My experience with the deeply rooted misogyny of men in general and medicine particularly

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54. Oh MAN, this reminded me of the last "visit" to the gynecologist I USED TO have.

I was much younger and my mom took all the doctors’ referrals from her friend whose husband was an MD.

I went to my appointment and this male gyno started to examine me and then left the examining room for a moment. The door opened again and in he comes, followed by his nurse who was wheeling some big ungodly metal tank with tubes coming out of it. No explanation, no conversation, no nothing to describe why that was there and/or what he thought I needed it for. And I took one look at it and literally passed out.

Evidently, that’s when everything came to a dead stop and when I came to, they advised me to get dressed again and then come to his office. He was shocked. I remember noticing how honestly incredulous and flabbergasted he was. And he told me, completely taken aback, that: “I didn’t know I had to EXPLAIN what I was going to do…” He was bewildered.

I tell you, THAT was THE END of him, for me! WTF do you mean you didn’t know you had to EXPLAIN things to me!!!!! How the hell would you expect me to react when you wheel this big contraption, with tubes and wires coming out of it, but don’t bother to tell me what it is, in the first place, and why you need to use it on me????? And how many patients do you have where you wheel in this mystery machine to use on them? Do they just lie there and take it? (And is that what you think women are supposed to do, ANYWAY???)

From that moment on, I switched to women doctors!