Medical misogyny continues to play a large part in women’s health professionals telling women to ‘put up’ with their pain and discomfort despite needing diagnoses or treatments.
Women’s health professionals were found to diagnose conditions up to years after the onset of symptoms, leaving young girls and women with debilitating pain in limbo until a medical professional provides an official path of treatment.
First reported by the BBC, it follows an “inquiry which saw its members interview women about their experiences, including BBC presenter Naga Munchetty and TV personality Vicky Pattison.“
What Conditions Are Most Commonly Undiagnosed?
Many conditions that have similar symptoms to women’s reproductive health cycles go underdiagnosed by health professionals due to years of medical misogyny.
These conditions include:
Endometriosis, heavy periods, Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS), and Adenomyosis.
Women are being told to work through a couple of cycles of their periods and reassess their symptoms, which only adds to the delay of a diagnosis.
What Is Medical Misogyny?
“Misogyny is defined as feelings of hatred towards women…” per this BBC article. Medical misogyny would take this thought one step further and reinforce the idea that women complain too much about pain in their bodies and that they are not as strong as men or others.
Medical Misogyny, as proven through the UK Parliament’s report on women’s reproductive health conditions, runs rampant throughout the healthcare system in the UK and certainly is alive and well in the US healthcare system as well.
How Can I Advocate For Myself?
The first and most important thing women can do is keep a medical binder that lists their medications, doctor’s information, treatment plans, and any other pertinent medical information. That way, if you are seen for a chronic condition, you don’t have to think twice about gathering your essential medical information for a healthcare profession.
The second thing women can do is research their symptoms and bring leading research to their appointments with their medical health professionals. This can provide concrete evidence of your symptoms to medical health professionals who are proven to be prone to dismissing the ailments of women and their reproductive health.
Finally, women can seek out others in similar situations through support groups, whether in-person within their community or online. Many social media sites have a robust amount of groups that share research, symptom management, and doctor recommendations that can be very validating for women trying to navigate the world of medical misogyny by their doctor.
