But since I was 14, my menstrual cycles have been something to survive, not celebrate.
Symptoms, But No Answers
I have always had fairly heavy periods.
My mother had uterine fibroids and had lost two sets of twins because of them.
Courtesy of Tanika Gray Valbrun
But despite her experience, when my symptoms grew worse, we both ignored fibroids as a potential cause.
Before I went to college, I decided to get checked out by my doctor and described my symptoms.
In addition to gushing periods, there were heavy clots.
I felt weak fairly regularly due to extreme blood loss.
Even my mom, who had normalized heavy periods to some extent, was worried.
I hesitatedI wasn’t having sex and didn’t know why this would be necessary.
Still, despite my misgivings about this procedure, I went along with it.
it’s possible for you to’t just scrape out fibroids.
This time, they delivered devastating news: 27 uterine fibroids severely compromised my uterus.
They advised me to look for a surrogate.
There was something so damning about that statement.
I cried for days.
Then I decided to get a second opinion.
The next doctor informed me that although my uterus was compromised, there was still a chance.
In 2013, I had my firstmyomectomyto remove those 27 fibroids.
It was performed via C-section, with the same recovery time.
In 2018, I had to have another surgery, this onelaparoscopic, to remove new fibroids.
Most recently, I had less invasive surgery to shave down a fibroid that had developed.
I’m still on my path to motherhood, and have experienced two failed embryo transfers.
Now, with my uterus as clean as possible, we will have another go.
Tanika Gray Valbrun
[My mother] taught me how to manage as she had.
For her, it was part of a woman’s plight, not something to investigate further.
She taught me how to manage as she had.
For her, it was part of a woman’s plight, not something to investigate further.
Over the years, I had to have seven blood transfusions to combat blood loss.
Obviously, I didn’t wear a lot of white clothing.
Avoiding white clothing was just one of them.
I couldn’t have a car that had cloth seats.
I couldn’t leave the house without a change of clothes.
I had to stand at meetings because if I sat down, I might bleed through.
For me, the White Dress Project isn’t about changing the conversation about uterine fibroids.
It’s about having it in the first place.
The White Dress Project began in 2014, after my first surgery.
One of the first things I did was write legislation declaring July as Uterine Fibroid Awareness Month.
Getting people talking is key.
And now, finding funding for further research is the next step.
Once we start sharing, there’s power in our collective voice.
Looking back, it’s hard not to wonderwas there something that I could have done differently?
Could I have had surgery earlier?
Could I have changed my diet to try and slow the fibroids' growth?
I believe that everything happens for a reason, though.
Once we start sharing, there’s power in our collective voice.
The Stephanie Tubbs Jones Uterine Fibroid Research and Education Act of 2021 did not pass.
2014;210(3):194-199. doi:10.1016/j.ajog.2013.08.008
