Ciara's Story

Ciara has a long, but very touching story. She has been through a lot and I find it very inspirational. Here is her story:

Ciara's Story

My story starts when I got my period early at age 11. From the start, they were very heavy and very painful. Just like most people, I just assumed this was normal. As a teen I was in foster care as a result of my parents being alcoholics who eventually became addicted to drugs as well, so my periods were not my biggest concern. Sadly, I developed anorexia and my body fat dropped so low that I stopped menstruating for a couple of years. Thanks to an amazing foster mom, I was able to overcome anorexia, but unfortunately my periods came back, and they hurt like hell. I had just started a pre-entry university program that targeted disadvantaged students. I ended up being referred to have a lap to see if there was any long term damage, and all they found was a lot of free fluid from cysts that had ruptured and was most likely causing my pain. As the years went on, I ended up getting a degree in psychology and then a masters in forensic psychology. Of course I was constantly in pain, but I just learned to live with it and take a ton of pain meds. This year, at the age of 30, I finally decided to get some help because I had ended up in the ER with so much pain. When my appendix ruptured, I was at work and just thought I was having normal pain because this is how I feel every week. After I got my appendix out, I found out I was pregnant, but had miscarried. This sent me into mental and physical agony. I was working full time doing intensive therapy with traumatized children and running a group for men in prison, while also being a foster parent for children with behavioral issues. This pain started to interfere with my work. It started to get so bad I was dreading going to work. Luckily, I had a wonderful gynecologist who preformed a lap on me a few weeks ago and he removed a lot of Endometriosis. As I write this, I notice just how much I have achieved. I managed to get my degree and my masters, overcome adversity and anorexia, and have been blessed with a wonderful fiancee who has been with me through all of this. I have a successful career and I am a foster parent, which means I have achieved everything I have wanted to.