Bindi Irwin admits she was “terrified” when revealing her endometriosis diagnosis with the public.
“It’s really scary sharing the parts of you that have been the hardest to overcome, sharing things that feel so incredibly personal,” the conservationist told Page Six Friday night at the Endometriosis Foundation of America’s (EndoFound) 12th Annual Blossom Ball, where she was honored.
But Irwin, 25, whose dad was the late Steve Irwin, decided to open up about her health journey to shine a light on an often misdiagnosed illness that affects approximately one in ten women worldwide.
According to the World Health Organization, “It is a chronic disease associated with severe, life-impacting pain during periods, sexual intercourse, bowel movements and/or urination, chronic pelvic pain, abdominal bloating, nausea, fatigue, and sometimes depression, anxiety and infertility.”
Bindi — who attended Friday’s event with her mother, Terri Irwin, and brother, Robert Irwin — told us the disease is still a subject that “is so not talked about.”
“It’s ignored in so many ways and so many women and girls are living in unbelievable pain,” the zookeeper further explained.
“It’s so important to me to be able to share my journey so maybe it will inspire other people and maybe help them with the opportunity to stand up and say, ‘Hey, this isn’t normal and I deserve to get help. I deserve to feel good.’”
Last year, Bindi announced on Instagram that she had undergone endometriosis surgery to remove 37 lesions.
The “Crikey! It’s The Irwins” star also told Page Six that she had been living in worsening pain for more than a decade.
“I started searching for answers more than 10 years ago,” she explained. “I was young, I was really, really young.”
However, like many, her pain was ignored, as “a lot of doctors just dismissed it as ‘it’s hormones, you’re just tired or stressed.’”
She added, “I had a doctor say to me, ‘You should just have a cup of tea and focus on mental clarity.’ That was not the best advice when I would say, ‘I’m in agonizing pain, I can’t for a walk without throwing up.’”
Bindi, who shares daughter Grace, 3, with husband Chandler Powell, said her symptoms escalated after giving birth.
“It was getting to the point where I wasn’t just having pain during my period, it was every single day of my life and after having my daughter, it snowballed,” the “Dancing With the Stars” alum revealed.
“A lot of people hear if you get pregnant and have a baby it gets better but, for me — Grace was our beautiful, miracle baby — and after I had her my symptoms escalated 10 fold.”
Bindi said she had a battery of tests but it wasn’t until a friend shared her own story that she “had any idea what endometriosis was,” adding, “That just shines a light that there needs to be more education.”
