Uterine fibroid tumors are one of the leading causes of hysterectomies in African-American woman. Throughout the years, my doctor had diagnosed and treated mine with a ‘don’t bother them unless they’re bothering you’ mindset.  Approximately four years ago, I woke up bothered. A large fibroid had interfered with the flow of blood to my left leg, causing a blood clot.  A clot that, had left undetected, could’ve traveled to my heart and killed me.

by Stephanie J. Gates of Stephanie's Epiphanies

Sitting at the table making small talk with the manicurist as she meticulously paints my nails a soft, slightly iridescent shade of pink; I am caught off-guard when she asks The Question: “So, how many children do you have?” This forty year-old mother of three and grandmother of two is inquiring about my mothering status.

1:15 a.m. Tonight I cried in the shower asking God for strength to endure my menstrual cycle this week. I can't sleep for anxiety of having an accident in the bed. Underneath me is a thick blanket just in case I sleep longer than an hour. If I don't wake to change sanitary napkins frequently throughout the night I am sure to rise from a pool of blood. It's been five years since I was first diagnosed with fibroid tumors which is one of the most common tumors in the female uterine track.