I was born without a womb
buy canada goose jacket cheap Joanna Giannouli, 27, has a condition which means she has no womb, cervix and upper vagina. Here, she explains the challenges of a syndrome that affects around one in 5,000 women. buy canada goose jacket cheap
canada goose factory sale When we first saw the doctor, my father put on a brave face. My mother, on the other hand, didn’t take it so well. She blamed herself for the past 10 years. It was really heartbreaking to see her canada goose coats on sale like that. canada goose factory sale
We didn’t talk about it much for the first five years. I wasn’t able to talk about it. canada goose clearance sale I felt destroyed and incredibly weak. My mother believes she may have done something wrong in her pregnancy. I’ve explained to her that she didn’t do anything wrong, it was just genes.
It’s a condition that is stigmatised. The most hurtful thing was when I was abandoned after my former partner found out.
I was engaged when I was 21, living in Athens. When I told my fiance about the condition, he broke off the engagement. That all belongs in the past and I am OK now. For the past five years, fortunately, I have had a stable and loving relationship. He knew from the beginning that I have this condition and he chose to stay with me. He knows that maybe the future will be without children. He’s OK with it. I’m also OK with that. I am one of the luckiest.
My mother took me to our family doctor when I was 14 because I still wasn’t menstruating. He didn’t examine me because he wouldn’t Canada Goose Parka touch my private parts and when I became 16 he sent me to a hospital to be checked out. They realised that canada goose clearance I www.universeinsync.com didn’t have a vaginal tunnel and I had Rokitansky syndrome. Because I was born without a functional vagina, the doctors had to make one in order for me to have sex.
It went well, really Canada Goose online well. I stayed in a hospital for about two weeks, in order to recover. Then I had to be about three months laying on a bed I couldn’t get up. I did vaginal exercises in order to expand my new vaginal tunnel. The first sign of it is you have primal amenorrhea you canada goose black friday sale don’t have any menstruation at all. Apart from that, you cannot have sexual intercourse. That’s why I had major surgery aged 17. The doctors made me a new one. It was a revolutionary procedure in Athens.
canada goose clearance The new vagina the doctors made was narrow and small, and it caused me a lot of pain while having sex, and I had to expand the perineum by doing vaginal exercises. It’s a small area underneath the vagina. It’s skin, it’s tissue, canada goose coats and they had to cut it more in order to expand the entrance, as I call it. canada goose clearance
canada goose After that I was OK physically, but I was not OK emotionally. It’s a burden, like something that you cannot get rid of it. I had canadian goose jacket partners who emotionally abused me about this condition. I couldn’t have a stable relationship for many years because of that. It is a haunting and unbearable situation. It steals your happiness, your mentality, your chances of having a good Canada Goose Jackets and stable relationship. It leaves you with Canada Goose sale a huge void that cannot be filled, it fills you with anger, guilt, and shame. canada goose
buy canada goose jacket What is Rokitansky syndrome? buy canada goose jacket
uk canada goose A condition referring to women who are born with an underdeveloped or absent womb, cervix and upper vagina uk canada goose
Women with Rokitansky syndrome have ovaries and external genitalia (vulva) and they still develop breasts and pubic hair as they get older
canada goose clearance sale Often the first sign of Rokitansky syndrome is that a girl does not start having periods. Sex may also be difficult cheap Canada Goose because the vagina is shorter Canada Goose Outlet than normal canada goose clearance sale
Source: NHS UK
Canada Goose Parka Apart from that, it was hard afterwards. It was just taking a toll on me emotionally, psychologically it was really, really hard. Canada Goose Parka
Well, it’s been almost 10 years. I’m still feeling bad about it but I’m not ashamed any more, it’s been way too long. And I’ve realised that I cannot change it, it’s just the way it is, I have to embrace it and live with it.
canada goose uk outlet For the first few years, and still sometimes, I thought I was worthless. Damaged goods. Not worthy of being loved. I was a lost soul for many years. It can destroy your life. It puts you in a really hard position. I battled depression, anxiety, panic attacks, you name it. canada goose uk outlet
canada goose black friday sale It taught me a lesson. Although I don’t believe in God, I do believe that this was a huge wake up call never take buy canada goose jacket anything for granted. canada goose black friday sale
canada goose coats I was reborn. It gave me a new life, a new identity. It changed the course of my life. Before, I was a typical teenager with ups and downs. Afterwards, I became really, really mature. I grew up rapidly. I am thankful for that. canada goose coats
This defined me as a person. I am living each day as it is. I am not making any future plans because I don’t know if I’m going to be alive.
Not many people know this about me. I wanted to keep it a secret and my mum told family members. It wasn’t the best experience because people pity you. I don’t want people to feel sorry for me. I’m not dying, I’m not in danger. People had this pitiful look. It made me feel sadder about myself.
Canada Goose Coats On Sale I couldn’t talk about it because in Athens in Greece generally people are really close minded. Sometimes it felt like I was living in the Middle Ages. Canada Goose Coats On Sale
Canada Goose Jackets I couldn’t find a support group in Greece, I couldn’t find anyone else to canada goose deals talk about it. And I canada goose needed someone to talk about it! It was huge, and most women with the condition are ashamed, really. I’ve found a couple of women that were willing to talk about it, and after a while they disappeared because they were ashamed of it. Canada Goose Jackets
I would love to be a mother in some way, be it a biological, a surrogate mother or a foster mum. A mother is not the one who gives birth but is the woman who cares for a child.
cheap canada goose uk At this stage of my life, I’m not thinking about it but maybe in the future I will have children. I canada goose outlet love kids, we will see. cheap canada goose uk
It is liberating to talk about it. I want to support every woman that has this condition because I have been through hell and I know what problems this can cause. Many women have committed suicide because of this. It can be really depressing.
uk canada goose outlet I found the strength and courage because I want to help other women in the same position because if we don’t help each other then who will? It gives me strength when I talk about it uk canada goose outlet.