Florence Pugh wasn’t expecting to have to consider motherhood so soon.
Speaking with Dr. Thaïs Aliabadi, a renowned gynecological surgeon, and influencer Mary Alice Haney on the SHE MD podcast, the Don’t Worry Darling actor opened up about freezing her eggs at age 27 after finding out she had PCOS and endometriosis.
“I had this sudden feeling that I should go and get everything checked. I’d had a few weird dreams, I think my body was telling me,” Pugh, now 28, said.
The actor went to Aliabadi, her gynecologist, who asked her if she’d ever had an egg count done.”
“I was like, ‘No what do you mean? I’m so young. Why do I need an egg count?’” the Midsommar star explained.
After conducting her egg count, Dr. Aliabadi diagnosed Pugh with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) and endometriosis, two chronic conditions that can make it difficult to conceive as you get older.
“It was just so bizarre because my family are baby-making machines. My mom had babies into her forties. My gran had babies throughout,” the actor said.
“And then of course, I learned completely different information, at age 27, that I need to get my eggs out, and do it quickly, which was just a bit of a mind-boggling realization, and one that I’m really lucky and glad that I found out when I did because I’ve been wanting kids since I was a child,” she continued.
According to Mayo Clinic, PCOS creates issues with hormones “during the reproductive years,” often causing irregular periods and an increase in androgen hormone levels.
“With PCOS, many small sacs of fluid develop along the outer edge of the ovary. These are called cysts. The small fluid-filled cysts contain immature eggs. These are called follicles. The follicles fail to regularly release eggs,” Mayo Clinic states.
Mayo Clinic describes endometriosis as “an often-painful condition in which tissue that is similar to the inner lining of the uterus grows outside the uterus.”
The Oppenheimer actor exhibited PCOS symptoms such as excessive hair growth and acne before she was made aware of her condition by Dr. Aliabadi. However, Pugh assumed those symptoms were just “part of being a woman.”
“If you have a dream of maybe one day being a mum, these things are so important, much like learning how to find lumps in your breast,” Pugh told podcast listeners, arguing more schools should expand curriculums to focus more on these conditions and fertility risks.
Rocky Mountain Fertility Center says the best time for a woman to freeze her eggs is between ages 27 and 34.
