‘Insurmountable pain’: Bindi Irwin opens up about decade-long endometriosis battle

Bindi Irwin has shared the “insurmountable” pain she endured “every single day” for the last 10 years in an emotional new video.

Bindi Irwin has opened up about the “insurmountable” pain she endured “every single day” for the last decade in an emotional new video about her experience with endometriosis.

The much-loved Australian conservationist went public in March with the private health battle – one that was so debilitating before she underwent surgery “that it would quite literally just knock me over”.

The chronic condition causes tissue similar to the lining of the uterus (endometrium) to grow outside of the organ. The tissue, which has been found on every major organ of the body, often spreads to the bowel and fallopian tubes, causing extreme pain, heavy bleeding, and in many cases, infertility. There is no known cure.

Despite an estimated one in nine people with uteruses in Australia suffering from the issue, it remains incredibly misunderstood and it’s notoriously difficult to get a diagnosis. Research by Endometriosis Australia found it takes an average of 6.5 years to diagnose. Women often recall being laughed out of hospitals, denied treatment or told nothing can be done.

Bindi Irwin shared in March that she’d undergone surgery for endometriosis. Picture: Instagram

This was certainly the case for Irwin. The “extreme fatigue and nausea and pain” she started experiencing when she was 14 wasn’t just relegated to when she had her period.

“I had pain every single day of my life. Suddenly, no matter where we went, where we were going, I would be falling asleep. I felt like I constantly had the flu.”

Irwin underwent “every blood test you could possibly imagine”, CT scans, MRIs and ultrasounds to try to get to the bottom of the issue.

“We tried and tried and tried for years and years and years, and finally, a doctor told me it was just part of being a woman,” the 24-year-old said.

“And that’s when I gave up. I stopped looking for answers.”

It was that comment that led Irwin to suffer in silence – until 2021, when, after giving birth to her daughter, Grace Warrior, the pain “magnified” to a point where it was “out of this world”.

“I had a pain in my pelvis, pains in my belly, every day. But every now and then, the pain would get so much that it would literally just knock me over.”

Irwin became tearful recalling the “countless times of Grace needing me, and me crawling to her cot at night”.

“I can remember being with Grace and lying on the floor in agony. I had a stabbing pain in my side. I couldn’t get up, or I would throw up. And I was scared I would pass out,” she said.

“I was so scared because I was worried if I was alone with Grace, something would happen to me and she would be on her own.”

Irwin with her husband, Chandler, and their daughter Grace. Picture: Instagram

The conservationist endured a decade of ‘insurmountable’ pain. Picture: Instagram

After sharing her symptoms with a friend who had endometriosis, Irwin was encouraged to undergo invasive laparoscopic surgery – the only reliable way to diagnose the disease.

Further surgery – ablation or (more preferable) excision – to remove the disease is the most common treatment.

While in the US for Christmas with her family, Irwin had excision surgery. Doctors discovered 37 lesions and a chocolate cyst (a cyst filled with dark endometrial fluid) on her ovary, indicating how “aggressive” her endometriosis was, and that she’ll likely require more surgery in the future.

After five months of recovery, “I can officially say that I’m finally feeling better, which is truly extraordinary and something that I actually never thought that I would say,” she said.

“I feel like I got a second chance at life … I feel like a new woman.”

For Endometriosis Awareness Month, I want everyone to understand the difference between the two endo removal techniques and why excision is superior. We need to invest in more training of excision specialists, especially here in Australia. pic.twitter.com/lgDmpftuYx

— Bridget Hustwaite (@BHustwaite) March 9, 2023

Irwin, who has had “thousands and thousands of people reach out to me” with their own endometriosis experiences, said that while it’s important to “educate the public” about the illness, “there needs to be a huge shift in our healthcare system”.

“I really hope there is a shift within society to be able to give people with endometriosis the tools that they need – not only for diagnosis, but more access to surgery, more access to being able to afford these surgeries,” she said.

“I mean, my goodness. It is such a toll on families to be able to go out and get this diagnosis … My fear of them not finding anything [during surgery] was really, really, really taking over my life. I was so scared.

“But I’m very thankful that my family is so supportive. Not everybody is lucky to have that supportive family, so we need to have a better system so that people don’t feel so isolated and alone. Endometriosis is a very lonely disease. We need to be able to rally around people with endo.”