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MenopauseTalk

Publicยท17 Empowerment Circle

Emma Lady
Emma Lady
Became a member of the new NBWN website.

Proud Sista!

This Is What Happens When Black Women Report Medical Neglectโ€ฆ

๐๐จ๐ญ๐ก๐ข๐ง๐ .


Doctors dismissed my menopause symptoms. And when I filed a complaint to the general practitionerโ€™s (GP) surgery, I was met withโ€ฆ


๐’๐ข๐ฅ๐ž๐ง๐œ๐ž.


No acknowledgement.

No investigation.

No apology.


Two months later, I followed up with the GPโ€™s surgery.

They casually told me:

โ€œYes, we received itโ€ฆ but we didnโ€™t look into it.โ€


So I took it higher.

I contacted the ombudsman.

Againโ€”nothing. Not a word. No response.


No one cared.

Not the doctors, who dismissed my pain.

Not the surgery, that ignored my complaint.

Not the ombudsman, who was meant to uphold accountability.


As a Black woman, this is the harsh reality Iโ€™ve come to know.


๐Ž๐ฎ๐ซ ๐ฉ๐š๐ข๐ง ๐ข๐ฌ ๐ง๐จ๐ญ ๐š ๐ฉ๐ซ๐ข๐จ๐ซ๐ข๐ญ๐ฒ.

๐Ž๐ฎ๐ซ ๐ฏ๐จ๐ข๐œ๐ž๐ฌ ๐š๐ซ๐ž ๐ง๐จ๐ญ ๐ก๐ž๐š๐ซ๐.

๐Ž๐ฎ๐ซ ๐ฅ๐ข๐ฏ๐ž๐ฌ ๐š๐ซ๐ž ๐ง๐จ๐ญ ๐ฉ๐ซ๐จ๐ญ๐ž๐œ๐ญ๐ž๐.


If the system thatโ€™s meant to care for us turns a blind eye and shuts its earsโ€”

Where do we go?

Who do we turn to?

How do we get the help we so desperately need?


I suffered in silence for years.

And when I finally tried to speak upโ€”I was silenced again.


๐“๐ก๐ข๐ฌ ๐ข๐ฌ ๐ญ๐ก๐ž ๐ก๐ž๐š๐ฅ๐ญ๐ก ๐๐ข๐ฌ๐ฉ๐š๐ซ๐ข๐ญ๐ฒ ๐๐ฅ๐š๐œ๐ค ๐ฐ๐จ๐ฆ๐ž๐ง ๐Ÿ๐š๐œ๐ž ๐ž๐ฏ๐ž๐ซ๐ฒ ๐๐š๐ฒ.


Weโ€™re not making noise for attention.

Weโ€™re not โ€œharping onโ€ just for the sake of it.

Weโ€™re raising our voices because itโ€™s a matter of life or death.


This cannot go on.

We need to be seen.

We need to be heard.

We need care.

We need change.

We need justice.


AND for those asking for evidence and validity of Black womenโ€™s claims of healthcare disparitiesโ€”


A study by the University of Oxford found that Black African and South Asian women were less likely; to be given access to Hormone Replacement Therapy (HRT) treatment, than their White counterparts.


This was a 10-year study, with nearly 2 million women in England, that found worrying inequalities in womenโ€™s access to HRT.


In The Guardian, Founder of Black Women In Menopause Nina Kuypers, said:


โ€œMany Black women tell us that when they go to their GP, they feel dismissed or unheard, with their symptoms often being misinterpreted or overlooked. Instead of being recognised as part of menopause, their experiences are sometimes attributed to unrelated conditionsโ€ฆโ€


Read the full article here: https://www.theguardian.com/society/2024/oct/21/white-women-hrt-prescriptions-study-england?utm_source=chatgpt.com


Share your menopause story in the comments โฌ‡๏ธ Letโ€™s talk ๐Ÿ—ฃ๏ธ


Subscribe and be the first to know when the ๐๐ฅ๐š๐œ๐ค ๐–๐จ๐ฆ๐š๐งโ€™๐ฌ ๐†๐ฎ๐ข๐๐ž ๐“๐จ ๐๐ž๐ซ๐ข๐ฆ๐ž๐ง๐จ๐ฉ๐š๐ฎ๐ฌ๐ž is published here: https://themenopausetoolkit.myflodesk.com

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Empowerment Circle

  • Donna Brown
    Donna Brown
    Became a member of the new NBWN website.

    Proud Sista!

  • Lisa CherryLisa Cherry
    Lisa Cherry
    Became a member of the new NBWN website.

    Proud Sista!

  • Lorna ArcherLorna Archer
    Lorna Archer
    Became a member of the new NBWN website.

    Proud Sista!

  • Emma Lady
    Emma Lady
    Became a member of the new NBWN website.

    Proud Sista!

  • Suzanne Simmons-Lewis
    Suzanne Simmons-Lewis
    Became a member of the new NBWN website.

    Proud Sista!

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