There are moments when intuition comes forward and helps us notice things we might have overlooked. For Monica Eryn Johnson, that moment happened in a fertility clinic. She went in hoping for clarity about her future and left with the first sign that something inside her body needed immediate attention. It was the beginning of a journey that would lead to the discovery of uterine fibroids and endometriosis.
Where It All Began
When Monica Eryn Johnson walked into a fertility specialist’s office in 2023, she thought she was taking a hopeful step toward her future. She was ready to freeze her eggs and make decisions on her own terms. Instead, she learned her body had been trying to warn her.
“I had no idea my body was already sounding an alarm I hadn’t learned to hear yet,” said Johnson.
What should have been a routine consultation became the beginning of a years-long fight for answers. A procedural ultrasound revealed uterine fibroids scattered throughout her body. From the outside, she looked healthy. Inside, something was deeply wrong.
“I wasn’t in pain at the time of that appointment. But looking back, the signs had been there that came to light during the pandemic.”
During those months, her body began speaking in ways she could no longer ignore. The weight gain made no sense, no matter how consistently she worked out or how clean she ate. The bloating became so severe that her abdomen looked visibly distended. Fatigue would hit out of nowhere, and sharp, radiating pain would come and go without explanation. And still, her labs came back “fine.”
When the medical system keeps reflecting your concerns back to you as non-issues, you start to believe them, even when your body is sending out a full SOS.
The First Dismissal
Monica turned to the OB-GYN practice she had trusted since childhood. It was the same office where she was born, the one her family and community relied on. That history made what happened next even harder.
“As I described my symptoms, my doctor brushed them off. He said he wasn’t sure what it could be and that it didn’t sound pelvic-related.”
He didn’t suggest a transvaginal ultrasound. She had to ask for it herself.
And in that moment, I felt dismissed, gaslit, and above all, neglected. My body was screaming and he wasn’t listening.
When the results came back, a nurse called to say Monica had multiple fibroids, including one the size of a grapefruit, but that she was “fine.” There was no follow-up and no sense of urgency.
“The sum total of the medical response from my OB-GYN’s office was a phone call and a shrug,” said Johnson.
The Weight of Her Pain
As her symptoms intensified, Monica’s daily life became a cycle of pain, fear, and pushing through.
Think of the worst stomachache imaginable, the kind where the bloating and pressure feels like it’s about to explode. Now multiply it.
Her abdomen became so distended that she looked seven months pregnant; consequently, the pressure built until it felt almost explosive. The pain near her belly button and backside was constant, a deep ache that never let up, and her insides felt like they were on fire.
“And yet, I kept going until I couldn’t go anymore.”
Even after her first surgery, she kept working. She kept showing up. She kept questioning herself.
“The gaslighting from the medical system had found its way inside my own head.”
Her Breaking Point
Within weeks of being told she was “fine,” Monica began hemorrhaging.
“I ended up having an emergency open myomectomy, a major, invasive surgery to remove the fibroids.”
She should never have reached that crisis point. But even after the surgery, her doctor never mentioned endometriosis. Instead, she was given birth control to mask her symptoms.
Within a couple weeks after that first surgery, my body was back in fight-or-flight mode signaling, loudly and unmistakably, that something was still horrifically wrong.
Finding Real Answers
Desperate for answers, Monica sought out a Black female gynecologist. The difference was immediate.
She didn’t rush me, redirect me, or minimize what I was saying. She heard me fully and completely.
This doctor connected the dots. She raised endometriosis as something likely present for years. A laparoscopic diagnostic confirmed Stage 4 endometriosis, non-functioning fallopian tubes, and organs welded together.
“I needed a specialist who was beyond her level of expertise, and I needed one urgently,” said Johnson.
In December 2025, she underwent complete pelvic reconstruction, which is a complex surgery performed when organs have fused together or shifted out of place and consequently need separation, repair, and rebuilding.
I don’t know where I would be if it weren’t for the two doctors who helped save my life.
Facing the Truth
The diagnosis changed everything.
“My lifelong dream of experiencing pregnancy and becoming a mom was shattering before my eyes,” Johnson recalled.
She grieved the years of pain that should have been caught sooner, the future she had imagined, and the trust she had placed in doctors who hadn’t deserved it.
But the most shocking discovery came later, a truth she uncovered only after she began piecing together her medical history on her own.
“I recently reviewed my medical records and discovered that my original male OB-GYN had documented my fibroids as far back as 2016 but never disclosed it to me or provided a plan of action.”
What She Wants Women to Know
Monica’s story is not rare. A study in BMC Women’s Health reports that endometriosis affects about 10% of women of reproductive age, showing just how widespread the condition is. However, for Black women, that delay is even more pronounced, shaped by disproportionate dismissal and systemic gaps in care.
“What I want every woman, especially every Black woman navigating dismissal, uncertainty, or a system that keeps telling her nothing is wrong, is to take away this.”
She speaks from experience, and her message is meant for anyone who has ever felt unheard.
“Your symptoms are real. Your pain is valid. Your instincts are trustworthy, and you deserve to be treated by a doctor who shows compassion, empathy, and makes you feel seen and heard.”
She urges women to advocate fiercely.
“Seek second opinions. Ask for the transvaginal ultrasound. The CT scan. The MRI with contrast. Request the referral(s) and whatever else that will help you get answers.”
Change doctors if you have to. Get second, third, fourth and fifth opinions. If the system fails you, do not let it silence you.
Johnson speaks without hesitation. She needs all women to know how important their voices are.
“Advocate! Advocate! Advocate!”
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Images Courtesy of Tatiana Christina Epps (TC Studios) and Monica Eryn Johnson