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I’ll Discuss Endometriosis With My Daughter – Tia Mowry, By Shenna Foster (Endometriosis Foundation of America).
Former Sister, Sister star Tia Mowry is due any minute now, and she can hardly wait to meet her “miracle” daughter.
“I was literally just saying, I had a contraction,” Mowry, 39, exclusively tells The Blossom. “I was like, ‘Oh my god.'”
The Braxton Hicks are bittersweet.
For years, Mowry, struggled with endometriosis and heartbreaking infertility while desperately trying to conceive.
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“I never felt like giving up,” says the actress, who is already mom to 6-year-old son, Cree. “But, that doesn’t mean that I wasn’t overwhelmed with negative thoughts. My anxiety level just went through the roof. I was just feeling inadequate. I even went through a little bit of depression. There were times when I would be taking a pregnancy test, and I wouldn’t be pregnant, and I would just cry. I’m talking about those cries where you slide down the wall, and you’re sitting Indian-style—next to the toilet.”
As painful as those moments are to relive, one day, Mowry says she’s going to fill her daughter in on endometriosis, which affects an estimated 200 million women worldwide, and, scientists suspect, can have a genetic link.
“I will be the mom who’s not afraid to discuss all things. I want us to be able to be open and honest with each other. Even if that entails me opening up about my struggles with endo. I want to be open with her about everything. Everything. And that’s my goal.”
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She’ll have lots of harrowing tales to tell. Mowry recalls moments where the pain would wash over her while driving with her twin sister and The Real co-host Tamera Mowry, who would have to take the wheel while Tia slunk into the backseat. Another time, as the twins sat in a meeting for a proposed series, Mowry remembers almost blacking out. She was finally diagnosed with endometriosis in 2006 at age 30, via laparoscopy, after a decade of suffering. Her delay in diagnosis is shared by millions of women with endometriosis as the wait continues for a definitive non-invasive diagnostic test.
RELATED: ENDOMETRIOSIS AND PREGNANCY
During that surgery, she says endometriosis lesions were removed from her uterus. Her symptoms were relieved temporarily, but she needed a second laparoscopic surgery about a year later to re-treat the disease.
Hopefully, the worst is over for Mowry. Soon after the back-to-back procedures, she wed actor Cory Hardrict in 2008, and the two welcomed Cree three years later.
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“Cree, I consider a miracle, and my baby girl, I consider a miracle. So for me, every day has been a celebration, even through the nausea, even through the edema, the swelling. I’m just celebrating all of the milestones throughout this pregnancy, and I’m taking every day with gratitude, really.”
But the blissful pregnancy has been a bit, well, bumpy.
“With my baby girl, the first and the second trimester was heaven. I was like, ‘Oh my god, this is amazing.’ I was like, ‘Yes, let’s do this again, Cory. Right after this baby, we’re going to go ahead and try for a third one. But the third trimester has been kicking my behind.”
Now that the Whole New You cookbook author and Quick Fix YouTube series creator has put the finishing touches on her nursery—a patina of calming earth tones—all Mowry can do is eagerly await her daughter’s arrival.
“This is an incredible blessing for me and my husband,” she adds. “I am so incredibly excited to meet my baby girl.” (Article was first published here)
About EndoFound: The Endometriosis Foundation of America strives to increase disease recognition, provide advocacy, facilitate expert surgical training, and fund landmark endometriosis research. Engaged in a robust campaign to inform both the medical community and the public, the Endofound places particular emphasis on the critical importance of early diagnosis and effective intervention while simultaneously providing education to the next generation of medical professionals and their patients.
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HEARTBREAKING: Gabrielle Union Reveals She’s Had Eight or Nine Miscarriages
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Gabrielle Union has opened up about her continued struggles with infertility in her new book We’re Going to Need More Wine.
Union, 44, who has been married to Dwyane Wade since April 2014 writes about her attempts at trying to conceive.
“I have had eight or nine miscarriages,” Union writes. “For three years, my body has been a prisoner of trying to get pregnant—I’ve either been about to go into an IVF cycle, in the middle of an IVF cycle, or coming out of an IVF cycle.”
While Union has previously spoken about her IVF journey, the Being Mary Jane actress has now opened up the heartbreaking details of her pregnancy struggles and how she has been dealing with the public pressure to conceive.
She goes on to say that while at first she wasn’t interested in having kids, her mind changed once she became a stepmom to Wade’s sons. And just like many women, she’s constantly asked whether or not she wants children:
“For so many women, and not just women in the spotlight, people feel very entitled to know, ‘Do you want kids?’ A lot of people, especially people that have fertility issues, just say ‘no’ because that’s a lot easier than being honest about whatever is actually going on. People mean so well, but they have no idea the harm or frustration it can cause.”
“Once a month I look like I’m in my second trimester because I’m bloated,” she continues in her book, explaining the side effects of IVF. “It leads to the questions and it leads to the rumors and anytime I go into a doctor’s office I feel like I’m a member of SEAL Team Six undercover because I don’t want people to speculate.”
Read more in Union’s book, We Are Going To Need More Wine out October 17 (Pre-Order Now)
Also Read: Pregnancy And Postpartum Depression
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Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome (PCOS): What You Should Know? By PCOS Awareness Association.
September is Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome (PCOS) awareness month. On the blog today, the PCOS Awareness Association (PCOSAA) explains the significance of increasing awareness about this condition that affects one in five women of childbearing age.
The Importance of Raising Awareness About Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome
Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome or PCOS is an endocrine disorder that is widely spread among women of all ages. In present days, there are over 10 million women that are diagnosed with PCOS, this number exceeding the numbers of all breast cancer, lupus, multiple sclerosis, and rheumatoid arthritis combined.
The statistics show what a high frequency this illness has, which makes raising awareness among women about PCOS and its symptoms more than necessary. Having in mind that September is the PCOS awareness month, the timing couldn’t be better to talk about this illness and how can it affect women, so that we can take better care of ourselves.
Let us start with the basis. What is Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome? In spite of the fact that it is one of the most frequently met hormonal disorders among women, you won’t hear people talking about it too much. PCOS is not a medical topic that is too often debated, unlike other illnesses out there that don’t have the same incidence. PCOS is a hormonal imbalance in your body, causing uncomfortable symptoms both on the inside and outside of the body.
What is important to remember is that ovarian cysts may not be triggered by PCOS. There are cases in which the ovarian cysts have no connection with PCOS, being caused by something else. So cysts on the ovaries don’t mean you have PCOS. Although incurable, it is treatable.
There are ways to keep symptoms at bay and have a happier and pain-free life. Talking about symptoms, PCOS can produce a set of very uncomfortable symptoms, of which we can mention serious weight gain, loss of hair, feeling tired, depressed, suffer from panic attacks, headaches, dizzy spells, high levels of cholesterol, thyroid issues, sleeping problems, a constant feeling of thirst, cravings, mood swings, infertility, too much hair on the body and face, and others as well. If left untreated, polycystic ovarian syndrome can cause various severe diseases in time, such as cardiovascular diseases, type-II diabetes, hypertension, kidney problems, and even stroke.
ALSO SEE: Postpartum Infections and Pain | Treatment Tips
PCOS Awareness Association is fighting to raise awareness among women of all ages that they don’t have to suffer because of PCOS. This disorder can be kept under control and women that have it can lead a normal life. If you have any of the previously mentioned symptoms, don’t hesitate to ask for medical help and check to see if you have PCOS.
Our association can give you all the support you need to get the appropriate diagnosis, treatment, and aid in managing this condition with grace. Join our mission and let us help as many women as possible find out more about PCOS and ensure them that the condition is entirely treatable. No woman should suffer because of PCOS any longer.
Megan M Stewart
Founder of PCOS Awareness Association
www.pcosaa.org
The mission of the PCOSAA is to inform the public about Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome (PCOS) by providing information and resources for women to get tested, as well as providing support for women diagnosed with PCOS. Find more of them on their website.
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Trying For A Baby? 5 Signs of Ovulating!
The best way to improve your chances of getting pregnant is to understand the optimal time to have unprotected intercourse. Listed below are things to look out for to determine when the body is preparing to move into the most fertile time of the month.
- Record your menstrual cycle
Keep a menstrual calendar for a few months so you can get an idea of when you will ovulate. Ovulation usually occurs around 12 to 14 days before your next period so you will need to know when your period usually start and stop.
2. Check your cervix
Check your cervix daily using one or two finger. At the height of ovulation, the cervix becomes so soft that it blends in with the vagina walls and rises so high that the finger cannot touch it. This is known as SHOW – soft, high, open and wet. This is your most fertile time as the uterine is open to allow sperm to enter in.
3. Check your cervical mucus
Cervical mucus is a fluid secreted by the cervix, the production of which is stimulated by the hormone estrogen. You are most fertile when your cervical mucus is “egg white”, as it allows sperm to swim easily into the cervix. Egg white cervical mucus (EWCM), is thin, clear and stretchy, you could pull it into a string long before it breaks.
4. Look out for backache or tummy pain
The pain can be a dull cramp or a sharp and sudden twinge and is felt on the right or left side, depending on which ovary is releasing an egg. Some women notice a little vaginal bleeding when it happens.
5. Increased Libido
As ovulation approaches, women often feel an increase in sex drive. Some people believe this is a biologically designed way to ensure reproduction.
In addition to these ovulation symptoms, some women may also notice an increase in basal metabolic temperature and spotting around this time of the month.
Also Read Breastfeeding Your Newborn: What To Expect
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