Note: In this article, “women” refers to any non-male and anyone with a uterus. A uterus is not a requirement to be a woman.
There are massive gaps in the understanding of women’s health – from uterine cysts being chalked up to period cramps to persistent nausea blamed on anxiety, medicine has systematically gaslighted women.
Although there have been some improvements in specific fields (such as the correlation between biological sex and chronic pain), the truth is that there is still an inherent bias against women.
Symptoms in women, such as headaches and nausea, are often considered to be psychosomatic, or caused by an internal stress, which is incredibly harmful—these symptoms are also seen in serious illnesses. While these symptoms can be a physical manifestation of mental strife, it shouldn’t be the immediate conclusion.
Before medicine became more accepting of mental illnesses, symptoms were either ‘in your head’ or a physical problem. Organ systems in the human body are connected; an issue with your pancreas, which is in your digestive system, can cause fatigue. Now, we know that many mental illnesses can cause physical symptoms, and vice versa, but it’s still easier to chalk physical symptoms up to being psychological. There has been an overcorrection in medicine with regards to this fact.
Most of the classical understanding of health and diseases are based on male physiology. Medical studies nowadays are more balanced in their participant pool, but not all studies have been updated to include a wide variety of people. This original lack of representation may have been due to the idea that participant pools should be as consistent as possible, due to fear of skewed results, or it could be due to white men being the “norm.” Perhaps a mix of both.
When women do not show the “classic” signs and symptoms of, say, a heart attack, they’re dismissed as being hysterical or stressed. The thing is that women have a very different fundamental genetic make up from men, and therefore may have signs and symptoms that differ from men. That doesn’t make them “abnormal,” it just means they differ from men’s symptoms.
Women are still fighting for the most basic of rights regarding their health—the right to choose, not just regarding abortions, but the ability to choose to have a permanent form of birth control or a procedure to eliminate period/pelvic pain, like a hysterectomy.
The question of “what if you want children one day?” and “what if you change your mind?” are meant to ensure that people with uteruses understand the gravity of the situation in the same way that surgeons ensure patients understand the risks of a procedure. Although meant without malicious intent, this perpetuates an idea that women don’t know what is best for their bodies.
I know that medical professionals don’t always realize this is happening, or that simple questions can have such a significant impact on their patients, but if it isn’t addressed, change cannot happen. Advocating for your health can be scary, but you are the only one who knows exactly what you are feeling.
Resources:
International List of Childfree-Friendly Doctors :
https://www.reddit.com/r/childfree/wiki/doctors/
Tips to Advocate for Yourself at the Doctors:
https://www.chatelaine.com/health/self-advocate-heath-care/
Information on Birth Control/Women’s Health:
https://www.cdc.gov/reproductivehealth/contraception/index.htm
https://www.plannedparenthood.org/learn/birth-control
https://sogc.org/ (Canada)
https://www.acog.org/ (USA)
Mental Health Support (Ontario):
https://www.ontario.ca/page/find-mental-health-support
Other Useful Websites: