Bindi Irwin reveals why she shared her endometriosis diagnosis

Bindi Irwin admits she was “terrified” when she revealed her endometriosis diagnosis to the public.

“It’s really scary to share the parts of yourself that have been the hardest to overcome, to share things that feel incredibly personal,” the conservationist told Page Six on Friday night Endometriosis Foundation of America (EndoFound) 12th Annual Flower Ball where she was honored.

But Irwin, 25, whose dad was the late Steve Irwindecided to open up about her health journey to shed light on an often misdiagnosed disease that affects approximately one in ten women around the world.

According to World Health ORganisation“It is a chronic disease accompanied by severe, life-disrupting pain during menstruation, intercourse, bowel movements and/or urination, chronic pelvic pain, abdominal bloating, nausea, fatigue, and sometimes depression, anxiety and infertility.”

Bindi, who attended Friday’s event with her mother Terri Irwin and brother Robert Irwin, told us the disease is still a topic that is “not talked about.”

“It is ignored in many ways, and many women and girls live in incredible pain,” the zookeeper further explained.

“It’s really important to me to be able to share my journey, so maybe it will inspire other people and maybe help them stand up and say, ‘Hey, this isn’t normal and I deserve help. I deserve to feel good.”

Last year, Bindi announced on Instagram that she had undergone endometriosis surgery to remove 37 lesions.

The program “Crikey! The It’s The Irwins star also told Page Six that he has been suffering from increasing pain for over a decade.

“I started looking for answers over 10 years ago,” she explained. “I was young, I was really, really young.”

However, like many others, her pain was ignored because “many doctors simply dismissed it as ‘it’s hormones, you’re just tired or stressed’.”

She added: “The doctor told me, ‘You should just drink some tea and focus on mental clarity.’ It wasn’t the best advice when I said, “I’m in terrible pain, I can’t walk without vomiting.”

Bindi, who has 3-year-old daughter Grace with husband Chandler Powell, said her symptoms worsened after giving birth.

“It got to the point where I felt pain not only during my period, but every day of my life, and after the birth of my daughter it all got worse,” the “Dancing With the Stars” participant revealed.

“A lot of people hear that if you get pregnant and have a baby, everything will get better, but in my case – Grace was our beautiful, wonderful baby – and when I had her, my symptoms worsened 10-fold.”

Bindi said she had a number of tests done, but it wasn’t until a friend shared her own story that she “had an idea what endometriosis was,” adding, “It just sheds light on the need for more education.”