The Bulgarian-born Valentina Milanova, who featured in Forbes’ 2023 30 under 30 list, has opened up about her childhood ordeal with an undiagnosed condition that had her menstruating three years earlier than the average female.
To make matters worse, she knew nothing about the monthly cycle, nor that it visited regularly for the better part of a healthy woman’s life, and aside from being embarrassed, the 9-year-old believed she was slowly succumbing to some terrible disease.
She was not incorrect for thinking there was something wrong with her. But for all their knowledge, doctors misunderstood her situation to the point that they thought she was pregnant.
And this was despite her assertions that she had not yet been with a male. A pregnancy test vindicated her, and what doctors found has since been dubbed “a gynecologic health horror story.”
Valentina Milanova had her first period at the age of nine and hid it from her parents
Image credits: Daye
The UK’s Independent quoted the entrepreneur describing her confusion as a child when she experienced her first period.
“I was very surprised – I didn’t know what was happening to my body, because no one had had a conversation with me yet about what to expect from menstruation,” she recalled.
“I thought I had some kind of a disease, or maybe I was dying.”
Image credits: Daye
She was ashamed and kept the anomaly from her parents, further limiting her chances of getting help and perhaps a better understanding of her situation.
At the age of 11, her parents put her on a contraceptive
But little did she know, it would happen month after month for a large part of her life. She further noted that she soiled her underwear, not knowing a thing about sanitary pads.
Image credits: Getty Images/Unsplash
Then there was the pain that exacerbated her psychological discomfort, and the best she could do in the way of treatment was either staying in bed with a hot water bottle or taking long hot baths.
While these age-old home “remedies” initially alleviated her situation, the agony would increase over time, until there were days when she would not get out of bed.
These debilitating episodes would continue for two years before she learned what a period was, and that she had been having an intense version of them long before the normal age.
Image credits: Getty Images/Unsplash
Around that time, her parents, now somewhat conscious of their daughter’s disposition, put her on a contraceptive pill.
Her doctors thought she was pregnant until she was tested, and then they found a massive cyst
Milanova’s condition forced her to take a year off school when she was 14, and when she turned 15, she was diagnosed with polycystic ovary syndrome or PCOS, which stems from a hormonal imbalance that causes “small” cysts–as Mayo Clinic puts it–to form on the ovaries.
Image credits: Daye
In Milanova’s case, not even the PCOS was of the average distinction. After an intravaginal scan, doctors identified one such cyst that was 8cm in size, “filled with hair and teeth”.
But before making this discovery, her doctors thought she had an ectopic pregnancy, where an embryo starts growing outside the uterus, commonly in one of the fallopian tubes.
The organ eventually bursts, resulting in incessant bleeding and, by extension, a life-threatening event.
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Milanova’s doctors clung to the theory despite her denying being intimately involved or active.
Her initiative has propelled her to the Forbes 30 Under 30
Milanova did not say how medical professionals dealt with the find, but her ordeal continued for years after her diagnosis, and to this day she contends with bleeding, bloating, and cysts.
In 2018, she moved to the United Kingdom and was inspired by her reproductive ailment to start a movement that would help women.
Image credits: Reproductive Health Supplies Coalition
“My experiences helped me understand the bigger problem at hand. Most women experience a gynaecological health horror story in their lifetime,” The Daily Mirror reported her saying.
She is now the founder and CEO of woman’s reproductive care firm, Daye, which–as can be seen by the $19 million-plus (per OxWIB) in funding and her appearance on Forbes’ coveted 30 Under 30 list in 2023–is a screaming success.
Her products have since been incorporated into the UK’s national health system
The products the brand sells include pain-managing and STI-testing tampons, while others are CBD-infused.
Image credits: Daye
Her innovations have also been incorporated into the UK’s National Health Service, which aims to eradicate cervical cancer by 2040.
Speaking to Welltodo Global, Milanova explained that “sharing personal stories is one of the most powerful ways to break down stigmas around women’s health.
Image credits: Daye
“I’m always open about my journey with painful periods, misdiagnosis and eventual PCOS diagnosis, which drove me to start this company,” she told the health outlet in a May 2024 interview.
Netizens are dubbing Milanova’s work “a game-changer”
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