Inside Medicine’s Gender Problem: When Women’s Pain Isn’t Taken Seriously

Inside Medicine’s Gender Problem: When Women’s Pain Isn’t Taken Seriously

A woman shares her experience of medical misogyny, from teenage period pain to IVF heartbreak, and the fight for care that listens.

Her journey with fertility and loss began at 15, when she was met with mockery by her GP for her period pain, instead of concern. She was prescribed the pill, a solution that masked the true issue for years.

That moment marked the first in a long line of gendered dismissals. It was the first domino in a chain reaction of medical misogyny: a system where women’s pain is normalised, their instincts doubted, and their bodies treated as problems to be solved rather than people to be cared for.

This experience is a testament to the quiet cruelty of medical misogyny and the need for care that takes women's pain seriously.

Author's summary: Medical misogyny neglects women's pain.

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Marie Claire Australia Marie Claire Australia — 2025-10-13

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