Lupita Nyong’o is breaking taboos around medical misogyny to #MakeFibroidsCount

Lupita Nyong’o is using her platform to champion a cause close to her heart with the Make Fibroids Count campaign.

Lupita Nyong’o shares her story

Over the weekend, actress and activist Nyong’o spoke about living with Uterine Fibroids. This is a condition that causes lumps to grow inside and on the walls of the uterus.

This is a massively painful condition, but due to medical misogyny, it’s one that isn’t talked about or recognised enough.

Last year, Nyong’o revealed she has had 77 growths, with 50 still growing inside her. The largest was the size of an orange. As she said recently on Instagram, this inspired many other people to come forward to tell their stories.

She said:

Last July, I ended a decade-plus of suffering in silence and publicly shared my diagnosis for the first time. Women worldwide responded with their own stories. I felt less alone, and more convinced than ever that this is not something we should accept.

There’s something deeply wrong when a condition this widespread is this poorly understood. Do you accept this as the status quo? Neither do I.

As she said on Instagram, Fibroids aren’t rare. But thanks to periods and gynaecological health still being seen as a taboo, it’s very rarely spoken about. Millions of people are living their lives in excruciating pain because they’re told period pain is normal.

Nyong’o wants to #MakeFibroidsCount

Nyong’o is sharing her own story in the hopes of raising awareness and fundraising for research into the condition.

Fibroids are often represented by fruit because it’s the easiest way to make size comparisons. Whilst some are the size of blueberries, some uterine fibroids can be the size of a cantaloupe. To raise awareness of this, Nyong’o posed with 77 pieces of fruit to represent each of her fibroids.

Nyong’ has partnered with the Foundation for Women’s Health to promote the  #MakeFibroidsCount campaign. It encourages others to share their story of living with uterine fibroids and donate to better research. The campaign aims to raise $200,000, which will aid better research, training and understanding of Uterine Fibroids.

Nyong’o said of the campaign

Fibroids may be common, but they are not normal.

I was told they were just something women live with. I refuse to accept that. Millions of women are suffering in silence, and we deserve better answers, better care and better options

How you can #MakeFibroidsCount

You can take part in the campaign in the following ways:

Donate: You can donate to the FWH x Lupita Nyong’o Uterine Foundation Grant here.

Share: If you live with uterine fibroids, post an image of you with fruit to represent the invisible weight you carry. If you don’t live with it, share people’s stories. Use the hashtag #MakeFibroidsCount.

Raise funds: as well as donating, you can also start your own fundraiser. 

It’s incredible to see someone with a platform such as Lupita’s speaking up for a condition which is often disregarded or ignored. We need more of this from Hollywood.

Featured image via the Canary