Johanna starts by stating that she’s somewhat luckier than other girls, as she was quickly diagnosed. She suffered since she was a child, about 12 years old, when cysts were discovered on her ovaries. She was then prescribed the pill in order to soothe the pain, and told that the cysts would disappear during puberty. Pain came back when she was 18, and after several medical consultations, the word endometriosis was spoken for the first time. It’s only at 22 years old and after huge sufferings, that she was finally properly taken care of and operated. She’s now better, she tries to forget the disease, if only forcefully… But the pain has come back recently, accompanied with the difficulties that come with the disease.
« After the surgery, I voluntarily blocked out the disease. I was on the pill, I wasn’t suffering anymore. My specialist had indeed been adamant that if I followed the treatment carefully, there shouldn’t be any reason for a relapse… »
Johanna may have put a thick veil on the disease for many years, but I believe that it has caught up with her since the pain came back. She is well documented, and has a dynamism that some would envy her. A way, perhaps, of taming the pain ?