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My one friend in high school would be crying and hunched over at school in pain from her period, every month she'd suffer and end up getting sent home because of it. My other friend had awful pain and a really irregular cycle so shed get a heavy period at unexpected times, and then be given a hassle when she needed to use the bathroom to change. One of the bloggers I follow has shared her journey with her struggles around this issue. She's had to fight so long and hard to get anything done. She's tried so many things- heating packs, a healthy diet, meditation, exercise, supplements, cbd, etc etc along with all types of doctors!
My mom also went through it. She had all these problems and the Dr's still huffed and puffed about a hysterectomy- despite them saying that it should have greatly eased her symptoms, despite that she was over 40 and already had a few kids (not that it should matter)
The truth of the facts are that so many women are suffering and even getting on birth control pills can be a hassle to get the Rx that works to help get symptoms under control and regulate your cycle. My Dr and I have me skip my periods, because otherwise they are long and awfully painful to the point that studying/working become very difficult. The amount of hassle I have had from various Dr's to get refills was ridiculous- and they have pushed many times for me to try a different rx when the one I have been on has been working and helping me. When I had other rxs in the past, they didnt help Anything. I'm so sick and tired of hearing other women go "but, but.... skipping periods is bad for you! That is unnatural! Maybe you should try another birth control." No. Being in a horrible amount of pain, bloating, and having diarrhea for over a week isn't "natural". Having to use the bathroom to change at work every 2 hours with a heavy period, worrying about leaking, all whilst feeling so tired and off isn't okay especially when some jobs really don't want to cooperate or you have to wait for someone to cover for you so you can use the restroom. We are women, we know our bodies and switching from what worked isn't gonna actually help us.
For men to get a vasectomy it's much easier - I found several reputable websites where you can pretty much just book a consultation and book the procedure then.
But for women to get a hysterectomy or a similar type of operation to remove part of the reproductive tract - even when there are serious complications/suffering that comes from leaving it - Dr's still huff and puff (even when women push to have it removed to help ease the symptoms and pain). One of my relatives had I think a cyst that was almost the size of a grapefruit by the time they finally agreed to remove it and she begged and had been in and out of the ER for the pain. Had anyone listened to her and the fact she was willing to have operations she could probably have gotten help and relief sooner before it kept getting worse and worse over time. No surprise, after they operated and she got home, she felt so much better. The pain and other symptoms were gone. She was more energetic and so much happier since she wasn't in pain! Other relatives kept commenting how she was like a whole new person.
I'm just massively frustrated at the whole Healthcare system especially how there's this push to keep a woman "intact" even if she's infertile, has medical issues, or is wanting to have a procedure done. And yet men can pretty much book a vasectomy online without too much of a fuss - truthfully it didn't seem any more complicated than booking an oil change for your car. My one friend always said "if men could have abortions, they'd have them available at the Jiffy Lube ( an oil change business for my non US readers)".
There's an interesting article I found: https://www.teenvogue.com/story/who-decides-who-gets-a-hysterectomy/amp
It's just wild have debilitating having a period or a uterus can be for some of us and why should we have to fight so hard just to be able to have a decent quality of life? If your gallbladder went bad, it'd get removed. If you had a tumor, generally they'll remove it or give you some type of treatment which aims to get rid of it. Why are we pretty much forced into keeping ovaries/uteruses etc when they just cause us problems and we are on board with having it removed? Why do we have to spend months, years, or decades in pain and suffering? Why don't we even have a choice when it comes to our own bodies?
Any chance of us being saddled down in pain - the patriarchy wants it.
Any chance we can get pregnant? Even if we are infertile and want a hysterectomy or similar - and all of a sudden that 1% chance of getting pregnant becomes a "well there's a chance, and besides you may change you mind and want kids." Funny how a let's say a 20% chance of getting pregnant in your mid 30s though makes so many people look at you like it's impossible to get pregnant and why bother. The double standard is unreal.
No one talks about how problems with your period or reproductive health are sometimes so serious that it's at a disability level. Yet, PCOS and endometriosis are not recognized as a disability in the US. And yet, I have known many women that have missed countless days of work and school because of the side effects. Let's not forget that needing more bathroom breaks to accommodate a heavy period or irregular unexpected period are also necessary and often a hassle at many places - even with a doctor's note. Teaching and nursing are two professions that give you such a hard time about bathroom breaks. I know some people have never had a diagnosis or any problems, and I know some people with issues don't have it "as bad" as others with the same diagnosis - but my point is that there are many that have very severe and debilitating symptoms and no one, not even doctors, listen or help us and we suffer as a result.
I've been through a whole list of gynos before finally finding one that didn't tell me "oh you'll change your mind on kids, you're young" and didn't give me a "you're lying" look when they ask about my sex life (I've been celibate for 2 years now, and been picky about my partners - and thetes no reason anyone no matter their sex life should be made to feel like a liar or ashamed at their dr). The utter and rampant msyogyny I've experienced firsthand at gyno offices both from women and men that are Dr's and nurses is appalling. When I've complained, they have always turned a blind eye to it.
If an operation or hysterectomy is a solution, even if it reduces symptoms rather than eliminates, then why is it not offered? I'm so fed up. Even if a woman doesn't have any medical reason to have a hysterectomy and willing wants one, many Dr's make msyogynisyic remarks, have age and number of children requirements or just flat out refuse to do the procedure. Why aren't we ever allowed to have a choice?'
This is so true. We don’t have the autonomy to make decisions about our own bodies as well as a gp trying to shove a contraceptive pill down our throats.
I highly doubt men are questioned as much when they opt for the snip.
Just LOL at the fact that it's easier to get your genitals switched to match the gender you want to dress like, than to ease very real symptoms of disease processes that are decreasing your quality of life.
I have severe endometriosis and I've had insanely heavy periods and terrible cramps since I was a teenager. I had my tubes tied at 25 because the birth control I was on, while it stopped my debilitating periods, had other side effects that were becoming issues. I was supposed to have a full ablation at the same time, but complications arose when they tore a hole in the back wall of my uterus and couldn't continue (military hospital, do not ever allow them to treat you!).
I got that same runaround from the docs. What pissed me off the most was when some old guy told me "just have a couple kids and it'll get better." At that point I started shopping around for a new doctor, and finally found one that agreed to send me to surgery. After that was botched I went into full extreme health mode to try and mitigate them. It helped somewhat. I'm still useless the first 2 days of my period, but at least I don't throw up anymore. Impatiently waiting for menopause to kick in because I can't bring myself to fight idiot doctors anymore.
Women's healthcare is a microcosm to the way society treats women and women's issues in general. In short, it's a complete mess and they don't care about learning more or fixing anything.
As someone who has struggled with bad periods in the past, I strongly believe that more research needs to be done into periods. What makes them bad? How much of a role does genetics play? What can be done to make them better? How can we make it easier and more accessible for women to make decisions that prioritise their health and wellbeing at every opportunity? There should be multiple answers for all of these questions but there are barely any because men can't be bothered to ask them. Because it doesn't affect them.
I'm also baffled that there aren't systems in place to protect and help women who have to miss out on education or work due to bad periods. This is half the workforce. Half the planet. It's insane that there is so little support available.
Just like some men want children and others don't, some women have a maternal instinct and others don't, or have made a personal informed decision not to become mothers. This is their decision and we should respect that. It's their body and their life. The only thing that will come out of gaslighting women into having families that they don't want is children with trauma because they will probably be able to tell on some level that they were unwanted. How is that a good thing? We're constantly being told that there are too many people and that the world is over capacity. Surely it's better for everyone if people only have children because they want to.
The issues women have should definitely be considered disabilities if they are disabling and work accommodations should be better. The reason for not giving a hysterectomy shouldn't be 'in case you want children'. Women deserve to make personal health choices and have that be respected.
Getting a hysterectomy should be easier. But it is not comparable to a vasectomy. It's a major surgery with chance of complication. Also it's a major organ for women. I know there are some issues with removing ovaries that leads to hormonal issues and greater chance of cancer as well.
Although I don't think that's an issue if you leave the ovaries.
Great post. It is a sad reality the medical field is lagging regarding women's health. And hormonal birth control is not compatible with everyone, nor is it always a perfect solution sadly. The stories about giant ovarian cysts and overain torsion are terrifying. I am so glad your relative survived such an ordeal. I absolutely believe women when they say they have debilitating pain from different female reproductive conditions.
I can't find the article but I read this story of a woman whose endometriosis grew like crazy even after a hysterectomy. This article is not what I wanted but goes into it: https://www.healthdirect.gov.au/blog/the-truth-hurts-hysterectomy-does-not-cure-endometriosis
This is also depressing af, and I was shocked to see it just now:: https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2021/jul/02/a-common-treatment-for-endometriosis-could-actually-be-making-things-worse
This plus all the accounts of gaslighting (toward the women with unreal pain)...staggering
The other thing that would personally make me pause about a hysterectomy is the risk of dementia and other issues: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3702015/ Women who get cancers of the reproductive system can start an artifical early menopause, which sounds horrible. If science gave a flying ____ about women, maybe they would have investigated more and found some ways we can reduce our risk.
Things would be so much better if they had more sophisticated, non invasive method of diagnosis endo (they do it through laprascopy 😳). You're 100% right Even the options of a dilation and curettage (simply for uterine lining-- aka a D&C and also used in pregnancy termination) and uterine ablation have their risks. I have rough menstrual cycles for other reasons, but I really feel for women who have insanely heavy periods and the extreme pain of endo and such.
women’s health research is so underfunded. i also feel we’ve been so disconnected from ourselves with all the static generated from a profit-driven, data-obsessed culture. our intuition is harder to access…we really have to fight to know what’s best for us in any given moment.
Hysterectomies are NOT the answer. As someone with severe endo, I know how bad it is. But your uterus is vital. Hysterecomies in pre-menopausal women are linked to an increase in dementia risk, as well as other issues.