Knowing you are in so much pain, and not knowing why, really does have an impact on your mental health. It doesn’t help when you get the run around from doctors, being told it’s all in your head and nothings physically wrong. I didn’t sleep for months, only getting the odd hour here or there. I ended up being grumpy, tired all the time, and not myself. This caused strains in my personal life. 
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In recent years the pain has spread and a lot of my pain now comes from my back and legs. My back pain during my period makes it hard to move and is one of the most difficult symptoms to manage, as it’s hard to work through the pain. In addition to the back pain, I regularly get sharp stabbing sensations in my hips and back as well as general leg soreness. This pain can happen throughout the month and isn’t always tied to my period. I am lucky and while I have my bad days, I am often able to push through the pain and attend work and other obligations, although I am exhausted and spend my free time resting.  
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While there have been steps towards better education, it needs to continue. Canada has world class Healthcare but we need to do better in terms of supporting those with chronic pain. We need to better educate Healthcare. We need better access across the board but especially for those who are vulnerable. Having endometriosis is challenging - it's challenging because those of us who have it have learned how to put on a brave face and soldier through pain. To stop asking for help because we're not always taken seriously. It is an invisible illness with an anything but invisible mark left on our bodies, our minds and our emotions. It is a whole person disease and we need better support. 
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Endometriosis took away most of my high school experience for me. I missed a lot of school because of how pain I was in, and it affected my mental health because nobody understood how badly it hurt. I started believing that I was just being overly dramatic. I remember being in an exam, having horrific pain and not even being able to sit down. I begged my teacher to let me re take it another day, crawled across the school to make it to the bathroom, throw up, and then passed out in a taxi. We have to stop telling women, but especially young women, that this is normal. It’s not.
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I have not had a pain-free day in over 6 months. Some days the pelvic pain is so bad that I am laying on the floor and screaming out in agony. In those moments, I have no comprehension of how the pain will pass and I feel utterly helpless.
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The fact that took me so long to be diagnosed with endometriosis makes me scared that it will be back any moment, and I will not be able to know before it is too late. Any symptoms that I have, drive me crazy thinking that it can be related to endometriosis - tiredness, headache, pains, you name it! 
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I used to think excruciating back, leg, and abdomen pain was just a part of growing up. I remember running out of class in high school to vomit in the bathroom, feeling myself getting dizzier as I thought to myself “I guess girls just have it bad every month.” I didn’t realize that I wasn’t supposed to feel like I needed to take the week off from doing anything because the pain was so consistent. 
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The pain can be debilitating. Every day is exhausting. I always plan rest days before and after a "busy day" like grocery shopping. It can be humiliating. I have many times had blood leak through my clothing. It's isolating. Being in bed all the time can get very lonely. Even when you're around others, you're alone in your pain. 
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At the age of 14 I was hospitalized for excruciating pain in my right abdomen. I went through lots of tests and a diet change while I was in hospital for 2 weeks. When I was discharged I was told they didn't know what caused the pain. Nothing more was said. 
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