Mica Keeble, who played 14-year-old Charity Dingle in an Emmerdale flashback, has revealed she was left “scared of sex” after endometriosis caused her lung to collapse every month.
The 23-year-old actress opened up about her condition and revealed to the Daily Star just how bad things got for her.
She told the publication that she always remembered her periods being an issue but was told it was normal to experience bleeding and pain.
Mica said: “I remember waking up in a pool of my own blood and freaking out, but I was told it was fine and had to force myself to go to school.”
It wasn’t until she went to college in York that her symptoms got worse.
From that point when she went through her ‘normal’ cycle, her lung would collapse.
Mica was sent to different hospitals for answers including Leeds and York.
She added: “No one really knew why my lung was collapsing every month, and so I was sent to a lung specialist at Leeds General Infirmary who linked it to my menstrual cycle.
“It was discovered that I was suffering from Catamenial Pneumothorax.”
Catamenial Pneumothorax is a condition where air leaks into the pleural space occurring in conjunction with menstrual periods and or ovulation.
It is believed to be caused by endometriosis of the membrane surrounding the lungs or diaphram.
Endometriosis is a condition where tissue similar to the lining of the womb begins to grow in other places.
Mica was given nasal spray treatments which were supposed to put her through the menopause at just 19.
Soon she was fitted with a coil as an alternative to the nasal sprays and her body would begin to reverse the menopause after she stopped using them.
She said: “I bled for three months after having the coil fitted. I had to have other medication to stop the bleeding. It made me scared of sex, it kills me to open up about it, but I was just so afraid of the pain.”
Mica began a new job at Heck Sausages where she met her now husband Roddy.
The actress revealed Roddy and his mum found an endometriosis specialist and a month after the consultation, the specialist performed an operation to cut the endometriosis away.
Have you ever struggled with endometriosis? Leave us a comment on our Facebook page @EntertainmentDailyFix and let us know what you think