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Pictured: New Endometriosis UK Awareness Ambassadors. Caption: New Surrey Endometriosis Awareness Ambassadors from clockwise top left, Alison Smith, Cherry Bwalya, Rebecca Wylie and Rebecca Brown. 

Local volunteers join endometriosis awareness drive 

A team of Surrey-based volunteers has been recruited by national charity Endometriosis UK (EUK) to help raise awareness locally about endometriosis, a life changing condition which is estimated to affect one in ten women in the UK.

Endometriosis is the second most common gynaecological condition and as prevalent in the UK as diabetes and asthma. Symptoms include severe pain during or between periods, long, heavy and irregular periods, painful bowel movements, pain in the bladder and pain during or after sex. Fertility may also be affected and extreme fatigue is common. There is no cure.  However, the condition is manageable and timely diagnosis can save women from many years of living in constant pain and ensure better health outcomes.

Supporting EUK’s South East Regional Development Officer, Janet Crowe, the team of new EUK Awareness Ambassadors will be helping to:

 

 

• build awareness and understanding among local women and women’s interest groups about the condition – what the symptoms are, the importance of getting an early diagnosis, the support available for patients and their families
•  link local endometriosis patients in Surrey with EUK services and support and give a voice to them

• contribute to EUK’s objective of reducing diagnosis times and enabling women to receive more effective treatment and support through improved education of health professionals – local GPs and practice nurses.

 

The recruitment of a skilled and enthusiastic group of new EUK Awareness Ambassadors will help raise the profile of a condition which is distressing, common and yet still poorly understood and signpost Surrey women and their families to the support available.

Janet Crowe, EUK Regional Development Officer for the South East says: ‘We are fortunate in this region to have centres of excellence for the treatment of endometriosis located at the Royal Surrey County Hospital in Guildford and Ashford and St Peter’s in Chertsey and two active endometriosis support groups based in these hospitals. We are delighted to be able to announce the recruitment of the new Awareness Ambassadors in time for National Endometriosis Awareness Week (5 -12 March): another positive step towards building local awareness and understanding of this debilitating condition.’

Anyone interested in finding out more about the work of the Awareness Ambassadors can contact Janet at southeastdevelopment@endometriosis-uk.org.uk.