BBC presenter Emma Barnett has revealed that she had to undergo a hysterectomy that she “didn’t want to have” as a result of her crippling endometriosis.
The 41-year-oldToday programme host said her symptoms became “a lot worse” in her final weeks of filming documentary Fighting Endometriosis, in which she discusses her life-long struggle with the condition.
Just two days before the documentary aired in June, Ms Barnett had to undergo a sudden and extensive endometriosis surgery, a hysterectomy to remove her womb and a gallbladder removal.
She wrote on Substack: “I felt blind-sided and robbed. Even though my care had been superb and doctors, utterly brilliant.
“But this was not the road I had envisioned for myself. I had the hysterectomy I never wanted to have.”
Ms Barnett has frequently spoken out about the debilitating pain she experiences from endometriosis, a condition where tissue grows outside the uterus and causes swelling, bleeding, and severe pain during a period.
She said she did not want or plan to have her recent surgery, but said the situation became “urgent and non-negotiable”.
“I didn’t want this procedure because it’s major surgery. It’s frightening and a hard recovery - something I am living now. I didn’t want it because I wanted there to have been medicine or treatment to help my endometriosis. It felt and feels too extreme.
“Is such major surgery what anyone would ‘choose’? Yes, I officially and legally consented to the procedures - in so much as you can know what you are letting yourself in for.”
Ms Barnett said she did not “buy into the idea that the womb is sacred and at the heart of being a woman. I am still very much a woman and me.
“I am grateful to it because somehow it managed to help me have two children. Having your womb removed without having children if you wanted them is a totally different situation - one I must acknowledge.”
Earlier this year, Ms Barnett spoke out about a “horrific” experience with endometriosis where she couldn’t “remember a single thing” about a radio broadcast after being hit with intense pain.
The presenter previously had a laparoscopy, a surgical procedure to surgically remove endometriosis, which she said was difficult to recover from, and provided no pain relief.
She returned to air on Wednesday morning after an 11-week recovery, which she described as “one of the most humbling experiences of my life.”
The cause of endometriosis is unknown and affects around one in 10 women, according to Endometriosis UK.
Some 1.5 million women in Britain suffer from the condition, which costs the UK economy £8.2bn a year in treatment, loss of work and healthcare costs.
