By Viwe Ndongeni-Ntlebi
Actress Nambitha Ben-Mazwi has opened up about being diagnosed with endometriosis and emergency surgery.
In a Instagram post, the Ben-Mazwi shared a picture of herself in a hospital bed and she explained how she has been healing from her emergency surgery.
“25:05:20 I underwent emergency surgery. A number of procedures were done, above and beyond being diagnosed with stage 1 endometriosis. This has been the toughest time of my life. But with the storm I have seen and felt God cover me like no other,” she posted.
Doctor Peter de Jong, a gynaecologist, said endometriosis is a common condition that results in a huge amount of suffering in many thousands of young women every month. He explained that endometriosis is a condition which causes the lining of the womb (endometrium) to be displaced outside the uterine cavity.
De Jong said the most common symptoms of endometriosis are painful sex and infertility. The condition can be treated, though.
About 30% of women with infertility problems have endometriosis. Endometrial tissue in the pelvis can trigger an inflammatory reaction that can affect egg development, ovulation and fertilisation.
The endometriotic deposits which are usually flushed out during a woman’s menstruation, end up on the inside of her pelvis and the endometriosis, resulting in spotting and period pains.
“When the time is right, I will open up more and share about this Illness, and female reproductive health. As well as medical aid because yey man! But for now, I want to say thank you to my family. It’s been hard doing this far from them and away from home, but I have felt them and my mom (that woman I cry thinking about how amazing she is) has nursed me virtually to a better place,” said Ben-Mazwi.
