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Doing the BIG Jump
Tarana explains why she decided to join our first mass skydive event this Awareness Week
 Right from the very beginning of my first period at the age of 10, the sight of it filled me dread. I felt isolated from the rest of my friends of the same age; no one else I knew had to deal with the 'bloody mess' that made my young life all of a sudden more complicated.
Initially, there was very little physical pain, but as the years went by I found myself becoming increasingly fearful of periods; they used to be four day periods, but almost with each passing year they increased to 5,6,7,8,9,10,11...with 12 days becoming an 'average' period if not longer.
By the time I was 19, I was struggling to go to university. You see, by that point, periods had overtaken my life, the painkillers were no longer working, the periods would last for two weeks, and I was experiencing the most excruciating abdominal pains which would last for three weeks in a month.
I remember the summer of 1996 as a time I was in and out of 'A&E', instead of enjoying my summer break as I felt my insides being twisted and turned, stabbed and ripped apart. My doctors told me that it was 'irritable bowel syndrome’, 'pelvic inflammatory disease' or even appendicitis. For the next four years I found myself in and out of hospitals but no one could tell me what was wrong. I remember one doctor telling me it was 'all in my head' and that I was asking 'too many unnecessary questions’. It was finally when I collapsed in the street, on a cold and wet October evening that they were able to diagnose me correctly with endometriosis.
For the last 10 years, I have been battling with the condition and the associated complications of adhesions. I have been given every drug treatment possible and endured surgery four times; the most recent operation was in Nov 2009. The impact on my life has been significant, affecting my career, friendships and family. In spite of always feeling sick, tired and suffering two to three bouts of 'pain attacks' in a week and generally feeling sorry for myself, I have decided to do everything in my power to overcome this condition, and help other women and girls to defeat this dreadful disease.
It is for this reason that I decided to do the BIG Jump for Endometriosis UK!
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I am dedicating this jump to the young teenage girl who is struggling to maintain her friendships, to keep up with her school work, her university degree; to the young woman, who should be looking forward to her future with excitement and optimism for the start of a new career, a relationship; to the woman in her prime, who dreams of having a family one day; to the mothers who are too sick to care for their children... to all the women, who have lost hope for the future because of this disease. |
I want to do as much as I can to raise awareness of the condition, and to raise as much money as possible for medical research and support. The jump for me is like a 'leap of faith', that one day endometriosis sufferers will have a much better quality of life, or even a cure. Until then, the work of Endometriosis UK needs to have our support, so that they can support us!
I am incredibly excited about the jump and can't wait to do it! Don't get me wrong, I am scared....very scared... and did I mention that I'm scared of heights?! But as endometriosis poses challenges for me nearly every day, I thought it was appropriate that I challenged myself to an activity where I face my fears....to show that I will be fearless in front of any challenge placed before me! I hope that other people will follow suit and join me in the BIG Jump! I think it is a once in a lifetime opportunity, to raise money for a good cause, and to have such an exhilarating and unforgettable adventure!
>> Find out more about the BIG Jump
>> Sign up for the BIG Jump now
>> Request an information pack
>> Read more fundraising stories
Would you like to raise money for Endometriosis UK? Get in touch with Rachel at fundraising@endometriosis-uk.org
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