Anyone who has ever suffered through intense menstrual pain can tell you that it’s not anything to be taken lightly — and yet, we hear continuous stories of women being told that their cramps are not actually that bad or, worse, in their heads. Some can fear that dismissal, of being told, that its an overreaction.
And yet again period cramps, or Dysmenorrhea as it's technically called, has been ruled as painful as having a heart attack. Professor of reproductive health at University College London, John Guillebaud, has said that patients have described the cramping pain as "almost as bad as having a heart attack."
Guillebaud went on to say the issue has been overlooked because “Men don’t get it and it hasn’t been given the centrality it should have. I do believe it’s something that should be taken care of, like anything else in medicine.”
This, of course, is no news to us, but it is another indication of how little women's health is taken seriously. We know how bad it can be - yet it's only with reports like this, for example, that, it becomes a topic of mainstream conversation. In fact, this was bumped into the press again after Marie Claire made the report known - a similar report surfaced in 2016.
Doctors Have Finally Ruled Menstrual Cramps Are as Painful as Heart Attacks https://t.co/cfQigoPhit pic.twitter.com/REtPeKopyy
— Marie Claire (@marieclaire) February 27, 2018
What is brilliant though, is the epic reaction on Twitter, from women, collectively rolling their eyes - and though it isn't new news (or news at all, to us), it's good to have women's health issues again out in the open.
Here are only a few highlights from social media:
When I was in labor with my first child, I didn't know I was in labor because the pain wasn't as bad as my monthly cramps!!
— she persisted(@kdkneisley) February 28, 2018
Actually most women's pain is straight up dismissed by doctors so they fail to diagnose us with conditions we actually have. For instance, when was the last time you had to take two or three different kinds of pain meds in order to be functional?
— Kali Rainwater (@KaliRainH2O) February 27, 2018
I was offered prescription pain killers for everything except period cramps. I'm lucky I don't get them very often. I'm very lucky. But at the end of the day, one of your organs rips parts of itself off for days on end. It's not a fun experience when you can't stand up from pain.
— It's High Nyoom (@ZelaMorre) February 28, 2018
I thought I was just having rough cramps once.. turned out to be a cyst. Friend STILL feels guilty for teasing me about whining about it.
— Katie Brewer (@Palitato) February 28, 2018
I totally feel that. I couldn’t wait to tell my parents I had been diagnosed with endometriosis and polycystic ovaries last year, specifically because of the years they spent taunting me about being “such a wimp” because every month I was vomiting and passing out from pain.
— Miya (@miyadraws) February 28, 2018
I’m glad the reality is being discussed. We’ve raised families, ruled countries, been CEOs, taken care of people in customer service for millennia all while feeling our insides were being destroyed. With a smile on our face.
— Julie Anna (@hrhjulieanna) February 28, 2018
According to statistics, one in five suffers from Dysmenorrhea, the clinical term for painful periods, which has no definitive medical origin. One in ten also suffers from Endometriosis, a condition without known cause that causes severe period pain and occurs in women where the lining of the womb decides to venture into the pelvic area, ovaries and other places in the body.
