Venus Williams is unfortunately part of the thousands of Black women who have experienced neglect within the healthcare system. Recently, the tennis star opened up about the years of pain and grueling symptoms she experienced before doctors finally listened to her concerns.
In an interview with “Today,” Williams opened up about the crippling pain that would often leave her “laying on the floor in the locker room” before matches and “hugging the toilet,” during her menstrual cycle.
“It just got too bad, and I couldn’t handle it,” the seven-time tennis Grand Slam champion shared. “I’m sharing now because I was outraged that I didn’t know this was possible. I didn’t know what was wrong with me. No one should have to go through this.”
For years, Williams was led to believe that her symptoms were “normal” by doctors who never explained how large her fibroids were or the intense symptoms they caused, like pain, nausea, and persistent anemia from heavy periods, which led to repeated iron transfusions.
“I live with an autoimmune disease. So I thought maybe it was autoimmune anemia or something like that. But really it was what I was dealing with inside, which was fibroids,” she said, referencing her Sjögren’s syndrome diagnosis, which causes fatigue and swollen joints.
“One doctor told me [when I was 37] … this is a part of aging. This is normal.” Another told her to get a hysterectomy. “I’ve never been so sad in my life,” she continued. “I had never been running to have kids but I always wanted to have a choice and to have that taken away is just frightening.”
With her symptoms ultimately impacting her ability to perform as an athlete, Williams explained how she “never had enough energy most times to play a real match the way [she] wanted to.”
It was not until she found NYU Langone Health Center for Fibroid Care led by Dr. Taraneh Shirazian, that the tennis star…
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