Hi I'm Kathrine, and about five years ago i was diagnosed with uterine fibriods.

Currently, the fibroid is 4.5-5 cm big, and attached to the outside of my uterus. I have long, heavy periods, I've danced back and forth with anemia from the blood loss, leading to exhaustion, poor immunity, hair loss and dizzyness...my periods give me migraines, upset stomach, intense cramps and blood clots. I get incontinence because the fibroid presses against my bladder, I have to keep spare underwear and loads of period products in my purse and work locker cause I never know when it's coming. The treatment option I'm going forward with is fibroid embolization, where they go in with a catheter and fill the blood vessels feeding the fibroid with microscopic, slightly radioactive material to cut off it's blood supply, and hopefully shrink it and stop my symptoms.

I've had several consultations and ultrasounds. They're expensive and keep piling up. My insurance isn't covering anything, and my savings have been decimated. I work a part-time, barely above minimum wage job, and my spouse is on disability. I'm nearly 1000 euro in and haven't even had my MRI scan yet. Whenever I ask about the cost of the procedure, my doctors just say "my insurance will cover it", but VHI have given me a grand total of 20 euro so far, so I'm not holding out hope. This means i can only supply an estimate of what the final costs of this will be.

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When I was nineteen my periods started getting weird and inconsistent and very irregular. When I went to a gynecologist, I explained my symptoms and was told I have poly-cystic ovarian syndrome. They ran no tests and did no scans. I got a prescription for The Pill and was sent on my way. The pill made me pretty sick so I stopped taking it and largely just...dealt with having shit periods.

In 2020, I had a period that lasted seven weeks. I went on the PCOS subreddit and asked if this was just...how it was going to be or if i should see a doctor and was unanimously told to make an appointment asap.

So I went, in the midst of COVID. I had to go back and forth a few times between the walk in clinic (it's impossible to get registered with a GP these days) and the women's health center and finally got an ultrasound.

"So you have fibriods."

"Okay...so what do I, like, do?"

"We can put you on the pill to regulate your periods,"

"Hormonal birth control makes me sick, it always has, i don't want to take it."

"Well...come back if it gets worse...?"

I was given nothing. They didn't discuss treatment options, i wasn't told how many there were or the sizes or where it was. I wasn't told what symptoms to look out for or how "worse" was worse supposed to be before I went to get more help, or even recommendations on where to go for more help. Just some birth control. Gee thanks.

So, I just kinda sucked it up for five years... butt's causing problems at work and in my day to day life and I just can't do it anymore. In December of 2024, I went to another walk in clinic to try and get treatment. which is where we are now.

I just want to stop feeling like shit all the time; I'm exhausted and deal with chronic pain and mental illness and neurodivergence and I would really like to just be able to take care of this one thing that actually has a solution, and I would love to do it without getting into debt (the financial anxiety would break me)

I appreciate any help. Thank you for reading. <3