Youth Out Loud! members tackle the stigma of menstruation and endometriosis in new film
Youth Out Loud! have created a new film to raise awareness of healthy menstruation and endometriosis amongst young people. Funded by South West London NHS and managed by Kingston Voluntary Action, the project was undertaken with the objectives of improving health literacy and access to preventative care for women and girls who struggle to access traditional NHS services and encouraging preventative care, early detection and informed healthcare decisions.
Endometriosis is a long-term (chronic) condition where tissue similar to the lining of the womb grows elsewhere in the body. It's common, affecting 1 in 10 women, and those assigned female at birth from puberty to menopause, although the impact may be felt for life. Symptoms vary from person to person and can be severe and disrupt daily life. Data from Endometriosis UK suggests that the average time to receive a diagnosis of endometriosis in the UK is 9 years and 4 months.
Youth Out Loud! members, supported by New Dialogue, worked with educational filmmaker Steve Slavin and Trust Grade Sexual Health Doctor, Dr Tihesia Riley, on the design and delivery of the film and met to discuss the information and ideas that could be expanded upon through the Youth Out Loud! website and social media.
The group wanted to ensure the film and webpages were not just ‘information dumps’ which could be overwhelming and chose to centre testimony of an individual’s experience while including impactful key facts about endometriosis and when to seek help with ‘painful periods’.
“Making this Menstrual Health and Endometriosis film meant a lot to me as I feel it is a topic that doesn't get spoken about enough, even though endo affects 1 in 10 women. I loved being part of the film and raising awareness that this condition effects young people too.” - Youth Out Loud! member
Professional input on the information in the film came from Dr Riley, who provided invaluable feedback to questions from Healthwatch staff, our filmmaker and the young people from Youth Out Loud!. As well as appearing in the film, Dr Riley offered feedback on the information that would be distributed through the Youth Out Loud! website.
"Endometriosis is a massive part of my life. As a clinician who often comes across people with suspected endometriosis, or people already diagnosed with the condition. As a friend of those who live with endometriosis, and also as a patient living with endometriosis myself.
Being part of this film has been a great opportunity to bring that level of awareness to other people, especially those working with young people as they are a group who is often overlooked. I really do feel like I portrayed a realistic experience of living with the condition, as well as some important clinical information to ensure that people know when and where to get help" - Dr Riley
Youth Out Loud! would like to thank film maker Steve Slavin, Dr Tihesia Riley, Healthwatch Kingston, Kingston Voluntary Action, Kingston and Richmond NHS Trust and Southwest London NHS for their support in creating this film and the information pages on the Youth Out Loud! website.
