Spoken word: Luna Woes

March is Endometriosis Action Month 2026. This year the message is clear: Endometriosis doesn’t wait. It doesn’t wait for answers, care, or belief.

According to research by the Medical Sciences Division, endometriosis is a common chronic inflammatory condition in which endometrial tissue, like the lining of the uterus, grows elsewhere in the body, including on the ovaries, bladder, bowels and intestines. Although the exact cause is unknown, endometriosis affects an estimated one in ten women.

Endometriosis, despite current medical preconceptions and beliefs, is a full body condition that alters every part of a woman’s life. Women experiencing endometriosis endure an immeasurable range of symptoms and adverse effects such as:

• Chronic pain and fatigue
• Painful menstruation and acute pelvic cramping, including the back and stomach (Dysmenorrhea)
• Heavy periods (Menorrhagia)
• Exacerbated gut and gastrointestinal symptoms (i.e. IBS, painful bowel movement)
• Pain during or after sex (Dyspareunia)

Modern medicine still treats women’s pain as normal, medical misogyny that continues to perpetually dismiss, devalue and diminish women and our experiences. For Black women this problem is worse. Research reported in The Conversation shows Black women are around half as likely to be diagnosed with endometriosis compared with white women and barriers to gynaecological care, systemic and medical racism mean they suffer for longer without proper diagnosis or treatment.

According to a new report by Endometriosis UK, ‘The State Of Endometriosis Care In The UK’, it takes on average 9 years and 4 months for white women to receive a diagnosis in the UK and 11 years for Black women and women from ethnic minorities.

“Luna Woes” encapsulates my experience with endometriosis as I turn to poetry to reconcile my story – transforming pain, vulnerability and medical trauma into self-empowerment.

I initially performed this piece at UpNext’s Poetry Night as one of the headline poets from their second poetry cohort. UpNext is a grassroots organisation that empowers emerging creatives by providing space to discover, develop, and share their craft through workshops, programmes, and live events.