Florence Pugh’s “life has completely changed” ever since she was diagnosed with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) and endometriosis last year.
During Tuesday’s episode of the “She MD” podcast, the actress revealed she froze her eggs after learning both conditions could lead to infertility.
“I just had this sudden feeling that I should go and get everything checked,” Pugh, 28, explained. “I’d had a few weird dreams and I think my body was telling me. And I then asked my close friends if they knew any amazing gynecologists and then I met [Dr. Thaïs Aliabadi].”
During her visit, Aliabadi — a world-renowned OBGYN and one of the podcast’s hosts — asked if she’d “ever had an egg count,” which she hadn’t.
“And I was like, ’No, what do you mean? I’m so young. Why do I need an egg count?’” the “Midsommar” star recalled.
The results indicated she had PCOS and endometriosis, which would explain the “pain” she experienced daily.
“It was just so bizarre because my family are baby-making machines. My mom had babies into her 40s, my gran had babies throughout…. she had so many kids as well,” she explained.
“I just never assumed that I was going to be in any way different and that there was going to be an issue with it.”
Although Pugh “was never worried” about having kids before her diagnosis, the new information changed everything.
“Then of course, I learned completely different information, [at] age 27, that I need to get my eggs out and do it quickly, which was just a bit of a mind-boggling realization,” she said.
“And one that I’m really lucky and glad that I found out when I did because I’ve been wanting kids since I was a child.”
Aliabadi explained that, when left “untreated,” endometriosis can “affect egg count and quality” and while PCOS patients “have a lot of eggs,” the “quality goes down after 30” — which was why she told Pugh to freeze her eggs as soon as possible.
Now that she has taken all the precautions, the “Little Woman” star hopes to move forward with her plans of having a child within the next five years.
Although the diagnosis led to a lot of changes, Pugh is grateful she has a platform to discuss her experience with others.
“I’ve been able to tell my friends about what I’m going through,” she said. “And since then, I think two or three of my friends have gone to go and get checked because of my findings and they’ve also found that they have the same thing.”
She added, “So already just by me learning the tiniest bit of information, it’s led for other women to go and check to see if they also have the same.”
In September, the Oscar nominee opened up to British Vogue about how her role in “We Live in Time” made her “want to be active in [her] decisions and actually live” — specifically when it comes to life outside of work.
“I was going through a lot of weird stuff with relationships last year and I think part of the story is to not be passive, is not to let things wash over you. I want to go and find love and I want to have babies,” she said.
“I’ve always been thinking about starting a family. I’ve wanted to have kids since I was a child myself. I love the idea of a big family.”
Read the full article here
