Bindi Irwin is opening up about her private medical journey.
Steve Irwin's daughter recently penned a candid letter on Instagram regarding the health problems—including an endometriosis diagnosis—she's experienced for over a decade, but hasn't publicly detailed until now.
Posting a photo of herself hospitalized and wearing medical garments, Bindi said she recently decided to undergo surgery for endometriosis, a disorder that occurs when tissue grows outside the uterus lining, which can prompt severe pain, according to the Mayo Clinic.
"For 10yrs I've struggled with insurmountable fatigue, pain & nausea," the 24-year-old captioned her March 7 post. "Trying to remain a positive person & hide the pain has been a very long road."
Bindi, who shares 23-month-old daughter Grace with husband Chandler Powell, initially just tried to "function through the pain" until friend Leslie Mosier set her "on a path of regaining my life."
"Going in for surgery was scary but I knew I couldn't live like I was," Bindi said. "Every part of my life was getting torn apart because of the pain."
She said the medical staff found 37 lesions, some of which were "very deep & difficult to remove," as well as a chocolate cyst, which is an ovarian cyst filled with old menstrual blood, according to Healthline.
Post-surgery, Bindi added that her medical facility, the Seckin Endometriosis Center, asked her "How did you live with this much pain?" She added, "Validation for years of pain is indescribable."
The Australian zookeeper thanked her family and friends who've supported her on the decade-long journey and for "encouraging me to find answers when I thought I'd never climb out."
"Thank you to the doctors & nurses who believed my pain," Bindi continued. "I'm on the road to recovery & the gratitude I feel is overwhelming. To those questioning the cancelled plans, unanswered messages & absence - I had been pouring every ounce of the energy I had left into our daughter & family."
Noting that things "may look fine on the outside looking in through the window of someone's life," Bindi stated that "that is not always the case."
She said she's "battled for a long time wondering if I should share this journey with you in such a public space," and shared how she arrived at her decision to do so: "It came down to the responsibility I feel to share my story for other women who need help."
Her post also directed a serious message to fans.
"Please be gentle & pause before asking me (or any woman) when we'll be having more children," she shared. "After all that my body has gone through, I feel tremendously grateful that we have our gorgeous daughter. She feels like our family's miracle."
She concluded her post by offering words of understanding to those who are "struggling with a similar story."
"There's stigma around this awful disease," Bindi said. "I'm sharing my story for anyone who reads this & is quietly dealing with pain & no answers. Let this be your validation that your pain is real & you deserve help. Keep searching for answers."