'Wasn't given the right diagnosis': Shamita Shetty recalls struggle with endometriosis and perimenopause; Actress says delayed diagnosis left her searching for answers

Actress Shamita Shetty has spoken about living with endometriosis and navigating the challenges of perimenopause. During her appearance on Soha Ali Khan's podcast All About Her, the actress shared how her symptoms remained undiagnosed for a long time.

She explained that she initially believed the pain she was experiencing was a normal part of being a woman.The conversation focused on women's health and the importance of recognising symptoms that often go unnoticed. Shamita reflected on her personal experience and spoke about the emotional and physical challenges she faced before finally receiving the correct diagnosis.

Shamita Shetty recalls delayed diagnosis

During the discussion, Soha Ali Khan asked Shamita about the length of time she had been dealing with pain before discovering the real cause of her condition.Responding to the question, Shamita said, "I think, in my case, I kind of dragged it on because I wasn't given the right diagnosis initially. Every time I experienced certain symptoms, I'd tell myself, 'Maybe this is normal. When I first went to my gynecologist with these concerns, before I was introduced to Dr. Warty, she did all the routine tests, a Pap smear and everything else to make sure everything was okay.”She explained that the medical tests available at the time did not reveal the underlying problem.

As a result, she continued believing that her recurring symptoms were simply part of everyday life.Continuing her explanation, she said, “When those reports came back normal, no one thought to check if there could be something more. It was just left at that. So every time the symptoms returned, I'd think, 'Nothing showed up last time, so maybe this is normal. Maybe it's just part and parcel of being a woman.' Like you rightly said, we don't really express the pain we feel.

So many things whether it's period pain or anything related to our hormones are normalized for women.

We're just expected to live with them. For me, the intensity of the pain really increased about six to eight months before I eventually had surgery.”

Pain eventually became impossible to ignore

Shamita also revealed that she has always had a high tolerance for pain, which contributed to the delay in seeking further medical help. However, she realised something was seriously wrong when the pain began affecting her sleep.Describing that difficult phase, the actress said, “Before that, it wasn't as severe. I'm someone who has a very high pain tolerance. I've dealt with a lot of injuries over the years, so I tend to push through pain. But when the pain started waking me up from my sleep, that's when I realized something was seriously wrong. My body was trying to tell me that I needed answers.”

Perimenopause added to the confusion

The actress further shared that the onset of perimenopause made it even harder to understand what was happening to her body. With hormonal changes taking place simultaneously, she found it difficult to identify the exact cause of her symptoms. Speaking about that phase, Shamita stated, “I was also very confused because all of this happened around the same time I was learning about perimenopause. There was already so much happening with my hormones that I couldn't tell whether what I was experiencing was just part of perimenopause or whether something else was wrong.

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Last seen in 'The Tenant'

On the professional front, Shamita Shetty was last seen in the Hindi coming-of-age drama 'The Tenant', which was released in theatres on February 10, 2023.