04/09/2026
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โ๐ ๐ฃ๐ฎ๐ฌ๐ญ ๐ญ๐ก๐จ๐ฎ๐ ๐ก๐ญ ๐ข๐ญ ๐ฐ๐๐ฌ ๐ง๐จ๐ซ๐ฆ๐๐ฅโ:
Germech helping shine a light on endometriosis
๐
๐จ๐ซ ๐ฒ๐๐๐ซ๐ฌ, ๐๐๐๐ ๐๐ง ๐๐๐ซ๐ฆ๐๐๐ก ๐ญ๐ก๐จ๐ฎ๐ ๐ก๐ญ ๐ญ๐ก๐ ๐ฉ๐๐ข๐ง ๐ฌ๐ก๐ ๐๐ฑ๐ฉ๐๐ซ๐ข๐๐ง๐๐๐ ๐๐ฎ๐ซ๐ข๐ง๐ ๐ก๐๐ซ ๐ฉ๐๐ซ๐ข๐จ๐ ๐ฐ๐๐ฌ ๐ฌ๐ข๐ฆ๐ฉ๐ฅ๐ฒ ๐ฌ๐จ๐ฆ๐๐ญ๐ก๐ข๐ง๐ ๐ฌ๐ก๐ ๐ก๐๐ ๐ญ๐จ ๐ฉ๐ฎ๐ญ ๐ฎ๐ฉ ๐ฐ๐ข๐ญ๐ก.
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Like many young women, the Yartapuulti defender had never considered that her symptoms could be a sign of something more.
โI had no idea what endometriosis was when I was younger,โ Germech said.
โI just thought that the period pain that I was having was normal and it wasn't anything to be worried about, not that I might have endometriosis.โ
It was only after joining Port Adelaide and having more open conversations about the pain she was experiencing with club medical staff that the possibility of endometriosis was raised.
From there, the 23-year-old underwent scans at Jones Radiology, ultimately providing answers to something she had spent years believing was normal.
โMy journey was probably a little bit easier than some,โ Germech said.
โSome people have those eight or nine years where they have no answers. I thought that my period pain was normal, but when I arrived at Port I started having a few more conversations about the period pain that I was having.
โIt was sort of said maybe I do have endometriosis, so went to the GP and our doctors here at the club to have those conversations and get the scans at Jones Radiology.โ
For Germech, having a diagnosis has meant more than simply putting a name to the pain.
It has given her the confidence to communicate when she isn't feeling her best, while knowing she has the support of those around her.
โI think just having answers and knowing that it isn't normal,โ she said.
โI think professionally, I can share at the club if I'm not feeling 100 per cent. If I'm really having a bad flare-up the coaches will understand that it's okay, and that's not going to impact my performance on the weekend or anything like that.
โIt is just that I'm having a bad endometriosis flare-up, and that I'll probably be okay in a couple of days, which I really appreciate.โ
Now, ahead of Jones Radiologyโs Feature Round this weekend, Germech hopes sharing her own experience can help encourage more conversations about endometriosis, particularly among young girls who may be experiencing symptoms without understanding what they mean.
โI think just drawing that awareness, especially because young girls probably don't have the conversations, or I know that I wasn't having those kinds of conversations when I was younger about what constitutes a โnormalโ period,โ she said.
โIt's really important, I think, to get those conversations out there that the period pain that some people might be having isn't actually normal.โ
Germech believes those conversations should extend beyond the individual, encouraging parents to listen when their daughters speak up about pain or symptoms that don't feel right.
โI think it's incredibly important that the parents listen. Young girls might not be having those conversations at school or with their friends or anything.
โI think if someone's coming to you asking, โCan I go to the doctor because this isn't normal?โ I think it's really important that we listen and sort of get those diagnoses a little bit earlier instead of those, like I said before, seven, eight or nine-year processes.โ
๐๐๐ซ ๐ฆ๐๐ฌ๐ฌ๐๐ ๐ ๐ข๐ฌ ๐ฌ๐ข๐ฆ๐ฉ๐ฅ๐: ๐๐จ๐ง'๐ญ ๐๐ข๐ฌ๐ฆ๐ข๐ฌ๐ฌ ๐ญ๐ก๐ ๐ฉ๐๐ข๐ง, ๐๐ง๐ ๐๐จ๐ง'๐ญ ๐๐ ๐๐๐ซ๐๐ข๐ ๐ญ๐จ ๐๐ฌ๐ค ๐ช๐ฎ๐๐ฌ๐ญ๐ข๐จ๐ง๐ฌ.
โMy advice would be to have those conversations early as well, and then if you do think that something is wrong, going in to see your GP and asking them for referral to Jones Radiology to get those scans done.โ
For Germech, starting that conversation has made a difference, both personally and professionally.
๐๐ง๐ ๐๐ฒ ๐ฌ๐ก๐๐ซ๐ข๐ง๐ ๐ก๐๐ซ ๐ฌ๐ญ๐จ๐ซ๐ฒ, ๐ฌ๐ก๐ ๐ก๐จ๐ฉ๐๐ฌ ๐๐ง๐จ๐ญ๐ก๐๐ซ ๐ฒ๐จ๐ฎ๐ง๐ ๐ ๐ข๐ซ๐ฅ ๐๐ฑ๐ฉ๐๐ซ๐ข๐๐ง๐๐ข๐ง๐ ๐ฎ๐ง๐๐ฑ๐ฉ๐ฅ๐๐ข๐ง๐๐ ๐จ๐ซ ๐๐๐๐ข๐ฅ๐ข๐ญ๐๐ญ๐ข๐ง๐ ๐ฉ๐๐ซ๐ข๐จ๐ ๐ฉ๐๐ข๐ง ๐ฆ๐ข๐ ๐ก๐ญ ๐ซ๐๐๐จ๐ ๐ง๐ข๐ฌ๐ ๐ญ๐ก๐๐ญ ๐ข๐ญ ๐๐จ๐๐ฌ๐ง'๐ญ ๐ฌ๐ข๐ฆ๐ฉ๐ฅ๐ฒ ๐ก๐๐ฏ๐ ๐ญ๐จ ๐๐ ๐ฌ๐จ๐ฆ๐๐ญ๐ก๐ข๐ง๐ ๐ฌ๐ก๐ ๐ฉ๐ฎ๐ญ๐ฌ ๐ฎ๐ฉ ๐ฐ๐ข๐ญ๐ก.
