{"id":328041,"date":"2026-03-04T07:47:14","date_gmt":"2026-03-04T07:47:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/328041\/"},"modified":"2026-03-04T07:47:14","modified_gmt":"2026-03-04T07:47:14","slug":"i-had-a-rare-and-extremely-painful-period-where-the-uterine-lining-shed-in-one-intact-piece-the-size-of-my-palm","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/328041\/","title":{"rendered":"\u2018I had a rare and extremely painful period where the uterine lining shed in one intact piece the size of my palm\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"

A 29-year-old woman who waited almost half her life for an endometriosis diagnosis has described one particular \u201crare and extremely painful\u201d period where the uterine lining shed in one intact piece the size of her \u201cpalm\u201d rather than gradually.<\/p>\n

On the day that Katie Rogers, a project planner from Lancashire, experienced what she now knows was a decidual cast in late 2023, she said her head was \u201cabsolutely pounding\u201d and she had searing pain in her back throughout the day. It was not until she was halfway through a workout at the gym that she felt a \u201creally sharp pinging pain\u201d in her uterus.<\/p>\n

Katie said she only realised where the pain came from when she got home and saw that she had \u201cshed a piece\u201d of her uterine lining, which was \u201cabsolutely terrifying\u201d. Decidual casts are made up of tissue, mucus and blood, often looking something like a piece of raw red meat.<\/p>\n

\"Katie<\/p>\n

Katie said her decidual cast was \u2018absolutely terrifying\u2019 (Collect\/PA Real Life)<\/p>\n

\u201cI remember speaking to my mum and she was like, \u2018Oh my God, that looks like a baby\u2019,\u201d Katie told PA Real Life.<\/p>\n

\u201cI thought, \u2018Well, surely not. I\u2019ve been on contraception. There\u2019s no way that I could be pregnant\u2019.\u201d<\/p>\n

After ringing her GP and being told they would be closing soon, Katie rushed to A&E.<\/p>\n

By the time she spoke to a medical professional around midnight, she said she had an internal examination before the doctor told her that everything looked \u201cnormal\u201d.<\/p>\n

\"Katie<\/p>\n

Katie said she waited seven hours to be seen at hospital (Collect\/PA Real Life)<\/p>\n

Katie said of the decidual cast: \u201cIt\u2019s just something that can happen, but it\u2019s not very well-known about, which is why you\u2019re just in complete shock.\u201d<\/p>\n

Katie said the incident is the catalyst to why she started \u201cmaking a fuss\u201d to health professionals and sought a diagnosis of endometriosis, as she had been experiencing \u201cdebilitating\u201d periods from the age of 15.<\/p>\n

Citing excessive heavy bleeding, large clots, pain radiating down her back and into her legs, and frequent spotting between periods, Katie said she started taking the pill at 15 to help ease the symptoms.<\/p>\n

By her early 20s, she said she had been to doctors to discuss the pain she was in, but they said her symptoms were \u201cnormal\u201d, her blood test results were \u201cfine\u201d and \u201ceverything\u2019s coming back as it should be\u201d.<\/p>\n

\"Katie<\/p>\n

It took Katie almost half her life for an endometriosis diagnosis (Collect\/PA Real Life)<\/p>\n

\u201cAll of the pain that I\u2019m feeling is still very real,\u201d she said of her emotions at that time. \u201cIt\u2019s still debilitating. It affects my life. I have to cancel plans. I have to take time off work.\u201d<\/p>\n

Katie said she came off the pill at 22 to try to manage her health holistically by focusing on \u201cgoing to the gym and eating well\u201d, which is when she noticed her menstrual symptoms \u201creally ramping up\u201d.<\/p>\n

As a result, Katie said she started using an app called Clue to track her cycle and symptoms, which is how she noticed some of her periods were lasting up to two weeks, while periods typically last around two to seven days.<\/p>\n

She said: \u201cYou can track when your period starts, how you\u2019re feeling, spotting, feelings, pain, your sex life, how your energy is, even down to what you\u2019re craving.<\/p>\n

\"Katie<\/p>\n

Katie uses an app called Clue to track her cycle (Collect\/PA Real Life)<\/p>\n

\u201cSo if you go to a GP appointment and you say you\u2019ve been struggling with period pain or spotting, (they might ask) \u2018how long has it been going on for?\u2019 They like to have a really substantial diary of when these things are happening and how long they happen for,\u201d Katie added, explaining that she had accumulated notes over several years.<\/p>\n

On top of the \u201cdebilitating\u201d physical symptoms, she said she \u201creally struggled mentally\u201d, with \u201cbad mood swings\u201d and \u201creally deep depression episodes\u201d every month, which prompted her to discuss it with her GP at 26 in late 2023, who advised her to go back on the pill.<\/p>\n

Shortly afterwards, she experienced her decidual cast, which according to the Cleveland Clinic may happen as a result of the contraceptive pill.<\/p>\n

Katie described what happened next: \u201cThis made me even more adamant that I need to go and get checked out properly. So I went to the GP again, and I just kept pushing for a gynaecology referral.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Katie<\/p>\n

Katie described her physical symptoms as \u2018debilitating\u2019 (Collect\/PA Real Life)<\/p>\n

Katie had an ultrasound and MRI, which came back normal, then she pushed for a laparoscopy and a hysteroscopy, which are minimally invasive gynaecological procedures used to diagnose and treat pelvic and uterine conditions.<\/p>\n

It was during this \u201cone or two hour\u201d surgery in which Katie was put under general anaesthetic that she said doctors discovered and removed stage 1 endometriosis.<\/p>\n

She said: \u201cI just remember waking up after my surgery and speaking to the nurse, who said \u2018they found it and they\u2019ve taken it off\u2019 and I just burst into tears because it wasn\u2019t all in my head.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was just very overwhelming because I\u2019ve got the answers, but at the same time, I\u2019ve got this condition for life. There\u2019s no cure, but you can have surgery and have some (endometriosis) removed. It\u2019s always there lingering, though,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

\"Katie<\/p>\n

She was diagnosed with endometriosis in November 2025 (Collect\/PA Real Life)<\/p>\n

Katie said she was off work for more than a month and her recovery was \u201ca lot more difficult\u201d than she expected it to be. She said her constant pain was \u201ca lot better straight away\u201d, despite being in \u201cso much pain\u201d during her first period after the surgery.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m a lot better now,\u201d she said. \u201cBut there is one week that I\u2019ve just got to not make any social plans, really wind it down at work, and make sure I\u2019m not completely overwhelmed because I know that I\u2019m going to be completely debilitated for that week.<\/p>\n

\u201cSo it\u2019s just making sure that I\u2019m setting those boundaries with myself and trying not to overdo it as much as I\u2019d used to. I need to find that balance now.\u201d<\/p>\n

In March last year, Katie said she was happy to get her ADHD diagnosis, and now she shares her experience of ADHD and endometriosis \u2013 and the impact they have on her life \u2013 on TikTok @katiesadhdbrain.<\/p>\n

\"Katie<\/p>\n

Receiving her endometriosis diagnosis was \u2018overwhelming\u2019 (Collect\/PA Real Life)<\/p>\n

On the wait she\u2019s endured for her endometriosis diagnosis, Katie said: \u201cIt\u2019s just that numbing feeling, like something could have been done. I\u2019m 30 this year, so it\u2019s taken 15 years of really pushing to be listened to.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou\u2019ve really got to make a case. You\u2019ve got to go in with a full notebook just to be taken seriously.<\/p>\n

\u201cI just think there\u2019s so many other women like me that have always been told \u2018your period\u2019s normal\u2019 when it\u2019s not OK to not be listened to and made to feel so invalidated.<\/p>\n

\u201cI hope I can get a better control over it and hopefully one day there is some sort of cure, but I do feel like there are more and more people speaking out about it, which is only positive. I just want to start spreading as much awareness as I can,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

You can follow Katie on TikTok: https:\/\/www.tiktok.com\/@katiesadhdbrain<\/p>\n