention we bring to this disease, the closer we are to more understanding and effective treatment! We are making a difference! I am so grateful for this event and the platform it has presented us with! ENDometriosis!
For more information regarding the Million Woman March for Endometriosis please visit:
http://www.millionwomenmarch2014.org/
