“It can be emotionally strenuous having to engage with a system that doesn’t believe womb-related pain, but when that intersects with race it becomes exhausting. When getting diagnosed with endometriosis, I would ask my white partner to come to appointments with me so that my complaint would be taken seriously. In some (rare) cases they addressed me and provided me with fair and correct information but in many cases they would speak over me, infantilise me, cut my sentences off, and simplify answers to my questions – all while treating my partner like a human being.
As a Black woman... your space is often considered shared, public – your hair is touched, clothing policed, and you often have to move out of the way when walking (or get bruised!). The ‘superwoman’ stereotype bestowed on Black women is certainly not something that doctors are immune to. I’ve always had to express the greatest of vulnerability in hopes that my pain would be fairly considered.” 🧡🧡
⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
- you can read the full article in which @justdoitjustice (AKA the radiant babe in the above pic) shares her experience with systemic racism over on fem space now 🧡