Meet Niamh

Niamh's story, like so many others, started out after experiencing issues with her periods in her teen years. More than just feeling sick, and constant cramping, she had to endure her period not just once, but twice every month. And then there was the fainting, often at school.

Knowing something wasn't quite right, she sought out help from her GP - it was then that she first encountered the incredibly dismissive attitude so commonly experienced by endo sufferers.

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"I felt like he didn't really listen to me. After barely a couple of minutes, he just quickly dispatched me with the pill, and sent me on my way. I had very little explanation or understanding of what was happening, and why. That just didn't seem to matter to him."

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Niamh's experience is unsurprisingly familiar, where in NZ it's incredibly common for sufferers to be handed out the pill as 'the answer', and sent on their merry way.

But with one in every ten females in NZ diagnosed with endo, and a resounding 176 million women world-wide enduring this debilitating illness, surely, we could do more than this? Why, given there are so many sufferers out there, are we not actively sharing the tools and knowledge we have that actually help treat it?
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Niamh, keen to break the silence and stigma, tells us how she's been able to get her endo into 'remission' using the Endo45 app. This is her story...

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What did you see change the most after using the app?

Definitely the most change would be in my mood. I just don't go through extreme highs and lows anymore; it's much more consistent which is nice (for everyone). I feel like I'm generally a nicer person to be around because of that!

Also, feeling the energy start to return to my body has been nuts. After feeling so tired constantly and continually drained, it was incredible to feel the energy start to slowly return. I could start having a more manageable lifestyle day to day, that didn't revolve around naps.

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What was your biggest fear as an endo sufferer, and how are you feeling about it now?

I guess, my fear was that I'd never feel 'normal' again. Or have the freedom to not have to think about my endo, and it's effects on me. It was always just lingering at the back of my mind. Now, I still think about it, but not in a way that's all consuming or debilitating. It's more a mindfulness practice, rather than something I should be scared of.

If I'm really honest with myself, I was also scared of not being able to have children. Not that I'm wanting to yet, but I didn't want to have that choice taken away from me. Now, by slowly implementing the learnings from the app, I already feel more confident in my fertility. So who knows what's on the cards for me, but I feel like I can live a normal life now. I can go without thinking negatively about endo, and have the freedom to live.

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Do you feel like you have more control?

Before I felt like I had to sort my social life or make calls around my period. ‘I won't be able to do that as I'll be in too much pain’, or ‘I won't have the energy to do it’. Even hanging out with friends was sometimes just too much. Feeling like I didn't have the energy to communicate, I just wanted to zone out and be in my bed.

Now, I just have a lot more freedom and control over my life. I’m more relaxed and able to go with the flow. Like 'yeah I'd love to go do that' spur of the moment activity, without having to calculate what time of the month it is.

What’s your biggest learning from using the app?

It feels like there is a big rise in our culture at the moment to constantly be super productive, hustling, and always to be go, go, go! Everything seems to always be high intensity, and the general feeling that if I’m not busy then I’m not being productive, and I’m not going to be successful in life. When in reality, it’s the opposite that’s true – we need to take the time to slow down, especially for those with endo.

For example, I’ve started switching from high intensity HIIT workouts, to instead going for a walk and connecting with nature. Enjoying a cup of hot lemon tea in the morning on an empty stomach, rather than downing caffeine. And let’s not even mention screen time…

So how do you use the app as part of your everyday routine?

Usually, it’s the first thing as part of my morning routine, once I’m up for the day. I quickly look at the app, and log how I’m feeling that day, especially at that time of the month. I usually log both morning and night, to either tick off my healthy habits, or just log in the morning how I’m feeling.

I also often find myself pulling out the app when I’m talking with my friends. We’ll be talking about something health related, and I’ll be like ‘you should try taking zinc to help’ and show them the article on the app explaining how it helps, and how it’s actually backed by medical research.

With the internet it's so easy to go down so many rabbit holes and find so many conflicting things. I trust that with the app, what I'm getting is good information. It’s nice just to have this central hub. It's always exciting, there are always new things being added. Like meditation, I'm going to try that next!

What would be your advice to other endo sufferers out there?

That's a tough one! I guess, sometimes doing less, is doing more. You can add in lots of healthy habits, but it doesn't always need to be doing 10,000 crazy things in your day to make yourself feel better. That's likely to have the opposite effect. Sometimes it's about taking a step back, and slowing down as that's actually going to help you see more results. And is more sustainable over the long term.

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"Give it time, you're not going to see instant change. Just pick one or two things at the start to focus on, and really commit to doing it. It can be so exciting seeing all these different solutions and options in the app, but if you try to do them all at once you're never going to know what's actually helping you or not."

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Is there anything else you'd like to share?

Just that it's nice there are things outside of taking more pills, the usual western medicine approach. There are solutions that are easy to implement. I never thought I'd be able to be vegetarian for 4 meals a week, but actually once you build the habit, it's easy.

I love going every Sunday to get my fresh fruit and veg from the local market. And my challenge now every week is picking something new to make a meal with. I didn't realise how easy it would be or even possible as a student.