English: Thank you very much, Jenny, for bringing this forward. I think it's one of those debates where people will be called 'brave' for speaking out. I think 'spilling your guts' is actually going to have a little bit more of a literal meaning in the rest of this debate than others may be comfortable with. Joyce talked about the economic effect on women, but I think it's worth bearing in mind as well that our health and social care systems are primary employers of women in Wales, and by far the majority of unpaid carers are women, and if one in 10 of those disappeared on a rolling monthly basis to care for themselves whilst in the throes of an endometriosis episode, there'd be a pretty big gap in the number of people available to look after our cancer patients and other dementia patients and our mental health patients, let alone our own families. When I was a young woman, I'd never heard of endometriosis. My closest friend knew what it was, because she'd had it pretty much from puberty - diagnosed much later, of course, as you might imagine - and I now think what a terrible friend I was, because I never really asked her what was happening to her. I never asked her about how much she lived in dread of her period, how she coped with the indignity of flooding, how she stayed awake when she would have been anaemic and exhausted from that excruciating pain we've already heard about, how she even managed to put one foot in front of the other, and what it was like, some months, to bleed for longer than you didn't. Roll forward some decades, and let's think of my former member of staff; I have her permission to mention her. She has a degree, she has a Master's, and was only ever able to work part time because of the effects of endometriosis and its treatment. She had all the above symptoms. She was told she would have difficulties conceiving. Early menopause was introduced as an attempt to treat this, a sort of chemical castration for women, with all those delightful symptoms exaggerated for being artificial. Mercifully, that was stopped, but now she has frequent migraines and anxiety to add to everything else. Like all chronic conditions, there is a spectrum of intensity in how it is experienced. However, the level of ignorance about endometriosis is staggering, considering its prevalence, which is why I draw your attention to parts 4 and 6 of this motion. During the last Assembly, we had a debate on whether page 3 girls should be banned, and I was speaking in it. In the morning, I had to visit a newsagent to do a media piece, taking two young work-experience people with me. And not for the first time, I was having a bad period. 'My age', I thought. 'Perimenopause', I thought. 'I'm into my late 40s; this is how it's going to be for a while.' So, I didn't really think about why I needed sanitary protection the size of sofa cushions changed several times an hour. I didn't ask why the toilet bowl looked like a butcher's bucket. When my heart was going like the clappers and I nearly fainted in the lift, I put it down to not having time to eat and running around with these teenagers; not acute anaemia. And it wasn't the first time: 'Maybe I should go to the doctor, but when and why? Surely this is something that all women go through it a certain age.' But the time did come on that day to do something, because when I was standing here in this Chamber, talking about women being treated as sex objects, the contents of my womb and God knows what else were flooding down my legs and pooling around my shoes. The doctor asked me if I had a history of ovarian cancer in the family. That didn't really make me feel much better. And several months later, after a completely unrelated minor operation, the surgeon casually mentioned to me that I had stage 4 endometriosis, and I quote: 'This is a mess, and because of your age, it's probably not worth operating.' Nicely put, but confirmation, at least, of the source my pain. Members, this condition is nasty, and apart from coping with these symptoms, my own experience is still common. Women will tell you that this disease makes them feel dirty, secretive, anxious about where the nearest loo is - toilet closures really are a feminist issue - it crushes their libido and wrecks intimacy, as Angela pointed out. And women will also tell you that despite describing all the symptoms I've just horrified you with, GPs don't think endometriosis when they hear them, and that's the point in our motion; point 2. I would also say without criticism that specialists don't always have many tools to combat this disease. There's still too much they don't know, and as we've heard, there's no pathway for treatment. Now, women want to be well. One in 10 of us push through this stuff, as Vikki said, month after month, feeling like hell, meeting social expectations because talking about this wrecking ball is just too embarrassing. Minister, I want you to understand that this is not a cinderella disease; it is a real ugly sister of a disease - a real ugly sister - and I hope this debate captures your attention.
Welsh: Diolch yn fawr iawn am gyflwyno hyn, Jenny. Rwy'n credu ei bod yn un o'r dadleuon lle bydd pobl yn cael eu galw'n 'ddewr' am siarad. Credaf y bydd 'bwrw eich perfedd' yn magu ystyr ychydig bach yn fwy llythrennol yng ngweddill y ddadl hon nag y bydd eraill yn gyfforddus ag ef o bosibl. Soniodd Joyce am yr effaith economaidd ar fenywod, ond rwy'n credu ei bod yn werth cofio hefyd fod ein systemau iechyd a gofal cymdeithasol yn brif gyflogwyr menywod yng Nghymru, a bod y rhan fwyaf o bell ffordd o ofalwyr di-dâl yn fenywod, a phe bai un o bob 10 o'r rheini'n diflannu bob mis ar sail dreigl i ofalu amdanynt eu hunain wrth iddynt ddioddef pwl o endometriosis, byddai bwlch go fawr yn nifer y bobl sydd ar gael i ofalu am ein cleifion canser a'n cleifion dementia a'n cleifion iechyd meddwl, heb sôn am ein teuluoedd ein hunain. Pan oeddwn yn fenyw ifanc, nid oeddwn erioed wedi clywed am endometriosis. Roedd fy ffrind agosaf yn gwybod beth ydoedd, oherwydd roedd wedi dioddef ohono fwy neu lai o'i glasoed - ni chafodd ddiagnosis tan lawer yn ddiweddarach wrth gwrs, fel y gallwch ddychmygu - ac rwy'n meddwl nawr ffrind mor ofnadwy oeddwn i, oherwydd ni ofynnais iddi erioed beth oedd yn digwydd iddi. Ni ofynnais iddi erioed faint oedd hi'n byw mewn ofn o'i mislif, sut yr ymdopai â diffyg urddas sydd ynghlwm wrth waed yn gollwng, sut yr arhosodd yn effro pan fyddai wedi bod yn anemig ac yn lluddedig yn sgil y boen arteithiol y clywsom amdani, sut y llwyddodd i roi un droed o flaen y llall, a sut brofiad oedd gwaedu, rai misoedd, am fwy o amser na pheidio. Ewch ymlaen rai degawdau, a gadewch inni feddwl am fy nghyn-aelod o staff; rwyf wedi cael ei chaniatâd i'w chrybwyll. Mae ganddi radd, mae ganddi radd Meistr, a dim ond yn rhan amser y gallai weithio oherwydd effeithiau endometriosis a'i driniaeth. Roedd ganddi'r holl symptomau uchod. Dywedwyd wrthi y byddai'n cael anhawster i feichiogi. Cyflwynwyd menopos cynnar fel ymgais i drin hyn, rhyw fath o sbaddu cemegol i fenywod, gyda'r holl symptomau hyfryd hynny'n waeth am eu bod wedi'u cymell yn artiffisial. Drwy drugaredd, ni wnaed hynny, ond erbyn hyn mae hi'n cael meigryn yn fynych a gorbryder i'w ychwanegu at bopeth arall. Fel pob cyflwr cronig, ceir sbectrwm o ddifrifoldeb o ran sut y caiff ei ddioddef. Fodd bynnag, mae lefel yr anwybodaeth ynglŷn ag endometriosis yn syfrdanol, o ystyried cymaint sy'n dioddef ohono, a dyna pam rwy'n tynnu eich sylw at rannau 4 a 6 o'r cynnig hwn. Yn ystod y Cynulliad diwethaf, cawsom ddadl ynglŷn ag a ddylid gwahardd merched tudalen 3, ac fe siaradais ynddi. Yn y bore, bu'n rhaid imi ymweld â siop bapur newydd i wneud cyfweliad â'r cyfryngau, gan fynd â dau berson ifanc ar brofiad gwaith gyda mi. Ac nid am y tro cyntaf, roeddwn yn cael mislif gwael. 'Fy oedran', meddyliais. 'Perimenopos', meddyliais. 'Rwyf yn fy 40au hwyr; dyma sut y bydd pethau am gyfnod.' Felly, ni feddyliais lawer mewn gwirionedd pam fod angen i mi newid eitemau mislif maint clustogau soffa sawl gwaith yr awr. Ni ofynnais pam fod bowlen y toiled yn edrych fel bwced cigydd. Pan oedd fy nghalon yn curo fel gordd a minnau bron â llewygu yn y lifft, barnais mai peidio â gwneud amser i fwyta a'r holl redeg o gwmpas gyda'r bobl ifanc yn eu harddegau oedd ar fai; nid anemia acíwt. Ac nid dyna'r tro cyntaf: 'Efallai y dylwn fynd at y meddyg, ond pryd a pham? Does bosibl nad yw hyn yn rhywbeth y mae pob menyw'n mynd drwyddo ar oedran penodol.' Ond fe ddaeth yr amser y diwrnod hwnnw i wneud rhywbeth, oherwydd pan oeddwn yn sefyll yma yn y Siambr hon, yn sôn am fenywod yn cael eu trin fel gwrthrychau rhyw, roedd cynnwys fy nghroth a Duw a ŵyr beth arall yn llifo i lawr fy nghoesau ac yn cronni yn fy esgidiau. Gofynnodd y meddyg i mi a oedd gennyf hanes o ganser yr ofari yn y teulu. Ni wnaeth hynny i mi deimlo'n llawer gwell. A sawl mis yn ddiweddarach, ar ôl mân lawdriniaeth gwbl ddigyswllt, soniodd y llawfeddyg wrthyf yn ddidaro fod gennyf endometriosis cam 4, ac rwy'n dyfynnu: 'Mae'n llanastr, ac oherwydd eich oedran, mae'n debyg nad yw'n werth gwneud llawdriniaeth.' Cynnil iawn, ond cadarnhad, o leiaf, o ffynhonnell fy mhoen. Aelodau, mae'r cyflwr hwn yn gas, ac ar wahân i ymdopi â'r symptomau hyn, mae fy mhrofiad i'n dal yn gyffredin. Bydd menywod yn dweud wrthych fod y clefyd hwn yn gwneud iddynt deimlo'n fudr, yn gelgar ac yn bryderus ynglŷn â ble mae'r toiledau agosaf - mae cau toiledau'n fater ffeministaidd - mae'n cyfyngu ar eu libido ac yn difa cyfathrach, fel y nododd Angela. A bydd menywod hefyd yn dweud wrthych, er i mi ddisgrifio'r holl symptomau rwyf newydd eich dychryn chi â hwy, nad yw meddygon teulu'n meddwl am endometriosis pan fyddant yn eu clywed, a dyna'r pwynt yn ein cynnig; pwynt 2. Byddwn hefyd yn dweud heb feirniadaeth nad oes gan arbenigwyr lawer o arfau bob amser i fynd i'r afael â'r clefyd hwn. Mae gormod nad ydynt yn ei wybod o hyd, ac fel y clywsom, nid oes llwybr ar gyfer triniaeth. Nawr, mae menywod am fod yn iach. Mae un o bob 10 ohonom yn gwthio drwy'r pethau hyn, fel y dywedodd Vikki, fis ar ôl mis, yn teimlo'n llegach, yn bodloni disgwyliadau cymdeithasol am fod siarad am y maen melin dinistriol hwn yn ormod o embaras. Weinidog, rwyf am i chi ddeall nad clefyd sinderela yw hwn; mae'n chwaer hyll iawn o glefyd - chwaer hyll go iawn - a gobeithio y bydd y ddadl hon yn dal eich sylw.