Advocating for your Health: Fibroid Awareness Month
Hey everyone!
If you are reading this I want to thank you for subscribing to my blog Mastering Peace and for taking the time to read these posts. My vision for the blog is to inform, empower, and encourage individuals to be all God has them to be in the most holistic sense. Sometimes this will look like career tips & advice, encouraging words, or health tips & awareness. During the summer I am initiating a health series on advocating for your health. As a pharmacist, one of my main roles is advocating for the health, safety, and pockets (we really try to find cheaper prices or products so stop yelling at us, it's probably your insurance) for my patients.
July is Fibroid Awareness month. Now if you don't have fibroids or you're a male don't sign-off just yet. There may be useful information her for yourself or a loved one. Fibroids are non-cancerous growths of the uterus, that typically occur within the uterine wall.1 Since, these tumors are non-cancerous they are labeled as benign however I'm sure the millions of women who suffer from them would beg to differ. Especially black women. It is estimated that up to 80% of women may experience fibroids in their lifetime, with women ages 30 years and older being more susceptible until they reach menopause. These numbers are even higher for Black women. Black women are 3x more likely than their white counterparts to develop fibroids, at a younger age, and have more complicated cases. Since fibroids have been linked to an excessive amount of estrogen, they tend to shrink after menopause. In the world of western medicine, fibroids can go untreated for years and may not require any interventions or treatments from a physician. This is the part that really gets me. For a condition that effects so many women's everyday lives there really aren't many options presented outside of surgical procedures. But we will get to that a little later.
Risk Factors for Fibroids
Family history: if someone in your family has it, it makes you more susceptible
Race: Black women unfortunately are at higher risk
Lifestyle: high consumption of red meat (no really. I know y'all love steak & bacon but when will it stop? this is a risk factor for EVERY chronic illness), heavy alcohol drinking, and unbalanced diet void of fruits and vegetables
Other: Vitamin D deficiency has been linked to fibroids. Some studies show that Vitamin D inhibits the growth of fibroids. Guess who also has lower rates of fibroids compared to other races? Almost 40-45% of Black women have low Vitamin D levels compared to White women <10%.
So the symptoms of fibroids are not shocking, but it is when I realized that so many women I'm frequently around complain of these issues. I thought that it was "normal" to have a painful menstrual cycle because it was so common. This list is by no means a way to self-diagnose yourself, but you should be talking to a PCP or OB/GYN about your symptoms and if they interfere with your normal activity and all they recommend is "birth control" or some form of contraception I want you to push harder…. Because WHAT??!!!?!?!
Symptoms of Fibroids
Heavy bleeding that sometimes can lead to anemia
Painful periods requiring pain relievers/NSAIDS and still feeling pain *** the amount of women who joke about popping 800 mg ibuprofen but still may have pain is absurd. You shouldn't be going through that without answers.
Heavy clotting due to heavy periods
Bloating or enlargement of the lower abdomen *** if you keep working out and changing your diet and that middle section in the lower abdomen (now if it's rolls all around maybe switch up the routine) this could be an issue
Frequent urination or difficulties with your bowels
Painful sex
Lower back pain
Miscarriages or infertility
Higher rates of pregnancy complications and C-sections
Many women have these symptoms, which I remind you are not "normal" simply because they are common. They could be a result of many different reproductive conditions other than fibroids. The quick band aid fix is to give contraception to balance hormones.
Not all women with fibroids require treatment. About 20-25% of patients allegedly will require treatment of intervention in their lifetime. Treatment options may vary and are not the scope of this blog. Non-invasive approaches consist of diet changes, exercise, and some form of contraception. Invasive procedures consist of surgical option to remove the uterus, remove the fibroids, or shrink the fibroids over time. Check-out this page from the White Dress Project with amazing resources and information on treatments and more.
If you or anyone that you know fits the descriptions above please share this blog with them. In subsequent posts I will be sharing a little about my journey which is similar to so many Black women. This will be focused on the absolute necessity of advocating for yourself and seeking help when you need it. Don’t forget to subscribe to the newsletter to receive future blogs.
Sources:
https://www.womenshealth.gov/a-z-topics/uterine-fibroids
https://www.yalemedicine.org/conditions/fibroids
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6619469/#:~:text=Some%20studies%20have%20recently%20shown,compared%20with%20myometrium%20(17).
