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Beryl Romaine is now 50 years old, but symptoms of her medical condition began to appear when she was only 32. “I first noticed something was wrong when I felt some lumps in my stomach while having a shower,” Romaine recalled. “They were equivalent to a couple of grapes and didn’t protrude, but they did feel hard.”
Romaine went to see her general physician to determine what was wrong; she had developed fibroids.
The lumps weren’t cancerous – but the only solution the doctor could propose to Romaine was a hysterectomy, because the lumps were growing on Romaine’s uterus.
Though Romaine was relieved to hear that she didn’t have cancer, knowing that the only way to treat her condition was to remove her uterus – rendering her unable to have children, just as she had gotten engage to be married – was devastating.
Her fiancé’s culture mandated that he have children after marriage; Romaine’s health ultimatum caused her engagement and wedding to be cancelled.
Initially, Romaine was heartbroken. Over time, however, she began to get angry. “It’s a women’s prerogative to have children. Your womb, it’s a woman’s organ, part of that taken away is a whole part of your life and future taken away.”
Romaine refused to have the hysterectomy.
Her fibroids have now completely overwhelmed her body and formed a lump large enough that everyone who sees her assumes she’s pregnant. The weight even made Romaine’s ankles swell, further cementing everyone’s perception of her as being with child.
Romaine’s physical appearance took a huge toll on her life. She was originally going to pursue a career in journalism, but felt that her swollen belly wouldn’t be acceptable when she conducted interviews with people around the world.
She ultimately pursued a career in marketing, where she could “sit in an office and nobody would see [her belly].”
It took Romaine years to finally muster up the courage to tackle her medical condition head on. She took time off work to travel to Africa and Atlanta, Georgia, where many women were genetically inclined to have the same fibroid problem as her.
That was when she discovered there were alternative treatment options – namely having surgery to have the fibroids removed, without removing the entire uterus. Romaine returned to her doctor and fought for her right to have this alternative surgery.
“My advice to girls with fibroids would be always to double check your body. Even if you get an answer from your doctor, get a second option. Never leave the surgery unless your questions are answered. No matter how silly, ask questions,” Romaine pressed.
“Ask what your options are, if you don’t understand, ask them to explain again. Tell them to tell you in plain language so you can make the right decision.”
