Imagine this: You’ve been experiencing worrisome symptoms and debilitating pain for months, and you finally decide to get to the bottom of it. So you fight to get an appointment to see a provider — you swallow your fear, you wonder what life-changing news you may receive…but you do it anyway because you need answers. Only…you don’t get those answers. You’re simply told that what you are experiencing is all in your head, or it’s normal, or it’s nothing worth looking into any further or testing to identify.  The fact of the matter is, medical gaslighting...

Headaches are almost universal — everyone has had one at some point. But if you’ve ever had a migraine or a cluster headache, you know they’re in a league of their own. These aren’t your typical “pop a pill and keep moving” headaches. Both are known to bring intense pain and life-disrupting symptoms, but they have unique traits that can make each one feel like the “worse” option depending on who you ask. Let’s dive deeper into what sets them apart and explore how each can affect daily life in powerful ways. What are cluster headaches?...

Let’s be honest, Googling “hormones” can send you down a rabbit hole of confusing and conflicting information. And sometimes, it feels nearly impossible to understand anything you read online. These tiny chemical messengers are powerful, influencing everything from your mood and energy levels to your fertility and menstrual cycle. But it's easy to overlook how much they impact your daily life…until your body starts feeling a little off.  The good news? You can take charge of your hormone health and get answers to your questions.  Consider this your comprehensive guide to your hormones, what they do,...

Earlier this month, we learned something alarming…and something reassuring: According to the American Cancer Society’s biennial update on breast cancer statistics, incidences of breast cancer are rising, with a slightly higher increase among women under 50. This confirms what a study published earlier this year indicated. But it’s not all doom and gloom: The update on statistics also indicates that the overall death rate among breast cancer patients dropped about 44 percent from 1989 to 2022.  As we’ve all heard many times over, early detection plays such a crucial role in helping breast cancer patients survive...

You may have heard the old adage: if your ears are ringing, it means someone is talking about you! Well, what if your ears are seemingly ringing all the time? While it certainly doesn’t actually mean someone is talking about you, it can be an indicator that you are suffering from tinnitus.  Tinnitus is the perception of sound(s) from the ears and/or within the head. While it is mostly described as a high-pitched ringing or buzzing sound, it can be perceived in various ways. The intensity, tonality, and presentation also vary from one person to...

  Medical gaslighting is unfortunately something that many women have experienced, especially when it comes to reproductive health. A survey by the Women's Health Network found that 45% of women felt they had experienced medical gaslighting. And in a study published in the Journal of Medical Ethics, 71% of women reported experiencing dismissal of their pain by healthcare providers. So, if you’ve ever been led to believe that your symptoms were ‘all in your head,’ you are certainly not alone.  About two years ago, I started experiencing sharp abdominal pain that would come and go at...

If you’re a woman, you’ve almost certainly felt unheard or invalidated when expressing a medical concern. Chances are, you’ve left a medical appointment with more questions than answers. You’ve felt rushed and dismissed and just so incredibly confused when attempting to seek clarity on what’s happening in your own body. And you’ve done that thing that every single one of us has done: You’ve taken those questions to the internet. As a health journalist, I’m really not a fan of medical misinformation. I find myself bristling when someone mentions “doing their own research” about health...

Olivia Munn recently revealed she’s been receiving treatment for breast cancer. Munn, who is 43, shared more about her diagnosis and how it came to be in an Instagram post. “In February of 2023, in an effort to be proactive about my health, I took a genetic test that checks you for 90 different cancer genes,” Munn wrote. “I tested negative for all, including BRCA (the most well-known breast cancer gene). My sister Sara had just tested negative as well. We called each other and high-fived over the phone. That same winter I also had...

Going to the doctor for an annual physical is one of the many responsibilities that fall under the “adulting” umbrella. If you’re a woman — or assigned female at birth — then those responsibilities also extend to the yearly gynecological exam. Since we usually think of these exams as only pertaining to women, not girls, it might come as a surprise that your first gynecological wellness visit should take place when you’re still a teenager (around 15 or 16 years old). At this stage, the visit may just consist of a discussion with your doctor about your menstrual...

When Kim Newcomer began experiencing severe constipation, she initially thought it was related to travel. “Thinking about my week-long vacation with my husband, I figured that travel and unusual food were to blame,” says Newcomer. It would have been easy to dismiss her symptoms or chalk it up to the disruption to her routine — but Newcomer opted to speak with her physician. “I visited my primary care doctor, who ordered an X-ray to check for an intestinal blockage. Finding none, he prescribed laxatives, but the constipation continued,” she said. “As the months passed, I...