Why some women are being driven out of the workplace by an illness

Image source, Carla Cressy Image caption, Doctors removed Carla Cressy's appendix, but it was endometriosis that was causing the excruciating pain By Charlie Jones  and  Alice Cunningham Published 45 minutes ago Carla Cressy worked as a model from the age of five until she was 17, but kept collapsing on shoots. "It was really embarrassing and I couldn't do it anymore," she says. From the age of 13, when she started her periods, she was plagued by excruciating pain but she was only finally diagnosed with endometriosis when she was 25. By then, doctors had removed her appendix, mistakenly thinking she had acute appendicitis. "I was hospitalised for chronic constipation several times. I wasn't able to eat, I was vomiting and in such severe pain but I kept being told it was a stomach bug." Carla ended up retraining as a beauty therapist because she felt she was "unemployable and unreliable" due to her health. "I would have a client, then sit in a boiling hot bath to ease my stomach pain. It was horrible, but it was the only way I could earn a living," the 35-year-old from Essex says. One in six women with endometriosis are estimated to leave the workplace due to the condition, which causes tissue similar to the lining of the womb to grow outside it. Carla recently gave evidence to an ongoing inquiry , external into how the condition affects women in the workplace , external . There is currently no legislation in the UK to ensure workers with menstrual health conditions are treated fairly if they need time off work. Image source, Carla Cressy Image caption, Carla was made an OBE earlier this year for helping ensure endometriosis is becoming a more visible and better-understood condition Because her endometriosis had been left untreated for so long, it had formed into frozen pelvis disease where "everything was stuck together". It destroyed Carla's reproductive organs and was so extensive she was left needing bladder reconstruction surgery and a total hysterectomy. "Thankfully, I managed to freeze my eggs but I can't now carry a baby, so if I do decide to have children I will have to go down the surrogacy route," she says. While bedridden after surgery Carla connected with other women with endometriosis and started online support groups which evolved into her forming a charity, The Endometriosis Foundation. "It still shocks me that this condition is so common," she says. "When I was diagnosed 10 years ago, I was told I was too young and that it was rare. We now know that it is absolutely not rare. "A lot of people still believe endometriosis is just a period condition. It's so much more than that. We're talking about lung collapse, kidney loss, extensive surgeries, infertility and careers being cut short." 'I threw up in a bin at work' Image source, Abi Smith Image caption, Abi Smith said her endometriosis had made her mental health suffer over the years Abi Smith, 27, who is originally from Braintree but now lives in Lowestoft, was prescribed a gut