Did you know that endometriosis has been found in embryos? Yes, you read that correctly. Endometriosis doesn’t suddenly begin when a girl gets her first period — research suggests it can start developing long before that. This is not simply a “woman’s disease.” It is a female disease that can impact girls and women across their entire lifespan.

In this episode of Sharing Out Loud, I sit down with Nicole Notar, founder of Endo Excision For All, for a conversation every woman, and quite honestly, every human, needs to hear. Nicole shares her deeply personal journey through the pain, dismissal, and medical gaslighting that so many women with endometriosis experience, often for years before receiving proper care.

In our conversation, we unpack the harsh realities of living with chronic pain, navigating a healthcare system that frequently minimizes female suffering, and the dangerous pattern of women being told their symptoms are “just anxiety,” “stress,” or “all in their head.” Women (and young girls!) with endometriosis do not need to be dismissed, handed antidepressants, or sent for psych evaluations when they are living with very real physical disease and pain. They deserve to be heard, properly evaluated, and given access to evidence-based care.

Through advocacy, awareness, and community support, Endo Excision For All is helping women get the care they desperately need and deserve. Any donations are so appreciated and go directly toward helping women access proper treatment and reclaim their lives.

This episode is raw, emotional, validating, and empowering — a reminder that women deserve to be heard, believed, and properly treated. Whether you live with endometriosis yourself, love someone who does, or simply care about the future of women’s healthcare, this is a conversation that will stay with you long after it ends.

Questions? Need guidance with surgery or finding a doctor that specializes in Endo and Excision Surgery? Visit https://endoexcisionforall.org/ or send a message via their Instagram page @endoexcisionforall. Nicole is there for any woman who needs guidance.

Thank you, Nicole, for sharing your time with me and for all you are doing❤️.

xoxo,

Heather