Daisy Ridley's Instagram account is quite the source of inspiration. When she's not busy showing off some seriously impressive weight-lifting skills on #FitnessFriday, she's dismantling body-shaming trolls. Now, she's using the platform to share her struggles with endometriosis and polycystic ovary syndrome.
On Thursday, the Star Wars actress posted a selfie with a candid caption revealing that she's been struggling with endometriosis for almost 10 years; she was diagnosed and underwent a laparoscopy procedure in her teens.
"At 15 I was diagnosed with endometriosis. One laparoscopy, many consultations, and eight years down the line, pain was back (more mild this time!) and my skin was THE WORST," she wrote about the photo of her clay mask.
Ridley goes on to say that after trying multiple things to cure her skin, she found out the source of her skin issues was polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS), a hormonal disorder that causes your body to produce more androgens (“male” hormones) than is expected. Aside from irregular periods, PCOS can cause skin symptoms such as adult acne.
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Endometriosis is a painful condition that occurs when the tissue that normally lines the inside of the uterus grows outside of it, resulting in intense pain coinciding with your periods.
Ridley joins both Lena Dunham and Padma Lakshmi in bringing light to the issue, which affects up to 10% of women in the U.S. However, because the symptoms can be confused with menstrual cramps or gastrointestinal problems such as irritable bowel syndrome, many women suffer in pain for up to 10 years before getting a diagnosis.
Likewise, PCOS is complex. According to the PCOS Foundation, about 5-10% of women of childbearing age suffer from the endocrine disorder, but about half of those women are still undiagnosed.
And no one understands this better than Ridley, who ends her story about her skin with a very important message for anyone struggling with a confusing and frustrating body issue — whether that's PCOS, endometriosis, or something else entirely.
"My point is, to any of you who are suffering with anything, go to a doctor; pay for a specialist; get your hormones tested, get allergy testing; keep on top of how your body is feeling, and don't worry about sounding like a hypochondriac," she wrote. "From your head to the tips of your toes, we only have one body — let us all make sure ours our working in tip-top condition, and take help if it's needed."