Girl in pain

When my mom had a minor heart attack this summer while we were at the beach, I sat in the waiting room with sand between my toes, praying that she would be okay. She chronicles how often people—including doctors—assume young women to be fine when they are not, and how that assumption leads women to downplay and undertreat their pain in order to keep their jobs, relationships, and lives afloat. For example, my mom waited seven hours before receiving pain medicine in the E. She was too afraid to ask for pain medicine earlier for fear of being accused of fabricating her symptoms in search of painkillers. This medicalized sexism has especially disastrous effects for women of color.

How we see the world shapes who we choose to be — and sharing compelling experiences can frame the way we treat each other, for the better. This is a powerful perspective. My constant companion in middle and high school was a bottle of pills. I took over-the-counter anti-inflammatories every day to try and counter searing pain. I remember coming home from class or swim practice and just crashing in bed for the rest of the day. I remember my periods, how for a week a month I could barely get out of bed or stand up straight.

During the course of this, I had the great privilege of hearing a young ovarian cancer survivor speak about her history with a disease that claims approximately lives in Australia every year. She had complained of periods so painful she was often confined to bed and unable to move for days, but doctors told her this was common in young girls and prescribed her the contraceptive pill instead. She was finally diagnosed with cancer at It would return three more times before she was

Sep 12, Cedars-Sinai Staff. Jennifer Anger. Anger says. Kelly Wright. Dryness is common in menopausal and post-menopausal women, though younger women can experience it as well.