Circuit breaking: Pathways of treatment seeking for women with endometriosis in Australia

Pain resulting from endometriosis is experienced as both a chronic, ongoing condition and an acute episode at time of menstruation, often occurring in association with diarrhea, vomiting, nausea, heavy bleeding, and other reactions. Women expect pain with menstruation, however, and even if they experience major disruptions as a result, they find it difficult to distinguish normal from pathological discomfort. Drawing on qualitative research conducted from 2004 to 2006, we describe the "circuit breakers" that lead Australian women to seek medical advice. These include outside intercession, major disruptions to everyday life, changes in embodied experience, and difficulties in conception and pregnancy. Women's ideas of menstrual pain as "normal" are shared by doctors, resulting in further delays before a definitive diagnosis of endometriosis is made. During this time, women move between doctors and in and out of medical care, which they described through particular narrative styles to highlight the complexity of help seeking. We explore the ways in which ideas of gender, informed by women's embodiment but also the quality of their reporting of symptoms, influence their interactions with health professionals.