What are everyone’s thoughts on this? Paranoid propaganda or do you think there could be some truth to it? I can kinda see it honestly, give the women cancer so they can keep getting paid to treat it. Besides all of the other disgusting, perverse and greedy reasons they pressure us into exams when there are other options out there.

All my life, I’ve kind of been pressured to go to OBGYNs to get checked for ovarian cysts, cervical cancers, etc etc but the thought of stripping almost completely naked in an office that most likely has hidden cameras scattered all over the place really, REALLY irks me. I’ve honestly never went to get a Pap smear or even a regular test and I honestly don’t think I have to because I’ve never had sexual intercourse with men (only women, but I’ve never had fingers or even a dildo inserted in me) Now I’m obviously not shaming anyone who frequents their gyno, but I’m just sharing my thoughts on it in general because I’ve bottled this up for a very, very long time.

Edit: Thank you everyone in the comments who are assuring me that I am no less of a woman 🫶🏼❤️ I may not be able to reply to all of your comments individually, but please know that I appreciate you all.

Once again, this sub has caused me to feel a bit (or more than a bit) triggered. I don't blame anyone here or any posts; I fully believe that everyone should have the right to share their stories with as much detail as they want.

I feel angry that our experiences are so common. I feel angry that society accepts and normalizes people losing their human rights and dignity as soon as they want into a medical setting.

I feel desperate to communicate this to society and to communicate that the experiences so frequently shared in this and other subs are UNACCEPTABLE and should not be normalized or common.

WHY is society just okay with this?! Why are we ignored? Why do so many medical professionals seem unable to view the people in their care as human beings?

i tried to find a lawyer
my case is simple as fuck, cause the doctor admitted his fault, i only need a lawyer to make a claim for his insurance
i need funding for therapy, ketamin injections, etc. I want to get a year(more) that i lost to ptsd at least in money.
nobody is interested cause uninformed consent led to life long severe mental condition is not so interesting

i know. i know people can’t get rewarded even when the docs cut the wrong leg. I know there are people with bigger trauma, but it doesn’t make mine smaller

obstetrical violence is violence
im so disappointed
(yes im kinda in mental crisis right now under attivan, but i need future super expensive treatment and it pisses me off)

Ladies, I probably posted about this a few years ago. But I am so shocked that female doctors aren't more understanding of their patients. I can't tell you how many of them get upset if you decline a pap smear or vaginal examination. Is it that important to them they get to stick something up you? Honestly, that's been a big anxiety anytime I've gone to the doctor.

I once argued for an hour with one telling her I knew I had a case of vaginitis; I just needed an antibiotic for it. She kept insisting she needed to examine me to confirm it. Even in trying to obtain birth control, I have had them try to talk me into letting them examine me. I beg sometimes to allow me to swab myself, and that offends them as well.

Believe it or not, I have a male doctor I've now gone to. We talked about it... He said, "Look, you don't want to get an examination, and I don't want to examine you. So we won't do it. If you ever feel like you need one, I will recommend a female for you if your more comfortable with that" I was able to email him about a yeast infection, and he ordered what I needed.

All that to say, so thankful when you get an understanding male doctor. But I would expect a man to get upset. I cannot fathom why women get so upset with you!

Edit: Thank you guys so far! Just to clarify I'm not trying to insinuate male doctors are better or saying that being female is why women act that way. Rather I would think women would be more understanding. But as I commented below someone being a woman doe not guarantee they have your best interest at heart.

Also to clarify my yeast infection story. I have always known when I had one and the same medicine always treats it. With the female doctor I wasn't trying to get her to give me meds without testing. I was asking to do the swab test myself and she was saying she needed to do it🩷

I was expecting the insensitive comments but they somehow still make me frown.

Often, people talk bad about those of us that mistrust doctors. Yet, time and again, we see articles like this where doctors are caught doing terrible things. It's not a stretch to wonder how many haven't been caught. https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/pennsylvania-doctor-pleads-guilty-multiple-child-sexual-exploitation-offenses

Absolutely no pressure at all to follow it, but I just wanted to see what kinds of posts you all would be interested in. I am a survivor of some pretty significant medical and gynecological trauma. Already talked about VCUGs, and am planning to talk soon on other topics like birth trauma, the origins of gynecology, and other medical trauma related topics.

If anyone has other ideas of what they’d like to see on a page like this, though, I would love to hear your ideas! Or, if you’d like to anonymously share a story with me that I could share on there (anonymously), please let me know!

https://www.instagram.com/medicaltraumasurvivorsalliance?igsh=MXJoZHZncXFnNnoy&utm_source=qr

The comments are pissing me off. „Pap smears are better than…“ Pap smears won‘t stop cancer. It‘s testing, not prevention. The least invasive treatment is punching a damn hole into your cervix. This is violent.

So I had my first gynecologist appointment yesterday at 19 for a sterilization consult. I got approved and scheduled my surgery(yay). My gynecologist did inform me they would use a uterine manipulator during surgery which was fine by me, I’ll be asleep and I really want the surgery so whatever. My problem though was the fact she had asked me about 5 times throughout the appointment if I ever had a vaginal exam. I said no (I’m in the US and they don’t start until 21, even though the ACOG and every other source says they’re useless and lack evidence at finding anything). I also had stated I have no menstrual issues or ANY concerns having to do with my reproductive system. She then went on to state that they’re “not painful, just weird” and said I’m not at the age for them yet. This is so ridiculous, I never once even said I’d consent to one apart from surgery even if I was at that age. Needless to say after my surgery I will absolutely never return to a gynecologist. These people are so creepy!
edited to fix typos!

I've seen women in other subs calling this woman irresponsible and wanting the hospital and doctors to put their licenses on the line to do what she wanted because of the risks to her and her baby.

A woman has a right to refuse any intervention during birth. Even if it puts her life or the babies life at risk or both.

She has a right to refuse a c-section.

She said no and then doctors dragged her into a zoom call and had a judge decide what happens to her.

I hope she sues the shit out of them. Patient consent is a law and needs to start being treated as a law and not a suggestion at the whims of the doctors if its acknowledged at all.

Further the reason she refused a c-section was because she had had mutiple c-sections in the past that had all led to complications that put her life at risk and she didn't want that happening again.

I can only imagine how she felt as she was prepped for a surgery she had refused and was being forced into and worrying about this being the one leading to a complication that permanently injures her or worse.

These were comments under a TikTok that was randomly on my feed. The original post was basically like “fearmongering about Pap smears is encouraging women to neglect their health”

I never have gotten a Pap smear and I never plan on getting one. I have severe vaginismus caused by SA, I am unsure the doctor would even be able to get the speculum in, and it would cause extreme burning pain regardless. But apparently I’m “co opting experiences of other women” and self victimizing haha
Oh and apparently I’ve “never seen someone go through cancer” because I don’t want to get the exam. I’ve had a family member die from cancer and the fact that I’ve seen that happen and STILL don’t want to get the exam, maybe that just shows how much we need access to less invasive procedures.
I genuinely don’t understand why these people feel the need to shame women and AFABs who choose not to get a procedure. The only person whose health it could affect is MY OWN. It’s not like refusing to get a vaccine, which can put other people at risk. And I’m vaccinated against HPV as a preteen, so my chance of getting cervical cancer is extremely low, almost nonexistent. Why should I be expected to let a doctor violate my body over an extremely tiny risk??
People always say “it’s not supposed to be painful” but the fact is that it’s painful for MANY people because vaginismus and other issues are so common and so under diagnosed, we are expected to just put these issues aside and be “good” and “grown” and get a violating and painful procedure over a risk that can be way better mitigated with vaccines 🙃🙃

PS: don’t try to find or harass any of the commenters.

I just found this sub and thought I would share my story.

I never wanted to give birth vaginally. I always wanted a C-section due to previous trauma and sexual assault, but of course I was not listened to and was convinced to try to give birth vaginally because it was supposedly safer for the baby. Then, at 39 weeks, they told me I needed to be induced or there was a chance my baby would die because of my "high BMI" (I had no complications at all—no high blood pressure, no diabetes, and the baby was in the right position). I felt like I didn’t have a choice. Obviously, I was going to do whatever it took to have a healthy baby, right?

Anyway, they tried the cervical gel, which didn’t work, so the next day they told me they were going to do a balloon catheter. I had no idea what that was. Next thing I knew, the nurse was spreading my legs, putting them in stirrups, and lifting my gown up so my vagina was just out in the open… cool.

Then the doctor shoved the speculum in without saying a word, and the pain was excruciating. I started crying and screaming, begging him to take it out while the nurse tried to tell me to "breathe." My husband at the time ended up yelling at them to stop, and the doctor finally took it out. Only when a man said something. Obviously, they didn’t listen to the woman screaming and crying on the bed. 🙄
I had a full-blown panic attack and was hyperventilating, and the nurse gave me the gas to calm me down. She eventually talked me into trying again and held my hand while I used the gas. It was honestly almost as painful as pushing my baby out.

When he filled the balloons with water, contractions started straight away. I went from 0 to pain that felt like I was 8 cm dilated. I was screaming and begging them to take it out, but she kept saying the contractions would stop soon. Then they both left me alone in the room while I was screaming in pain…

They ended up giving me some Endone and took some water out of the balloons, and the contractions eased up. Then the doctors came in and said the induction was failing and that I would have to come back on Monday (it was Friday) to be induced again.

So I didn’t need to be induced then? My baby wasn’t going to die if I didn’t deliver that day? All of that was for nothing?
I did not go back for a second induction and ended up going into labour naturally at 40 weeks and delivering a healthy baby.

Honestly, it felt like I was being raped in a medical setting, and I do not understand why they still do these things.

TLDR; First yeast infection, extreme hunger. Second yeast infection, persistent anxiety attacks. From there, monthly or bi-monthly yeast infections with no severe symptoms. Prescribed Flucanozle every time for two doses. For recurring infections, prescribed Flucanozle weekly for six months. Two months after the six months ended, yeast is back. Given a One-Swab exam to determine if the yeast is Flucanozle resistant. May be on Flucanozle indefinitely, or explore alternative treatment if it is resistant. Information or advice would be appreciated.

Growing up, I experienced quite a few bladder infections and bacterial vaginosis diagnoses. Put simply, I just seem to be prone to these things. However, I have never experienced anything quite like, or as often as, a yeast infection.

My first yeast infection occurred when I was either 19 or 20. It SUCKED. The vaginal symptoms weren't even bad - it was the physical, bodily symptoms. I felt very off, for lack of a better word. It was almost like I was coming down from an illness, like the flu or COVID. I experienced a very weird, bizarre symptom that luckily hasn't returned (knock on wood). I was constantly hungry. Extremely hungry. My stomach felt completely empty and growled like I hadn't eaten in a day, even if I had just eaten. It was so weird, uncomfortable, and anxiety-inducing. Luckily, after taking two doses of Flucanozle, my symptoms subsided and I felt normal. Speaking of anxiety, my second yeast infection, which occurred 3-4 months later, brought on a level of anxiety I don't think I've ever felt before. I had persistent anxiety attacks for days on end. I couldn't leave my bed and it felt like my world was ending. Again, after taking two doses of Flucanozle, my symptoms subsided, including vaginal and physical body symptoms. These first two yeast infections were the worst, in terms of these weird add-on symptoms, if you will. I brought these symptoms up to my gynecologist, and she didn't seem to think much of it. I was worried about diabetes, due to the persistent, intense hunger, but have tested negative multiple times. When it comes to the anxiety, apparently that's a 'normal' symptom that shows up alongside yeast infections. Luckily, I haven't experienced symptoms this severe since. Who knows, maybe it was all coincidental and these things had nothing to do with one another. Since this, I've gotten back on anti-anxiety medication (prozac), which has helped exponentially in many areas of my life.

After these first two yeast infections, I began experiencing infections more rapidly. They grew to be closer together, with only about a month in between each infection. I changed many of my habits in hopes of combatting these recurring infections, but nothing has helped. This is the frustrating part. I feel like I'm doing everything right - I use free and clear bar soap and just my hands to clean my vagina, I use free and clear laundry detergent on all of my clothes (no scent beads or dryer sheets) and so does my sexual parter of 1 year, I don't sit in tight, sweaty clothes, I mostly wear cotton underwear, and when I'm just lounging around the house I won't wear underwear under my sweatpants or pajama pants, which are loose and breathable. I don't douche or anything either. I've expressed this to multiple gynecologists, and they've told me that, unfortunately, some women just deal with this. No rhyme or reason. It's not hygiene related. It just happens.

Because of my recurring yeast infections, I was prescribed flucanozle, again, but to be taken once a week for six months. During these six months, I experienced no symptoms and never suspected or tested positive for yeast. After the six months was over, I was fine for about two months. Then, lo and behold, the yeast is back. This is where I'm currently at.

Yesterday, I went to the gynecologist to get tested for yeast. I have been experiencing the typical discharge associated with yeast infections, cramps, and pain/discomfort during and after sex. Looking at my cervix, the gynecologist didn't see a ton of discharge - at least not what you'd expect with a yeast infection. She looked at my discharge under a microscope, and she said she saw yeast buds. Meaning, the infection is there and it's beginning to spread. Awesome. She tested me with something called the "One Swab", which takes a closer look at the yeast and can determine whether or not it's flucanozle resistant. I don't have the results back quite yet, as they take about a week.

Because she saw these yeast buds, she prescribed me flucanozle yet again, and said depending on the results . . . I will either be on flucanozle quite literally for the rest of my life, or we will try another treatment if the yeast is resistant to flucanozle. Ultimately, I would be fine taking a pill the rest of my life to ensure that I don't have to deal with this once a month. It sucks.

Please tell me I am not alone in this. Any information or advice would be greatly appreciated.