Endo Belly Took My Mountains But Not My Identity

Hi everyone,
I’m Divya, 36, from Hubli.

I measure my life in destinations.

Spiti’s cold desert.
Gokarna’s endless coastal walks.
A silent sunrise during a solo trek in Sikkim.

I was always going somewhere.
Marriage could wait. Rest could wait. Life could not.

Until my body stopped me.

When Travel Started Hurting

About two years before my diagnosis, something changed.

Airport security lines became torture. Standing too long created this deep, pulling pelvic pain that felt like gravity had shifted inside me.

Road trips meant pressing a cushion against my abdomen and pretending I was “just tired.”

Trekking the thing that made me feel most alive became impossible during my periods.

Then it wasn’t just during my periods.

I started planning travel around my cycle.
Then I started cancelling trips.

And I never cancel travel.

The “Strong Woman” Who Ignored Pain

At work, I was still the same:

Reliable.
On time.
Delivering.

So I told myself it was stress. Bad eating. Hectic schedules.

I carried painkillers in my laptop bag and confidence in meeting rooms.

No one knew I shifted my weight constantly during presentations just to reduce pelvic pressure.

And then came the bloating.

The endo belly.

It wasn’t normal bloating.
It was sudden, hard, distended swelling that made me look months pregnant by evening especially after long days or travel.

My jeans stopped fitting by 6 PM.
Photos became uncomfortable.
I avoided fitted clothes during trips.

I felt like I was losing control over my own body.

The Medical Dismissal Loop

“IBS.”
“Hormonal.”
“Take rest.”

All reports: normal.

So I believed maybe this is just what being a working woman in her 30s feels like.

The Trip I Couldn’t Take

The breaking point was an adventure trail I’d dreamed about for two years.

Bags packed.
Boarding pass ready.

The night before my flight, the pain and bloating were so intense I couldn’t stand straight.

I cancelled.

And I cried not because of the pain,
but because I felt like I had lost myself.

Finally, a Diagnosis

When I was finally diagnosed with endometriosis, everything made sense.

The pain.
The fatigue.
The dragging sensation.
The endo belly that made travel unbearable.

Surgery helped. Medical therapy helped. Pelvic physiotherapy helped.

But what helped most was understanding:

Endometriosis is not weakness.
It’s not exaggeration.
And endo belly is not “just gas.”

It’s inflammation.
It’s internal disease.
It’s your body asking for attention.

The First Trip Back

Months later, I planned a trip again.

River rafting.

Because it scared me.
Because it demanded strength.
Because it felt like reclaiming something.

Standing there in rafting gear, I wasn’t thinking about bloating.
I wasn’t calculating pain levels.
I wasn’t planning an escape to lie down.

When the raft hit the first rapid and cold water splashed across my face, I laughed loudly for the first time in years.

I wasn’t just recovering.

I had returned to myself.

What Endo Belly Taught Me

Independence isn’t pushing through pain.

It’s:

• Listening when your body whispers
• Taking symptoms seriously
• Protecting your fertility and future choices
• Planning rest like you plan ambition

I still travel solo.
I still work a high-responsibility job.
I am still unmarried by choice.

But now I travel with awareness.
I pack medication with my passport.
I plan recovery days into itineraries.

And I no longer feel ashamed of my endo belly.

If you’re cancelling plans because of pain or bloating that feels “too dramatic” to explain you’re not dramatic.

You deserve answers.
You deserve relief.
You deserve your life back.

Thank you for reading.