Bindi Irwin, the conservationist, and daughter of the late Steve Irwin, recently put endometriosis in the spotlight as she took to social media to share her journey. Irwin describes that she battled with “insurmountable fatigue, pain & nausea for ten years.” A doctor even told her that her pain “was simply something you deal with as a woman.” 

Most women have experienced some degree of pelvic pain in their lifetime. For many of us, we have had painful periods our whole life, and the periods are becoming more and more unbearable.  Dysmenorrhea (or pain with periods) is such a common finding for women, so how do we know when our pain is beyond what is expected?