Here at Houston Fibroids, we help women overcome fibroid pain. Even now, during a pandemic, we’re here to provide relief, whether in our office or via Telemedicine appointments (learn more here.) And we’re also here to provide hope, by sharing the stories of fibroid warriors. So, today, we’re highlighting Kelly McCreary, for her bravery in opening up about fibroids .
Kelly McCreary—aka Maggie Pierce on ABC’s Grey’s Anatomy—may play a doctor on TV, but when it came to her own health challenges, she couldn’t tidily wrap up her own diagnosis in a 60-minute time frame. In fact, figuring out the cause of her long, painful periods was a major process. And it’s one that she opened up about recently in Glamour magazine. Which is one (of many) reasons why Kelly is our Woman Crush Wednesday this week.
To start her revealing interview, Kelly admitted: "I just celebrated my first year of living without menstrual pain since I was 13 years old." As a teenager, she has very painful periods. But then, in her 20s, things got better. Next came her 30s, and each year meant more period pain. Finally, about five years ago, it all became too much, so she went to her doctor. That’s where she discovered her fibroids.
Kelly explained, ““[My] doctor in New York diagnosed them. She said, ‘These are not a big deal. They’re very small. They’re in a place that’s easy to remove.” But Kelly didn’t schedule a myomectomy (surgical fibroid removal). And soon, she moved to Los Angeles—and a new doctor.
This doctor had entirely different advice. Her new doctor said, “Surgery’s a big deal. You don’t want to have any surgery, even if it’s a minor surgery, unless you absolutely have to. Instead, go on an IUD. The hormones and the IUD will treat the symptoms of your fibroids and maybe it’ll prevent them from growing.”
As interventional radiologists who provide minimally invasive fibroid treatments, we love much of this advice. But it’s unfortunate no one talked about Uterine Fibroid Embolization (UFE) with Kelly. Because the IUD approach didn’t work for her. And, instead of exploring other options, Kelly switched up her thinking. She explained to her summit audience: “The fundamental belief that I absorbed was that periods are painful and uncomfortable and that’s normal. So, I was willing to endure, frankly, a lot of discomfort.”
Things only got worse for Kelly once she got an IUD. “[It] was a huge fiasco,” she said. “I hated it. It was incredibly painful… My fibroids were located in the exact same place where the IUD was placed… The pain was just unbearable.”
Finally, Pete Chatmon (Kelly’s husband) encouraged her to find , who urged her to find more permanent relief. She found a doctor who, she said, “literally lifted her fists and said, ‘Painful periods are not normal.’ She had surgery two years ago. And she’s been pain-free ever since.
Kelly’s story is anything but unique. Fibroid are very common. Especially for African American women like Kelly, who are three times more likely than white women to develop fibroids. Unfortunately, many of these women also get insufficient medical advice. Like Kelly, few are told about all of their treatment options.
And Kelly acknowledges that her path won’t work for everyone. “I’m not…necessarily just advocating surgery. I’m advocating treatment that actually is meant to address giving your body and your mind relief; that is not a course of Ibuprofen every month…For me, that meant surgery.”
But, she wants every woman to find their best course of action. And she’s offering this advice: “I think a lot of doctors are quick to end the appointment and you have to be persistent…If you’re walking around and your wrist hurts, your doctor wouldn’t just be like, ‘Yes, sometimes your wrist hurts.’ You don’t have to deal with that. So, address it, take it seriously and make your doctor take it seriously with you.”
We believe those are #WCW words to live by. So, if you have fibroids and you’re looking for more treatment options, ask your doctor about UFE. And if you aren’t getting answers, come schedule a consultation with our Houston area fibroid specialists.
Sources: Glamour.com, Hollywoodlife.com, Houstonfibroids.com
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