Media Release, Fantail Communications November 2026. Photo credit: Ainsley DS photography.
New Zealand’s first emotional companion to life with endometriosis.
In 2022, after years of pain and suffering, Natalie Hampshire was diagnosed with Stage IV endometriosis in her bowel. In 2023, she had a bowel resection and endometriosis lesions excised from her pelvis. She then lived for four months with a temporary loop ileostomy, before undergoing further surgery to reverse the stoma. This experience took a major toll on her physical and mental health.
‘After reflecting on the emotional toll I faced on my journey with endometriosis — and being unable to find any books out there addressing this — I had a flash of inspiration to write a book that would be an important resource to help people feel validated on their emotional journey with endometriosis,’ shares Natalie.
Endometriosis is often called an invisible illness. It affects about 120,000 people in New Zealand — roughly 1 in 10 women — yet many people don’t know about it because you can’t see it from the outside. It’s a chronic, internal disease that often needs invasive tests to diagnose.
Writing this book made Natalie realise just how common endometriosis is. Many people involved in its publication live with the condition — not just Natalie, but also the publisher’s managing director, the designer, and the editor’s daughter.
‘I wrote this book because it was the resource I needed during the challenging times on my health journey. It is a culmination of the many self-compassion resources I accessed during this time, as well as the experience I gained as a communications professional. The strongly visual elements of the book, along with the creative approach to the content, all feel like a combination of the many things I have learned through my work over the years.’
Made possible with funding from the Wright Family Foundation, Endo Empathy features expert interviews with an obstetrician-gynaecologist, a clinical psychologist, and a PhD candidate whose research is on self-compassion and endometriosis, who also lives with the condition. In addition, it includes personal stories from 33 members of New Zealand’s endometriosis community. What makes it different is that it isn’t a straight, chronological tale of illness. Instead, it presents short reflections on moments when these people have felt specific emotions tied to the disease. It also provides practical self-compassion tools for people with endometriosis experiencing these emotions.
The book has been written not only as a resource for people living with endometriosis, but also as an empathetic guide for those who know someone living with the condition, be it a family member, friend, workmate or health professional. Endo Empathy offers genuine insight into the daily emotional toll of this disease. Natalie says reading Endo Empathy is like getting a big hug from someone who truly knows what you are going through.
‘I hope that this book will give readers the validation to accept themselves as they are by providing the tools to understand feelings and how to process them safely, while showing kindness and love along the way. They are all tools I’ve used myself, and they have had a positive impact on my life and ability to move through the ongoing emotional challenges that life with endometriosis brings. I hope they can do the same for others.’
About Natalie Hampshire
Natalie Hampshire is an author, senior communications professional, and wedding celebrant. She holds a Bachelor of Communication Studies from AUT and a Diploma in Creative Writing from Whitireia. Endo Empathy is her first book. Natalie lives in Tauranga.