In 1996 headlines proclaimed women were discriminated against in heath care. My initial thought was, “That‘s dumb. I don’t treat my women patients differently than men.”
At the same time I presented a program for the American Heart Association on “Women and Heart Disease”. A common obstacle was that women tend to worry about their husband’s health but their figure.
I had a friend die of ovarian cancer. She said her initial symptoms were diarrhea and a 10 pound weight loss. She didn’t go to the physician right away saying, “What woman wouldn’t be happy to lose 10 pounds?” She carried the regret of not seeking treatment sooner to her death.
Later I had an unexpected weight loss of 10 pounds and went to my physician. His response? “Good!” No work up was done.
A few years ago I experienced pain in my left arm and neck while running on the treadmill. I attributed it to muscle strain from having just bench pressed. When the pain persisted I saw my physician. He agreed it was from the bench-press. I asked if he didn’t think we should do an EKG just to be sure. He reluctantly agreed. Later came back in carrying the EKG saying, “If you were a man I would say you had a heart attack.” I have T wave inversion in all leads except AVR. It took three months to get a referral to a cardiologist and have a cardiac catheterization. The cath was normal; evidently it’s just an idiosyncrasy of mine. I later asked my physician why he said “If you were a man” He replied, “Woman don’t have traditional symptoms……..yada, yada, yada” I replied, “Yes, but EKG changes are not unique to either sex though.” He admitted if I were a man he would have immediately rushed me to a cath lab.
Recently I was bit by a tick. About a week later I had a sore throat, achy joints, and extreme fatigue. Concerned I may have Lyme’s disease, I made an appointment with my physician. He proceeded to scold me about my weight gain over my seven year course of treatment with him. He informed me I should go to a Chinese labor camp for two years and then I would be a size two (I am now a size 10-12).
So, more than 14 years after the study saying women are discriminated against in health care, we are still judged by our figure not our health. I may be a size two after two years in a labor camp, but would I be healthy? Would he have made this comment to a man? Would he have said to a man “Two years in a labor camp would lower your weight, blood pressure, and cholesterol”? My son’s girlfriend is a size two. I imagine if she complained of fatigue, he would tell her she is malnourished and rule out anorexia.
So my question is, what size does a woman have to be to be taken seriously? When will it be about our health and not our figure?
[...] our of my ears! Think we’ve made strides in women’s health? Think again after reading When will it be about our health and not our figure? [...]
I still can’t get over how we are disregarded in this way and it is so, so sad that I think so many women have come to internalize this for themselves. At this point I just hope more of us begin to speak out like this and try to teach others about the truth when it comes to our identities as women and taking charge of our health.
As proactive, educated, women and nurses we speak for many. I had an experience in which I had a sternoclavicular fracture that occurred without trauma. This is unusual so needless to say, I was sent to an sports med orthopedic surgeon. I stayed in my place in the exam room and when it came time to look at my films, I joined him at the view box. His comment was, “only one of us is going to look at these films, me or you!” With that, I promptly removed my films and walked out the door. I also cautioned his staff not to send me a bill since there was no service rendered. I think if more women were able to be this proactive, the male physicians who are quilty of this type of behavior toward female pts may think twice. We do not have to patronize this dis-service.