[Emma – TRB Lead Editor]

I’m hoping someone here can help or at least share their experience. I’ve been dealing with really painful periods for years (like can’t-get-out-of-bed-sometimes level pain), heavy bleeding, and random pelvic pain even when I’m not on my period. I’ve also started noticing crazy bloating.

I’ve done some Googling (probably too much, to be honest), and endometriosis keeps coming up. It really sounds like what I might have – but I have no idea what the next step is. Do I go straight to a gynecologist? Can my GP help? I’m scared of being dismissed again, especially since I’ve brought up painful periods before and was just told to go on birth control.

I guess my main questions are:

Who do I actually talk to about getting tested for endo?

What tests are involved?

How do I get taken seriously?

I’m just feeling a bit overwhelmed and not sure how to advocate for myself. Any advice or stories from anyone who’s been through this would mean so much right now.

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