They’re meeting a need!
Khaleelah I.L. Harris is a visual art curator and entrepreneur who, at the height of her career, learned she needed a myomectomy to get rid of her painful fibroids, Essence reports. The surgery was extensive and costly, totaling thousands of out-of-pocket costs. Luckily, Harris was able to get quality insurance coverage that took care of the costs, but she couldn’t help but think about what others who weren’t as fortunate were doing in this situation.
“I just thought to myself, Oh, my goodness, what are people who are low-income doing? What are people with uteruses who don’t have insurance doing to pay for this? Considering the numbers and how prevalent it is in our community. That was just at the back of my mind…As I moved closer and received my first surgery date, the bill was $10,000 out of pocket,” Harris recalled.
Fibroids disproportionately affect Black women and come with debilitating symptoms, including excessive bleeding, pain, and abnormally swollen abdomens. The best resolution for most patients is surgical removal and a series of treatments to shrink them, which is extremely expensive. The entire ordeal prompted Harris to team up with her friend Yasmine Griffiths, a 4th-year medical student at Howard University School of Medicine. Together, the two founded “The Beauty of Our Wellness,” a DC-based nonprofit that helps address issues faced by Black women dealing with uterine fibroids.
“When in medical school, we learned about fibroids, but seeing it firsthand with a friend really makes it feel more urgent,” Griffiths explained.
The Beauty of Our Wellness offers $500 micro-grants to help with fibroid treatment costs. Of course, Harris and Griffiths hope to expand their reproductive health support in the future, but they’re currently doing what they can. Recently, they held a luncheon and fundraiser featuring art pieces from the Wright Family Collection, conversations with Black women OBGYNs, and testimonies from other myomectomy patients. Griffiths aims to spark the conversation and point people to viable resources that can help.
“This feels like calling. I think it’s necessary not just to have the conversations, but to make space for them to continue and have people who really have the expertise to talk about it. Then on top of that, really find a way to give support to people who can’t afford the many, many costly things that go into having a fibroid. When we come together to address this issue that touches so many of us, we can all help each other heal,” said Griffiths.
To learn more about The Beauty of Our Wellness, visit their website HERE.
Cover photo: Meet the Duo Behind Nonprofit Helping Black Women Pay for Expensive Fibroid Treatments/(l to r) Co-founders Khaleelah I.L. Harris & Yasmine Griffiths/Photo credit: The Beauty of Our Wellness