10 % of women have endometriosis , a little-discussed condition caused by tissue similar to that of the uterus lining growing elsewhere in the body . This creates a chronic inflammatory reaction that causes pain during periods , sex , bowel movements and urination , as well as feelings of fatigue , nausea and depression . It ’ s often misdiagnosed , leading to many years of unnecessary pain and difficulty among women , as well as shame – so let ’ s tear down the stigma .

Adjusting the uterus with a ladder The Ancient Greeks ( 12th – 9th centuries BC ) were behind ideas as pivotal to human history as the Olympics and democracy . They were also leaders in medicine . To ease the pain of endometriosis , a woman was tied to a ladder , then turned upside down . The ladder would then be shaken . This was believed to ‘ adjust the uterus back into position ’.

Abnormal tissue around the uterus discovered Born in 1804 , Austrian pathologist Karl Freiherr von Rokitansky studied medicine at the University of Prague . He went on to perform 30,000 autopsies in his career . In female patients , he studied the growth of abnormal tissue around the uterus , which led Rokitansky to detect endometriosis .

14 November 2022