Today’s Jill Martin opens up about her last two years with 18 fibroids: ‘I was suffering all the time’

‘I could not go anywhere without my heating pad’

(Getty Images for QVC)

Jill Martin has opened up about her last two years “living in pain” with 18 fibroids and what she wants women to know about it.

The Today lifestyle contributor, 45, has discussed how she discovered her condition in 2019 in a personal essay published by Today on 2 March. For the last two years, Martin has been “living in pain” due to fibroids, non cancerous growths on her uterus, which were found during a routine exam at a gynaecologist.

As noted by the John Hopkins Medicine, women can experience a wide range of symptoms due to fibroids, some of which include “abdominal discomfort and/or fullness,” “heavy or prolonged periods,” or “lower back pain.”

The publication also noted that women “in their reproductive age” are most likely to be affected by fibroids” and “black women are more likely to develop them.”

More recently, for Martin, her pain became extremely difficult to manage.

“If you could have seen me on Zoom calls or in TODAY’s greenroom between segments in recent months, you would know I was always looking for a place to plug in a heating pad,” she wrote. “I was suffering all the time.”

“I could not go anywhere without my heating pad,” she added. “It hurt to have intercourse. I was physically distorted and bloated,” she added. “Oh, and another fabulous occurrence: When someone would say something funny, I would pee.”

Martin also noted that her body has prompted viewers on social media to ask her if she was pregnant or gaining weight.

While she wasn’t pregnant, her gynaecologist, Dr Karen Brodman, told her that the uterus was the size of a woman “who is four months pregnant.”

As her symptoms became more painful, Martin and her fiancé, Erik Brooks, did some research and discovered uterine fibroid embolisation, “a minimally invasive treatment” to decrease the size of fibroids, as noted by John Hopkins Medicine. Martin then connected with doctor and radiologist, Marc Schiffman about the procedure and decided to do it.

When Martin was getting uterine fibroid embolisation, Schiffman saw that she had many more fibroids than she had expected.

“I thought I had two fibroids: one the size of a large grapefruit and the other a bit smaller than that. But the doctor found 18,” she wrote. “We won’t know if the treatment worked until six months from now, but I’m hopeful.”

So far, she has seen still some promising results from the procedure.

“I already see my stomach getting flatter,” she added.  “I’m still in pain, but it’s good pain, because I know I am healing…There is inflammation. My body just needs time.”

Before “discovering this treatment,” Martin thought that the only way she could stop the pain was by getting a hysterectomy, a surgery to remove her uterus. However, with the help of other women who also have fibroids, she realised that she was “not alone.”

“Many of them thought that a major surgery to remove their uterus was their only real solution, too,” she said. “But there are other options. And when you are in pain, more often than not, it is time to do something.”

In regards to why she’s sharing this story, Martin noted that she wants women to “know their options for fibroid treatment.”

“Dr Schiffman told me that many women suffer for years because they think that surgery is the only solution, and that Black women in particular are less likely to be told of minimally invasive treatment options,” she continued.

As she’s in the midst of recovering, Martin has emphasised how vital it is to “take time and rest,” as well as put your health first.

“It is so important to normalise that it is OK to not be OK,” she wrote. “I feel like we all need to give ourselves — and others — a bit of a break.”

“One of the most important lessons I learned through this experience and wanted to share is that it is up to each of us to be our own advocate, to make the best decisions to live healthy and happy lives — and to always be your own best friend,” she added.