A Sophomore Journalism student has surgery to relieve pain from her everyday life.
Kate Carlton is a helpful and inviting person despite having a
disorder that causes her pain every day.
Carlton is a
sophomore broadcast and electronic media major in the Gaylord College of
Journalism and Mass Communication. She is hoping to one day work for National
Public Radio as a producer. Carlton is also a member of the Delta Gamma
sorority and finds new ways every day to help and lift up her sisters spirits.
In April 2011,
Carlton was diagnosed with having symptoms of a disorder called Endometriosis.
Endometriosis is
a female health disorder where cells from the lining of the uterus grow on the
outside of other parts of the body, such as on the fallopian tubes or ovaries.
This disorder causes chronic pain for the person as well as irregular bleeding
and possible infertility. This disorder is believed to occur in girls who start
their periods at a young age, in women who have a period that lasts for more
than seven days, women who have a closed hymen, as well as women who have never
had children.
Even though
doctors know the symptoms of endometriosis, they have not discovered what
officially causes the disorder.
“The weird thing
about endometriosis is the doctors don’t really know much about it. Like they
don’t know what causes it or when it sets in,” Carlton said. “They just know it
happens and they can’t even tell you it’s endometriosis until you have
surgery.”
Since
endometriosis usually occurs in women from ages 25 to 35, it is very rare that
a women Carlton’s age, 19, would have been diagnosed with the disorder.
Before surgery,
Carlton woke up everyday with extreme pain in her lower back and abdomen. She
would take 12 to 15 different pills a day to relieve the pain as well as stick
to a limited dairy and gluten free diet.
Although the
pills numb the pain, a bump in the road while driving or even a playful poke
from a friend would cause Carlton pain.
Rachel Games, a
junior elementary teaching major and Carlton’s roommate, says that Carlton does
not complain about the pain she feels.
“ She still
remains really positive and doesn’t complain ever,” Games said. “Even when
she’s in a lot of pain she doesn’t whine about it or let you know she’s hurting
because she is trying to stay so positive.”
One of Carlton’s
jobs in the Delta Gamma house is parking attendant. This position requires the
attendant to ticket and tow cars that do not have a Delta Gamma parking pass.
Carlton says that she has been yelled at multiple times for towing cars but is
not offended by the comments made towards her because it is her job. Before
this year the parking attendant job did not exist, it is a position Carlton
created to relieve stress off of her friend Hayley Hood, the Delta Gamma house
manager, who was overwhelmed by they job.
“I don’t really
mind being yelled at if it is to help my friend be less overwhelmed,” Carlton
said.
Carlton’s
family, roommate, and boyfriend were the only people who knew about Carlton’s
disorder and her recent surgery. Carlton says she tries not to draw attention to
her pain because she doesn’t want people to feel sorry for her.
Although Carlton dealt with the pain the disorder caused, when
she discovered that one of the symptoms of endometriosis was infertility, she
was distraught.
“One of the best
parts about being a women is having kids and when I found out there was a
chance that I couldn’t have one of my own, I mourned the loss of my children,”
Carlton said.
Carlton and her
long time boyfriend, Corbin Greer, discussed that they would adopt if they found
out she could not have children of her own. Carlton also said that they planned
to possibly use a surrogate if they decided they wanted a child biologically
related to them.
Through the pain and struggles Carlton has gone through this
year, she still remains a happy and warm person. After her surgery, instead of
staying in a hotel with her mom so she could heal, she decided to come back to
campus to hear about her friends Spring Break trips.
Carlton says
that she loves people and does not see the point in being in a bad mood just
because she is in pain. She says that her faith in God has gotten her through
many of the hard times and kept her thinking positively.
“ I think she’s
so strong. I mean the past year has been terrible for her and she would never
tell you that,” Corbin Greer, Carlton’s boyfriend, said. “She’s in terrible
pain but she would never say anything because it’s her business.”
Carlton is
hoping that after her surgery she can start working out and riding horses
again. She plans on taking yoga classes at the Huston Huffman Center and
returning to the sport she played in high school, barrel-racing.
