Meet Our #COTW Breanna Bailey – ‘Just Because I Feel Miserable Doesn’t Mean I Have to Be Miserable’
Breanna Bailey
Our third #WCW post goes out to Breanna Bailey – EndoBabe who almost lost everything due to her illness. Bailey was 16 and living a normal, healthy life when she began experiencing the symptoms of Endometriosis.
“Depression, joint pain, severe bloating, paralyzing pain [her legs would go numb and she was unable to walk], and let’s not forget the [actual] periods!” Bailey said.
The pain caused her to regress at school; she dropped from a 3.8 to a 2.5 GPA. And she spent so much time in the emergency room that her doctors began accusing her of having an addiction to painkillers. Her friends and family knew something was wrong, but no one knew how to help.
“I looked completely healthy,” she said. “How could I possibly be ill?”
In the months before her diagnosis, she went to five different doctors and endured three separate surgeries.
While some told her the pain was in her head, others said the only “real” cure was a hysterectomy. Bailey (like many of us) was forced to try a variety of birth control methods and was faced with the prospect that she may never have children. Until she met a doctor that not only believed her, that is. This hero of a doctor finally confirmed that she had Stage II Endometriosis.
The recovery process was a long and arduous one, and not just because of the additional diagnoses she received with her Endo (Bailey was also diagnosed with interstitial cystitis and irritable bowel syndrome). While searching for ways to help her come back from her health problems, Bailey’s personal and professional life took a hard hit. She was stripped of her high school graduation cords and became estranged from her family and her fiancé.
Bailey had become so depressed that she attempted to take her own life.
Her dream of becoming a hair stylist was put on hold and what was supposed to be a two-year degree took four years to complete. Even so, Bailey found a way to integrate holistic treatment into her recovery plan to ease the pain and eventually she was able to change her mindset.
“I had to tell myself ‘mind over matter,’” Bailey said. “Did I really want to be a slave to my body for the rest of my life? … I found strength. Strength in standing up against it, strength in telling myself this is my life and just because I feel miserable doesn’t mean I have to be miserable.”
Now Bailey is 23 years old and thankful for what she’s learned and accomplished in the years since her Endo journey began. She owns a successful business doing hair, is in a happy relationship with a man who supports her, she is no longer estranged from her family, and she feels as though she has her “whole life back.”
“It (Endo) just turned my whole life upside down,” Bailey said.
She still has flare-ups, and there are days when it’s hard to get out of bed. But she’s still optimistic.
“I still remember that it is temporary and not all days can be pain-free. Accept and love your journey because you’ll be grateful for it one day. I wouldn’t be the woman I am today if I didn’t go through all this.”
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