Case #27: Hailey

Summary

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Symptomatic: A Medical Mystery Podcast

Episode: Case #27 – Hailey
Host: Lauren Bright Pacheco
Date: November 11, 2025

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Episode Overview

This episode of Symptomatic tells the story of Hailey Griffith, who suffered from debilitating menstrual pain and heavy bleeding from the age of 11. For over a decade, her symptoms were repeatedly dismissed by both herself and medical professionals until she finally received a diagnosis: uterus didelphys, a rare congenital condition where a person is born with two uteruses. The episode explores Hailey’s struggles for validation, the emotional toll of being unheard, and her journey to self-advocacy. It also highlights the broader issues of women’s pain being minimized in healthcare.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

Hailey’s Early Struggles with Reproductive Health

• First Signs:
  As a child in competitive dance, Hailey noticed she couldn't use tampons and continued to bleed despite inserting one correctly.

  “Immediately I started noticing that I was still bleeding. ...I just wrote off tampons for a few years... That was actually the first time I can recollect recognizing that there was an issue regarding my reproductive health..." – Hailey (02:12)

• Debilitating Cramps:
  Hailey suffered extreme pain, much worse than her peers, but internalized the experience, believing she was overly sensitive.

  “It was debilitating. But I thought that I was dramatic. ...The way I was feeling is that it was unbearable. ... It was quite embarrassing because I didn’t know how to ask for help.” – Hailey (05:21)

Family Challenges and Early Coping

• Coping through Dance:
  Hailey used dance to deal with trauma, specifically her father’s terminal cancer diagnosis and eventual passing when she was 14.

  “Dance... was my outlet. That’s what I used to cope with a lot of the trauma of what was happening at home. ...I didn’t want to burden her [my mom].” – Hailey (04:25)

Military Service & Escalating Pain

• Joining the Military:
  To afford her education and pursue nursing, Hailey enlisted, finding both purpose and challenge.

  “I was knocking two birds with one stone. I was getting an education at the same time as continuing to have an amazing job.” – Hailey (08:49)

• Bootcamp Ordeal:
  Hailey’s symptoms worsened during bootcamp. She lacked access to over-the-counter meds and leaned on covert support from fellow trainees.

  “I was slipping her my protein bars and she would give me doses of Tylenol. My biggest fear was being sent home, especially over something that I learned to manage.” – Hailey (13:12)

  Notable Letter Excerpt:

  “When I woke up, I woke up to a crime scene. I’m physically dying. ...Trust me, I’m dying a slow death right now.” – Nick, reading Hailey’s letter (14:12)

• Medical Dismissal & Male Doctor’s Advice:
  After fainting from pain, she was told by a male doctor to “wait until you get to your next duty station,” reinforcing the culture of silence.

  “His only advice was just to wait until I saw somebody more permanent... it just reinforced the idea that nobody’s taking me seriously.” – Hailey (21:19)

The Systemic Dismissal of Women's Pain

• Dr. Lucky Secon’s Perspective:
  Dr. Secon highlights the structural and educational failures that allow women’s pain to be dismissed.

  “It’s just been ingrained in the fabric of our society. Women just needing to grin and bear it. ...There’s just this focus on avoiding teen pregnancy in health class... No one really telling me an irregular cycle, a really painful cycle, what is normal, what is abnormal, and what is a red flag.” – Dr. Secon (16:03)

Breakthrough: Validation & Diagnosis

• Colleague Support:
  A fellow nurse was the first to validate Hailey’s experience and push for further investigation.

  “I think having somebody just validate that it’s not normal... was like, okay, no, it’s not normal, you’re right.” – Hailey (27:43)

• Ultrasound & Diagnosis:
  The ultrasound experience was harrowing, with staff reactions fueling fears of cancer.

  “She had, like, turned the screen away from me. ...I walked out of that ultrasound thinking I had cancer.” – Hailey (28:29)

  Diagnosis:

  “I wanted to tell you that we found that you have uterus didelphys.” – Hailey recalling her doctor's words (30:09)
  “She had told me that on the ultrasound they had saw that I have two complete sets of reproductive parts, that I had two uteruses, two cervixes and two vaginal openings.” – Hailey (30:48)

  Medical Explanation:

  “The way that our uterus forms... actually forms from two ducts that come together and fuse. When that process is interrupted... you may end up with two separate uteruses and two separate cervixes.” – Dr. Lucky Secon (32:03)

Aftermath: New Challenges, Advocacy, and Community

• Fertility Struggles:
  Hailey and husband Nick faced repeated miscarriages; the rarity of her condition made information and support hard to find.

  “We’ve had four miscarriages, so that’s where we’re at right now. ...Infertility is something that a lot of women don’t talk about enough.” – Hailey (34:58) “It’s one of the hardest pains to go through, especially when you are trying for a family.” – Nick (35:17)

• Empowerment and Advocacy:
  The diagnosis empowered Hailey to advocate for herself and for other women.

  “I think it definitely... gave me more of a voice to say, no, there’s something wrong. Please do your job and please do it well because this is my life...I’m not afraid to stand up for myself.” – Hailey (36:44) “I want people to know that it’s okay to advocate for yourself. Sometimes you are your only advocate... Don’t take no for an answer...” – Hailey (40:49)

• Advice from Dr. Secon:

  “A menstrual diary ... is a brilliant thing to have. ...Having objective tracked data, no one can dispute. ...You have to be willing to get second opinions. ...Knowledge is power.” – Dr. Secon (37:12)

Transformation & Looking Forward

• Hailey’s Nursing Aspirations:
  Hailey aims to use her experiences to create more compassionate care for other women.

  “My education, my background, my diagnosis... it’s made me more compassionate. My relationship with my patients is far different than the relationships between other healthcare providers and their patients...” – Hailey (39:33)

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Being Dismissed:

  “It went from, you have painful periods and I’m sorry, that’s part of being a girl. Get over it. To more, wow, this is so rare. This is so crazy. Can I bring in the students? Can we do a pelvic exam?” – Hailey (33:50)

• On the Toll of Infertility:

  “It makes me feel like less than a woman that I have trouble conceiving, feeling like not enough in the way society is built and the way society looks at women as mothers.” – Hailey (35:59)

• Advice for Listeners:

  “Nobody should ever get comfortable with being dismissed in terms of health concerns.” – Interviewer (40:35)

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Key Timestamps

• 02:12 – Hailey’s first warning signs during dance class
• 05:21 – Description of her devastating menstrual pain
• 13:12 – Surviving boot camp and covertly acquiring pain relief
• 14:12 – Nick reads Hailey’s distressing letter from bootcamp
• 16:03 – Dr. Secon discusses societal dismissal of women’s pain
• 21:19 – Hailey is told by a doctor to “wait until you get to your next duty station”
• 27:43 – Nurse coworker validates Hailey’s pain as “not normal”
• 28:29 – Hailey’s stressful ultrasound experience
• 30:09 – Receipt of uterus didelphys diagnosis
• 34:58 – Fertility struggles and repeated miscarriages
• 36:44 – Newfound empowerment to self-advocate
• 37:12 – Dr. Secon’s advice: use a menstrual diary, seek second opinions
• 39:33 – Hailey’s transformation as a future women’s health nurse
• 40:49 – Hailey on the necessity of self-advocacy

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Takeaways

• Trust Your Body: Hailey’s story underscores the critical importance of listening to your body and refusing to accept “it’s normal” as an answer when you know something is seriously wrong.
• Advocacy is Key: Women, especially, must become their own fiercest advocates in seeking care and answers for medical mysteries.
• Systemic Change Needed: Stories like Hailey’s highlight the urgent need for education—both for providers and patients—about what constitutes normal versus abnormal when it comes to female reproductive health.
• Hope and Community: Even amidst frustration and pain, Hailey and Nick found resilience through partnership, support, and by building community with others facing similar struggles.

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Resources and Further Information

• Dr. Lucky Secon: Fertility expert, featured guest; follow for more insights into reproductive health.
• Uterus Didelphys: Rare congenital condition; estimated prevalence is only 0.3% among women.
• Menstrual Diary: A recommended tool for tracking symptoms and advocating with data.

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For more on medical mysteries and patient empowerment, subscribe to Symptomatic. Send feedback or share your own story: [e-mail]

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Transcript

[Nick]

Ruby.

[Haley Griffith]

I wasn't willing to risk being held back in boot camp, so I just kept pushing through. The pain got so bad, within an instant, it just kind of went black.

[Nick]

In this letter, she wrote, when I woke up, I woke up to a crime scene. I'm physically dying.

[Dr. Lucky Secon]

Only now that we're starting to have these conversations and talk about how a lot of women face dismissal and having their complaints ignored.

[Haley Griffith]

She had, like, turned the screen away from me. The energy in the room shifted. The radiology department, they all turned their head and looked at me. I walked out of that ultrasound thinking I had cancer. I was terrified of the unknown.

[Lauren Bright Pacheco]

How terrifying would it be to fight an unknown enemy, one you didn't recognize and didn't see coming? What if that enemy was coming from within? A disease that even doctors couldn't identify? Nearly half of Americans suffer from some chronic illness, and many struggle for an accurate diagnosis. These are their stories. I'm Lauren Bright Pacheco, and this is symptomatic.

[Haley Griffith]

I grew up in Southern California, the high desert area, specifically. It's just me, my mom, my brothers. We have a really, really good relationship.

[Lauren Bright Pacheco]

That is Haley Sanchez. Haley radiates quiet positivity and genuine warmth. She is deeply creative, authentic, and a naturally born mentor. This quality showed up early in life when she harnessed her passion for dance into teaching.

[Haley Griffith]

I grew up doing competitive dance for basically my entire life. I went into teaching when I was around 15. That was my first job, actually.

[Interviewer]

And you spent a lot of time in the dance studio.

[Haley Griffith]

I did.

[Interviewer]

Which could explain the fact that you actually got your period while in dance class, correct?

[Haley Griffith]

I did, yes. That was a crazy time. I was about 11 years old. I was in ballet class and. And I had started my cycle, and it was unexpected, and my friend had given me a tampon, and I had no idea how to use a tampon. So I was just using what I thought was common sense because I inserted the tampon the way that you should. However, immediately I started noticing that I was still bleeding. And so I tried my best to get through that situation and kind of just wrote off tampons for a few years and. And I didn't use them anymore. And that was actually the first time that I can recollect recognizing that there was an issue regarding my reproductive health before I even really knew what reproductive health was. It wasn't until a couple years later that I was talking to some girlfriends at school regarding just her period, just girl talk. And they had brought up the topic of tampons. And I went into Detail regarding. I thought there was something wrong with me because I couldn't use them. And they told me, like, hey, that's not normal to be bleeding. Still, that is kind of what piqued my curiosity and that I was as young as, like, 13 years old.

[Interviewer]

I can't imagine. First of all, 11 is young to get your cycle. And to have to kind of navigate that in an environment where it's really obvious if you're using something that's bulkier than a tampon, that must have been.

[Lauren Bright Pacheco]

Difficult to process at that age.

[Haley Griffith]

It was really hard because for the longest time, I really just thought that there was something wrong with me.

[Lauren Bright Pacheco]

Already. Trying to navigate health challenges Starting at only 11 years old, Haley was also carrying the momentous weight of having a terminally ill parent.

[Interviewer]

My first question was going to be.

[Lauren Bright Pacheco]

Didn'T you go to your mother?

[Interviewer]

Did you discuss your period with your mom? But your mom had her hands full with something else. Can you talk to me about what was happening with your father around that same time?

[Haley Griffith]

My dad, he had a rare form of cancer called paraganglioma. He discovered that he had cancer when he was a teenager. He beat it, and it resurfaced. When I was really young, I was, like, maybe 7, 8 years old, and the cancer had spread to his brain, and unfortunately, it just metastasized and just took over his entire body. Around this time, I was really diving headfirst into dance. That was my outlet. That's what I used to cope with a lot of the trauma of what was happening at home. And I could have gone to my mom, of course, and I think I did in many instances. But I didn't want to burden her. I didn't want to bring this up and add extra stress to her. And again, I thought that I'm a girl, I'm a woman, you know, developing. So I just kept it to myself for the longest time that there was something occurring, because it wasn't just a.

[Interviewer]

Question of tampons not working. Your cramps were exceptionally painful.

[Haley Griffith]

Oh, for sure, it was debilitating. But I thought that I was dramatic. I thought that I was just a baby with a low pain tolerance. And talking to friends and peers and people in dance class, people at school, they would complain about cramps, but the way I was feeling is that it was unbearable. I couldn't get through my everyday life of school and dance and normal things that my friends were able to do. No problem. I was not able to do. And it was quite embarrassing because I didn't know how to ask for help. And I didn't know how to get through this situation.

[Interviewer]

So you internalized all that?

[Haley Griffith]

I ignored it.

[Lauren Bright Pacheco]

So how are you handling the pain during those teenage years in late high school? Are you just taking over the counter pain meds?

[Haley Griffith]

Yes. A lot of Tylenol and ibuprofen, heating pads, the works. I think that during this time in my life, I was trying to figure out what was working best for my body. Cause I didn't know. And most people are able to just take Tylenol and keep going about their day. And I didn't understand why I felt the need to sit in the shower for five hours a day. I was chronically fatigued. I couldn't keep up in my dance classes. I was falling asleep in school. I really didn't understand, but I was being told, this is normal. This is what you have to do. I didn't know any better.

[Interviewer]

I can't imagine how that impacted you physically and emotionally at that age, at a time when you were also experiencing the trauma of watching your father fight that way.

[Haley Griffith]

My way of dealing with it was just pushing it down and ignoring it until it just bubbled over. And it got to a point where I couldn't take it anymore. And it took many years of coming to a realization that I needed help.

[Interviewer]

I know that before you got to that point, your father eventually went into hospice.

[Haley Griffith]

He did.

[Interviewer]

And how old were you at that point?

[Haley Griffith]

I was 14.

[Interviewer]

That must have been so painful on so many different levels.

[Haley Griffith]

It was really hard. And looking back, I didn't know how to understand the situation as a life or death. I mean, what kid can. Like, how do you explain death to a child? Your dad is going to pass away, and you'll never be able to talk to him again. And he's not going to be here for your wedding. He's not going to be here for big events. So I did my best with that, and I feel like it made me and my family closer.

[Interviewer]

You were incredibly impacted by your interaction with the nurses who treated your dad in hospice.

[Haley Griffith]

Oh, yeah. That's. Realistically what. What has led me to wanting to continue my education in the healthcare field. The way that they cared for my dad and the impact that they had on me and my siblings and my mom. They were really incredible. I just wanted to go into a field in which I felt that I was making an impact on other people as well.

[Lauren Bright Pacheco]

So you have a clear vision of your future goals now, but becoming a nurse takes years and the expense of medical schooling. How did you Approach that.

[Haley Griffith]

So I actually joined the military, and that kind of came out of left field in that moment. It was what was right for me because I was knocking two birds with one stone. I was getting an education at the same time as continuing to have an amazing job. And college was expensive. I wasn't sure how I was going to pay for it. I had a single mom. I was between a rock and a hard place. And so I joined the military, and it was one of the best decisions that I made to continue my education in healthcare. And that has kind of put me where I am now.

[Lauren Bright Pacheco]

Around that same time, you had already crossed paths with the dashing man who would ultimately become your husband.

[Interviewer]

Tell me how you and Nick met.

[Haley Griffith]

So me and Nick met at the gym. I was training to leave for boot camp. I was not looking for a relationship whatsoever. There were a couple instances in which she tried to talk to me, and I wasn't having it. I was just worried about how many pushups I can do. And eventually we had a really good conversation. And I knew, like, this guy's gonna change my life. And he did.

[Lauren Bright Pacheco]

And like many lasting love stories, Haley and Nick find out that they have the same dreams for their future, including their professional goals.

[Interviewer]

And you, you also are a nurse.

[Dr. Lucky Secon]

I am?

[Nick]

Yes.

[Interviewer]

When did you realize that you guys had so much in common?

[Nick]

Honestly, right off the bat, everything was just amazing from the get go. You know, we just had great conversations, had similar morals, ideas of what we wanted to do in life, and just everything was, you know, kind of almost perfect. She's one of the most warm, loving, intelligent. She's focused. She's just overall an amazing person.

[Interviewer]

And you fell fast and furiously in.

[Nick]

Love Very, very fast.

[Haley Griffith]

We only dated for a few months before we got married, and I know that's very controversial. And we got a lot of pushback from family and friends who thought that we were crazy. But truly, when you know, you know.

[Lauren Bright Pacheco]

And no, they did. Freshly wed, Hailey leaves her.

[Interviewer]

Tell me about your first night at boot camp.

[Haley Griffith]

I think everybody's first night is really hard. It's very emotional. You don't know what's happening. You're scared, and you're thrown into this completely new situation and have no idea what to expect. It was a bay of, like, 30 other women, and we all just got in our little beds and we cried the first night. And I think anybody who goes through boot camp can relate to that. Because you kind of regret what you signed up for the first few weeks, because it's a lot. It's a lot to take in.

[Interviewer]

Tell me about how you navigated your cycle and your pain during boot camp.

[Haley Griffith]

Up until this point, I had gotten really good at self care during my cycles and I really knew what to expect and I knew how to prepare for it. I used to prep my body the day before I was supposed to start my cycle or a few days before I would start my cycle. I would be taking ibuprofen around the.

[Lauren Bright Pacheco]

Clock because that would help you get ahead of the pain.

[Haley Griffith]

Exactly. I had to get ahead of the pain to be able to even function. I had sat down with my recruiter a few weeks before leaving and I remember he had stated that I couldn't take any over the counter medication with me, that anything I needed or wanted would have to be prescribed by a medical professional when I get there. So when I had got my first cycle, I was brought to my knees in pain. It was horrible. It was awful. It was one of the heaviest cycles I've ever had. I was at a loss because I didn't want to speak up. Because when you're in boot camp, you don't bring up your medical issues because you get looked at like you can't hang. You're trying to be a part of the military. If you're crying about menstrual cramps, like what are you going to do during war?

[Interviewer]

So what did you do?

[Lauren Bright Pacheco]

How did you manage?

[Haley Griffith]

I was trying to get through the pain by rationing my protein bars and I was trading them with other girls to try and get their doses of Tylenol. I had a friend who had twisted her ankle a couple weeks prior and she had Tylenol just in her locker. But we're not allowed to share things like you could get in really big trouble for giving your medication to other people. So I was slipping her my protein bars and she would give me doses of Tylenol. My biggest fear was being sent home, especially over something that I learned to manage. But I was put in a position that all my resources were taken away from me and I couldn't manage.

[Lauren Bright Pacheco]

Unable to rely on the pain medication she so desperately needed to function, Hailey is suffering more than ever. And under the scrutinizing eyes of her superiors and peers alike, she writes to Nick every day while away at boot camp, detailing her daily struggles in this letter.

[Nick]

She wrote this May 30th of 2020. It states that when I woke up, I woke up to a crime scene. I'm physically dying. You see me dying with Tylenol, lots and lots of tylenol. Right at 4:45 when NTI came in, I immediately asked for a medical appointment to get some pain medicine. They said I would have to go to the emergency room in an ambulance, and they probably would make me spend the night in the error. Trust me, I'm dying a slow death right now. I've been debating on just going because I didn't sleep at all last night. I'm exhausted and in so much pain.

[Interviewer]

So when she said she woke up to a crime scene, that meant that she had bled all over?

[Nick]

Typically, yeah.

[Interviewer]

What was it like to be on the receiving end of that, though?

[Nick]

You know, getting the letter and reading it afterwards, it makes you really, like, think and wonder, like, wow, she was going through hell during those time periods, and she just had to push through it. And I thought that she was a strong and amazing woman. And honestly, I'm very proud of her.

[Lauren Bright Pacheco]

Hallie, like many young women, was operating without a manual when it comes to their own reproductive health, a far too common phenomenon. Dr. Lucky Secon, fertility expert and endocrinologist, sees it all the time.

[Dr. Lucky Secon]

It's just been ingrained in the fabric of our society. Women just needing to grin and bear it.

[Lauren Bright Pacheco]

That's what was happening to Haylee at boot camp. She knew something was wrong, but her doctors kept prescribing pain medications or telling her to soldier through it. Does that surprise you? And why do you think, in general, women are used to having their pain dismissed?

[Dr. Lucky Secon]

I think it's only now that we're starting to have these conversations and talk about how a lot of women face dismissal and having their complaints ignored, and they themselves are dismissing their own complaints. Sometimes people, when I speak to them, I'm like, tell me about your periods. And a lot of women are like, yeah, it's fine. What do you mean you miss school? What do you mean you've missed days of work because your period, that's not normal. And so I think it starts with early education. I think there's been a lack of proper education. There's just this focus on avoiding teen pregnancy, and that's really what health class is all about. I don't remember anyone really telling me an irregular cycle, a really painful cycle, a very heavy period. What is normal, what is abnormal, and what is a red flag? And why is it important There was none of that education.

[Lauren Bright Pacheco]

Having dealt with immobilizing menstrual pain since she was 11, Haley had normalized this as part of her life. Now, eight years into this chronic battle, Hailey is forced to suffer through symptoms at boot camp without access to the pain medication she's become reliant on to make it through her cycles.

[Interviewer]

That must have been psychologically grueling.

[Haley Griffith]

Yeah. My options were to speak up and look weak or to get the help that I needed in that moment. And it was hard. I wasn't willing to risk being held back in boot camp, so I just kept pushing through. The pain got so bad. We were running in the morning and I felt so fatigued. So I knew that cycle was just gonna be really bad. I remember we were standing in line getting ready to leave the dorm and the cramps were getting unbearable. I remember I was sweating, I was shaking, my vision started to get very blurry and I felt my knees were going to give out. I pressed up against the wall and just kind of slid down. And I remember within an instant it just kind of went black.

[Lauren Bright Pacheco]

We'll be right back with Symptomatic, a medical mystery podcast.

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[Lauren Bright Pacheco]

Now back to Symptomatic a medical mystery podcast. Haley is fighting every day of boot camp with near incapacitating menstrual cycle symptoms. Heavy bleeding, intense fatigue and indescribable pain, all without access to pain medication. After weeks of discomfort pile up, Hailey's body gets out.

[Interviewer]

Take me to the moment you passed out and when you came to, I.

[Haley Griffith]

Just kept pushing my body and I knew eventually it was just going to give out. I remember we were standing in line getting ready to leave the dorm and the cramps were getting unbearable. I was sweating, I was shaking and My vision started to get very blurry and I felt like my knees were going to give out. I pressed up against the wall and just kind of slid down. Within an instant, it just kind of went black. I lost consciousness for a few seconds. I remember looking up and the dorm chief was there. She was really concerned. She was just trying to, you know, give me some space and getting everybody away from me. And she eventually told the MTI military training instructor that something was wrong. And they were already pushing me through to go to the emergency room.

[Interviewer]

And what advice were you given?

[Haley Griffith]

They just kept passing the buck and I was there temporarily and I had started to open up about the painful periods and how had heavy that they are right away. They always just say, oh, painful periods, it's normal. But once I tried to open up more and express. This is getting to be a little bit too much like I just passed out because I had period cramps.

[Interviewer]

Was it a male doctor?

[Haley Griffith]

Male doctor. He had told me, wait until you get to your next duty station, which for me would have been tech school, because I was going to be there just a little bit longer. So his only advice was just to wait until I saw somebody more permanent. And I think he was looking out for me because he didn't want me to get held back for medical reasons. So I can look back and thank this doctor. But at the same time, it just reinforced the idea that nobody's taking me seriously.

[Interviewer]

It is a different level of pain to be told by a male doctor that being incredible pain is just normal for a woman.

[Haley Griffith]

Yeah. The entire time I was in was, if you cannot push through, then you shouldn't be in the military. And as much as I agree with that, to a certain extent, it's agonizing to have to live through it constantly and constantly being dismissed. It just scared me. And it scared me into staying silent.

[Lauren Bright Pacheco]

For a long time, silently suffering, but feeling sure at this point, something was truly amiss. Hailey took it upon herself to try to get to the bottom of her symptoms.

[Haley Griffith]

For many years. I started to put puzzle pieces together and I started to, I guess, like Dr. Google, I was googling my symptoms, Googling some of the manifestations that I had found dealing with my heavy periods. It kind of pointed me into the direction of this really rare condition. But it is so rare that anytime I brought it up, I was immediately dismissed.

[Lauren Bright Pacheco]

Although Hailey feels certain that doctors should be looking into this rare condition, she believes that she might have. She is dismissed.

[Dr. Lucky Secon]

People have hunches about their bodies, but they are laypeople. And they're trusting the doctors and the experts. And I think our healthcare system is set up to have doctors fail. It's not necessarily a doctor's fault. It's the system that they're in, that they only have 15 minutes with each patient. And that does not lend itself to these complex discussions and the education that is really needed, especially when people are coming in completely blind and naive.

[Lauren Bright Pacheco]

What are some of the clear symptoms that would show up in someone with a reproductive anomaly?

[Dr. Lucky Secon]

If someone says something along the lines of, I've always had a hard time with sex or with using tampons, if someone says they have really severe, painful periods that don't respond well to medication, I mean, that could mean a lot of things. But a lot of these anomalies can lead to a higher incidence of abnormal pain with menses because you can have obstruction of the outflow that leads to back pressure, and that could be really extremely painful. And I would say just anything unusual that doesn't sound like a normal menstrual outflow pattern where you normally like, okay, I had have a period for five to seven days each month. But if someone's like, no, I'm kind of bleeding all over the place, I think that could be much more problematic.

[Lauren Bright Pacheco]

All of these symptoms that Dr. Luckey describes, Haley had been living with now for almost a decade without any answers or support. After a harrowing couple of months in boot camp, Haley completes her training.

[Interviewer]

So where were you stationed?

[Haley Griffith]

Las Vegas.

[Interviewer]

Just explain the stress of that position and what a typical day looked like that you had to get through even.

[Lauren Bright Pacheco]

When your symptoms were in full flare.

[Haley Griffith]

The unit that I worked on was an inpatient unit. So we were a combined unit of ICU med surg and labor and delivery. And so it was very stressful. I primarily worked in the med surg section of this unit. I was working 12 to 14 hour shifts like it was insane work. That's the hardest I've ever worked in my entire life. I was mentally exhausted. I was physically exhausted. So the days that I had my menstruation cycle on top of it, I couldn't do it. There was multiple instances where I felt like I was being targeted because I needed time off. I got the worst assignments. I was getting looked at differently. I was getting treated differently. And so I did my best to push it down and to push it aside and to deal with it. But I broke. There was many times I broke. Would have to just lock myself in this playroom and just cry, because going to the emergency room, they're not going to do anything for me. I have period cramps. Like I've, I've done that before. I've gone to seek help and I'm just pushed aside.

[Interviewer]

And to have all of that while you feel like people are rolling their eyes every single time you reach out for help.

[Haley Griffith]

Yeah, it was heartbreaking and it really made me question myself. Especially because I didn't have full access just to take the day off and call off work and take care of myself. Like I had to learn how to push through and learn how to suppress these feelings and emotions and not complain and just do whatever I could. You take care of yourself, then you sacrifice your job, you take care of yourself and there's consequences.

[Lauren Bright Pacheco]

How did this pressure to always act like you were okay make you feel?

[Haley Griffith]

That really caused me to have anxiety for a lot of my time in service, and especially because I didn't have the answer yet. I was terrified of the unknown.

[Lauren Bright Pacheco]

Right. And that anxiety comes from a really a very real place because you had already passed out while at boot camp, which must have always been on the back of your mind.

[Interviewer]

And then one day you were in.

[Lauren Bright Pacheco]

So much visible agony that a colleague of yours was really worried. Take me to that day.

[Haley Griffith]

So me and the specific coworker, she's a registered nurse. She was one of our element leaders in the unit. Me and her were working on a project together for Nurse Tech week. She saw I was like sweating in the trembling. She didn't know what was wrong. I just told her cramps. And she asked a lot of follow up questions because I think that she had struggled with bad menstrual cramps as well, asking what are my cycles look like? And once I divulge some of the information, she was like, yeah, that's not normal.

[Lauren Bright Pacheco]

What did you think when she said that?

[Haley Griffith]

I think having somebody just like validate that it's not normal kind of was like, okay, no, it's not normal, you're right.

[Interviewer]

And how old are you at this time?

[Haley Griffith]

I was 22. So I had been dealing with this for over 10 years at this point. Just trial and error of trying to figure out what works and what doesn't work. And led me there.

[Lauren Bright Pacheco]

And for the first time since she started experiencing debilitating period cramps, heavy bleeding and all around crippling menstrual cycles, Haley was able to convince a doctor to agree to an ultrasound. That's a medical imaging technique that uses high frequency sound waves to create detailed images of internal body structures.

[Interviewer]

What was it like getting that ultrasound.

[Haley Griffith]

The ultrasound techs I knew we're making small talk, chit chat, talking about work, talking about life. And I noticed that she had turn the screen away from me. I felt that the energy in the room shifted. She got just quiet and told me, we're done, you can get dressed. So as I was leaving, the radiology department had one big room with a bunch of computer screens where all the radiologists and rad tech sit to like review. All of them were all surrounding like one computer. And as I walked out the room, they all turned their head and looked at me. I walked out of that ultrasound thinking I had cancer because the family history with my dad, I was convinced.

[Lauren Bright Pacheco]

Did you think you were dying?

[Haley Griffith]

I did. I thought I was dying. Every possible scenario went through my head during this moment.

[Nick]

Hailey's father passed from cancer. And I think that was a really great concern. There's clearly something wrong occurring. Could it be linked? And I think it was scary. I think that's the biggest thing to say. It was a scary conversation to have.

[Haley Griffith]

And yeah, it was a Friday, so I was not expecting to get my results. And I was terrified that I would have to sit with that during the weekend. Another primary care doctor, another doctor I actually worked with, she ended up calling me at like 8:30 at night to give me the results.

[Interviewer]

On a Friday?

[Haley Griffith]

On a Friday. Because I don't think anybody was expecting what they found.

[Interviewer]

Tell me exactly what she told you over the phone.

[Haley Griffith]

When I picked up the phone, she was like, I wanted to tell you that we found that you have uterus didelphys. I remember just sinking in my chair. I knew it. I knew that that's what it was. That's the only thing that made sense.

[Lauren Bright Pacheco]

Uterus didelphys is a rare congenital condition where a person is born with two uteruses. A condition so rare that it's estimated to affect only 0.3% of women. So uncommon that many obstetrician gynecologists may never encounter a case in their careers.

[Haley Griffith]

She had told me that on the ultrasound they had saw that I have two complete sets of reproductive parts, that I had two uteruses, two cervixes and two vaginal openings. And then each uterus each had their own ovary. My next question was, where do we go from here?

[Lauren Bright Pacheco]

And what did they say?

[Haley Griffith]

She was really concerned about my kidneys because a lot of people with multiple malaria and duct anomalies have issues with their kidneys. So that was our next step. But other than that, I don't think they knew enough to be able to walk me through what this was going to look like the rest of my life or moving forward, trying to start a family. And even though I got this diagnosis, it just opened so many other questions up. Can I have kids? Like, is there cure for this? Is there a treatment for this?

[Lauren Bright Pacheco]

After over a decade, Hallie finally has a name for the condition that has made her life so painful at times. But the condition is so rare that she'll need to seek out a specialist in the field, someone like Dr. Lucky Secon.

[Dr. Lucky Secon]

When we form as embryos and as a fetus, we don't just magically appear in a uterus overnight. There's a very specific way that we go from a ball of 100 to 200 cells into a fetus and eventually a human being, a live born being with all of our organs. And the way that our uterus forms, it actually forms from two ducts that kind of come together and fuse. And when that process is interrupted, which can happen anywhere from late first trimester to mid second trimester, your uterus may end up forming in a way where there's an anomaly. It doesn't form a single cavity. And so there's a very wide spectrum. There's like incomplete fusion. Is having a uterine didelphys. You end up with two separate uteruses and two separate cervixes. And you may even have almost two separate vaginal canals because you can have like a septum, a wall of tissue dividing the vaginal canal in half.

[Lauren Bright Pacheco]

Even armed with an explanation, the rarity of the condition presented new challenges for Hailey and Mark, especially as a young couple hoping to start a family.

[Nick]

There wasn't a lot of research. That was the scary part because it's so rare, we won't have exact answers.

[Interviewer]

What changed for you guys once you had the diagnosis?

[Nick]

Several things, I think mindset, I think that's been the biggest thing, is that now it's like, okay, now we have, we know where we're going towards, we have direction.

[Interviewer]

Were you tempted to call every single doctor who dismissed you?

[Haley Griffith]

I was angry for sure because it went from, you have painful periods and I'm sorry, that's part of being a girl. Get over it. To more. Wow, this is so rare. This is so crazy. Can I bring in the students? Can we do a pelvic exam? They actually want to know my experience versus trying to dismiss it and minimize my experience. I feel like, especially regarding my fertility and what I know now, I feel like if I had these answers years earlier, I could have planned our future differently. And so, of course I was angry, but I was more upset. I was treated so poorly the entire time. Based off of the research that I found, it's really hard to have kids because it's so high risk. Luckily, I've been working with some really good doctors. They're fully on board with helping us conceive and getting us to our goals, but they're not beating around the bush with the fact that it's going to come with its own challenges, and it has. We've had four miscarriages, so that's where we're at right now.

[Interviewer]

I'm sorry.

[Haley Griffith]

Yeah, it's hard. It's really hard. Infertility is something that a lot of women don't talk about enough. It's more common than you think.

[Nick]

Yeah, it's terrible. It's like, it's one of the hardest pains to go through, especially when you are trying for a family. And that's the biggest thing. It's. It's difficult. And we want to make sure that, you know that other people understand that it's okay to talk about it occurring. And I think it brings together a sense of community. At the same time, you can find groups of people that, you know, you're able to communicate the same situation and grieve with one another.

[Lauren Bright Pacheco]

Women often describe the experience of infertility as isolating. Do you feel that way?

[Haley Griffith]

It's hard because people want to understand and they want to support you. But until you've been through it, like, you just don't understand, it makes me feel like less than a woman that I have trouble conceiving, feeling like not enough in the way that society is built and the way that society looks at women as mothers. And they paint this label that being a mother is one of the most rewarding things that you can do as a woman. It's devastating to know that that's going to be a challenge for me.

[Interviewer]

How did things change for you once you finally had a diagnosis?

[Haley Griffith]

I think it definitely changed. Gave me more of a voice to stand on and to advocate for myself, saying, no, there's something wrong. Please do your job and please do it well, because this is my life, and this is something I've been struggling with for far too long, and I don't put up with it anymore. I'm not afraid to stand up for myself.

[Lauren Bright Pacheco]

As an expert on navigating infertility, Dr. Secon offers this advice to women struggling with reproductive health issues.

[Dr. Lucky Secon]

I think it's always helpful to write things Down. I think a menstrual diary, which is probably a term that a lot of you have not heard of, is a brilliant thing to have. Whether you're dealing with a didelphous uterus or endometriosis or irregular cycles, having objective tracked data, no one can dispute that this is right in front of you. Now. Here's a pattern, and this is not normal. I think you have to be willing to get second opinions. If something sounds like you're getting a BS answer, go see someone that isn't going to make you feel insecure about their answers. And that's going to make you feel like this person knows what they're doing. Knowledge is power. Regardless of what your goals are, I think understanding your body is going to bring you a sense of relief and validation. And it can help you plan for the future. It can help change the trajectory of what you might have done otherwise. This is a shared experience of many, many women. And we have to help each other. And we should also pay it forward. And welcome conversations with our friends and our family members and speak openly about our bodies and the things we're experiencing, because you never know who it's going to help.

[Lauren Bright Pacheco]

How do you feel when you are able to give a patient who has clearly been shuffled through the system without answers some kind of clarity or direction?

[Dr. Lucky Secon]

When someone walks through my door and you could just see it on their face, they're confused. They're not entirely convinced they're gonna walk out with answers. Like they are jaded. I used to think fertility treatment's so complicated. There's all these fancy tools and treatments. It's actually pretty simple. This is why this issue exists. Here are the potential problems and here are the solutions and strategies as we move forward. And when you keep it simple and you lay it out like that and someone walks out with tangible tools and they feel so in control after feeling so out of control for so long. That is by and large the most important thing that I love about my career, that I will never get tired of doing what I'm doing.

[Lauren Bright Pacheco]

Now. Haylei has access to better pain treatment, personalized fertility planning, and a health plan made just for her. A specialist might even recommend surgery to help her conceive and carry a child. For the first time, she's looking ahead with hope and plans to use her experience to help others.

[Interviewer]

And are you still pursuing nursing?

[Haley Griffith]

I am. I graduate next year with my bachelor's in nursing. I am so excited to be done with school, but I am so excited for my future as a registered nurse. I hope to make an impact in the women's health world. My education, my background, my diagnosis, everything combined, it's made me more compassionate. My relationship with my patients is far different than the relationships between other healthcare providers and their patients because I feel like I take the time to really sit down and validate their feelings. First and foremost.

[Lauren Bright Pacheco]

Nick, what do you hope that people take away from your shared story?

[Nick]

Yeah, I want them to really look out and identify that they may not be the only ones who are going through something and if they do have a health condition, that they should try and seek out further answers to that.

[Interviewer]

Nobody should ever get comfortable with being dismissed in terms of health concerns.

[Nick]

100% I agree.

[Interviewer]

And finally, what do you want people to take away from your story?

[Haley Griffith]

I want people to know that it's okay to advocate for yourself. Sometimes you are your only advocate. And when you know something is wrong, something could be wrong. Don't take no for an answer and don't let them tell you your symptoms are normal and minimize it and minimize your experience, especially if you you are a woman. Because I've seen how hard it is to fight the fight trying to get the care that you need and that you deserve. My name is Hayley Griffith, and for 22 years I struggled with being diagnosed with uterus didelphys.

[Lauren Bright Pacheco]

You can follow Dr. Lucky Secon at Lucky Secon and look out for her new book, the Lucky egg, coming out January 13, 2026. Coming up on next week's Symptomatic Ian Stedman suffered 32 years through whole body rashes, debilitating migraines, joint pain and hearing loss without a clear diagnosis. His mother, Barb, had gone over 60 years with the same symptoms. After nearly 200 doctors visits and decades of frustrations, they had resigned to believe there were no answers. That is, until Ian's daughter, Leah was born, covered in that all too recognizable rash.

[Symptomatic Podcast Promo Voice]

One in three people untreated just don't wake up.

[Nick]

My mom's over 36, so she seems.

[Symptomatic Podcast Promo Voice]

To have bucked the trend. I'm running up against it, and now I've got a kid, so there's three of us. If it wasn't for Leah being sick, I may be the one in three.

[Lauren Bright Pacheco]

Ian reignited his search for answers and saved his family. As always, we would love to hear from you. Send us your thoughts on this episode or share a medical mystery of your own@ symptomaticiheartmedia.com and please rate and review Symptomatic wherever you get your podcasts we'll see you next time. And until then, be well. Symptomatic A Medical Mystery Podcast is a production of iHeartMedia's Ruby Studio. Our show is hosted by me, Lauren Bright Pacheco. Our executive producers are James Foster, Matt Romano, and myself. Our supervising producers are Ryan Ovadia, Haley Aaliyah Erickson and Daniel Ainsworth. This episode was written by Hayley Alia Erickson and edited by Daniel Ainsworth.

[Cosentyx Advertisement Voice]

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[Haley Griffith]

This is an I Heart Podcast.