The athlete’s vacation plans turn into a nightmare when she learns about the tragic fate of her pregnancy

A lifelong runner and athlete suffered an ectopic pregnancy that resulted in internal bleeding and the removal of one of her fallopian tubes.

Jen Ator, 38, revealed on her Instagram that her vacation plans took a drastic turn last month when, instead of driving home to Ohio to be with family, she was rushed to the hospital and had to undergo emergency surgery.

She suffered an ectopic pregnancy – where a fetus develops outside the womb – and suffered internal bleeding. Doctors had to remove one of her fallopian tubes.

The Colorado native shared some details of her ordeal, writing in a caption alongside a photo of herself smiling in a hospital bed: ‘One ectopic pregnancy, internal bleeding and fallopian tube removed; a very long, disorienting day.

‘I’m sure once the meds and shock wear off, I’ll have time for feelings and reflection. For now, I’m just grateful – and stubbornly determined not to let this sudden turn of events steal my smile or an ounce of my holiday cheer.”

The fitness enthusiast, who previously served as editor-in-chief of Women’s Running and is a certified strength and conditioning specialist, is a long-time athlete and marathon runner, with social media consisting of cycling, climbing and racing photos.

But in an earlier post from October 2021, Ms Ator revealed that she had been diagnosed with endometriosis, a condition in which endometrial tissue – tissue similar to the uterine lining – grows outside the uterus.

The condition, which affects one in 10 women in the US, can lead to infertility if left untreated. Studies have shown that endometriosis can increase the risk of ectopic pregnancy, which is not viable in 100 percent of cases.

In the October 2021 post, Ms. Ator said she had been dealing with “persistent pain that was shrugged off by doctors” for more than a decade, but had gotten worse over the past eight months and that her love of running ” had become unbearable.

The caption read: “Most of the time I just felt distracted, drained and drained – plagued by a gut feeling that something wasn’t right, and equally by a voice in my head telling me it wasn’t a big deal. And I just had to toughen up.

‘I’m a few days post-op from excision surgery and I can finally put a name to what I’ve been dealing with: endometriosis.

“And while it is still too early to know the full impact of this operation, I already feel a huge weight is lifted just by knowing it.

‘Knowing that I wasn’t crazy; that I was not weak. That the pain I felt was real.”

Endometriosis is a chronic inflammatory disease that affects an estimated 200 million women worldwide, and for many, diagnosis is often delayed by ten years.

The condition causes bleeding, inflammation, pelvic and abdominal pain and possible infertility, but is often dismissed or misdiagnosed.

There is no cure for endometriosis, but some medications such as ibuprofen and hormonal birth control may be able to ease symptoms.

In addition, excision surgery, which Ms. Ator said she underwent, can remove endometriosis that has grown outside the uterus and relieve symptoms.

Ms. Ator is a long-time athlete and marathon runner, with her social media consisting of cycling, climbing and racing photos

Ectopic pregnancies occur when a fertilized egg implants outside the uterus. There are several types of ectopic pregnancies, some of which implant in the ovary or fallopian tube.

About one to two percent of all pregnancies in the US are ectopic, and the fetus has virtually no chance of survival.

While the exact relationship between endometriosis and ectopic pregnancies is still being researched, the Ectopic Pregnancy Foundation states: ‘Endometriosis is a recognized risk factor for the development of an ectopic pregnancy.’

A 2021 study cited results from Danish researchers who analyzed data from 123,300 women who were followed for fifteen years. It found that people with endometriosis had an almost two times greater risk of ectopic pregnancy compared to women without the condition.

And a 2022 study stated: ‘One of the most serious complications of endometriosis is ectopic pregnancy.’

However, the authors added: ‘Currently, the exact mechanism explaining this phenomenon is unknown; therefore, there are no effective prevention methods.”

The researchers from Poland said the two are ‘believed’ to be linked by the way they both affect the fallopian tubes – the passage where an egg must go to meet sperm and form an embryo.

Ms. Ator is a certified strength and conditioning specialist who lives in Colorado with her husband (pictured here).

An ectopic pregnancy is affected by abnormalities in the fallopian tubes, and endometriosis can disrupt those fallopian tubes, including how the muscles contract and how cilia (tiny hair-like structures in the fallopian tubes) move.

The study also found that both conditions result from and subsequently cause inflammation in the reproductive tract.

Both are also associated with ‘hormonal regulation which appears to be the most important and well-documented common molecular mechanisms of both diseases to date.’

The researchers wrote: ‘It is possible that the relationship presented is the result of the overlap of several factors included in this review, as well as factors that have not been identified.’

‘Further research is needed to improve knowledge about each of the possible pathways and to provide significant evidence for the link between endometriosis and EP.

‘Understanding this relationship has the potential to inform a number of prevention strategies for women with endometriosis to prevent the occurrence of EP.