Abstract
Background: Endometriosis is a very common disease and affects approximately one out of ten women in fertile age. Despite this, there is no national guidelines in Sweden today. The knowledge about endometriosis is low among the affected women, people in their closest surrounding and in the healthcare as a whole. Most of the women´s lives are dominated by pain and the disease affects women´s lives in several aspects. It is hard for the women to be taken seriously about their symptoms which often leads to a diagnosic delay.
Aim: The aim of this study was to illustrate women´s experiences of living with endometriosis.
Method: A literature-based study compound with ten qualitative studies found after searches in the databases CinAhl and PubMed. The included studies have been reviewed, analyzed and reported in a result.
Findings: Four categories and ten subcategories was the result of the analysis. The result showed that most women had to fight to get a diagnosis. They tended to normalize their own symptoms and not get their symptoms acknowledged by the healthcare. This led to feelings of distrust. The most tangible symptom was pain which affected the women’s life as a whole. The descriptions of pain varied but many of the women described it as disabling. Endometriosis caused a lack of self-esteem due to changes in their physical appearance. The disease was often described as controlling. The symptoms affected social activities, relationships, worklife and studies. For the future some women felt anxiety while some felt hope.
Conclusion: Endometriosis affects a woman´s whole life. The knowledge of the disease is low in society and in the healthcare. The knowledge of the disease among healthcare professionals needs to be improved in order for the women to experience good treatment in their meeting with the healthcare.