A Woman & Her Husband Went To The Doctor With The Same Symptoms, He Got Tests While She Was Told 'Welcome To Motherhood'
Women's health concerns should never be dismissed.
TikTok A woman tearfully explained the shocking response she received from her doctor about alarming symptoms she experienced after having children.
In a TikTok video, a mom of 3-year-old twins explained that she and her husband were both experiencing relatively the same symptoms, and after they each went to their doctor, she learned that her husband had been given an entirely different response than what she had gotten from her doctor.
While her husband was given tests for his symptoms, her doctor told her, 'welcome to motherhood.'
"My husband told me something last night that blew my mind," she began in her video.
She explained that when her husband went to see his doctor, he was asked if he had any concerns regarding his health.
Her husband answered that he was feeling really tired all of the time, and didn't have as much energy as he used to have.
After hearing that, her husband's doctor suggested they run some sleep apnea tests to figure out the problem.
After learning about her husband's experience at the doctor, she quickly realized that she had been given the complete opposite response when she told her doctor about the same symptoms.
"When I went to my doctor, she asked me if I had any concerns and I said, 'yeah, I am in chronic pain, I'm tired, I have no energy and no libido, I have pain when I have [sex]. I just feel so run down and defeated.'"
After telling her doctor all of her symptoms, she recalled her doctor simply responding, "Welcome to motherhood."
The woman explains that she was taken aback by the dismissive tone of her doctor, who then thanked her for coming in and didn't say anything else about her alarming symptoms.
It turns out she had an infection in her uterus the entire time.
She would later realize that all of her symptoms were because she had two infections that she's had since her daughters were born, which was three years prior.
"You can get [these infections] when you have a C-section. For three years I've been walking around with an infection in my uterus. She didn't catch it, my endocrinologist just caught it in July," she pointed out.
She criticized the doctor for simply telling her "welcome to motherhood," instead of running some tests and working diligently to figure out what was wrong with her body.
"We can't just say, 'welcome to motherhood' to women when they complain about being tired, being in chronic pain, and having no libido. We've got to do better."
"Why do we treat women like this?" she tearfully asked.
Women in the United States face a high risk of mortality after giving birth due to medical negligence.
According to The Commonwealth Fund, the U.S. mortality rate crisis is continuing to worsen for women.
In 2020, the maternal mortality rate in the U.S. was 24 deaths per 100,000 live births — which is more than three times the rate in most other high-income countries.
For Black women alone, the rate is exceptionally higher, with more than double the average rate and nearly three times higher than the rate for white women.
As a society built on sexism and racism, the medical community is not exempt.
There have been multiple studies that have found doctors prescribed less pain medication to women than men who underwent the same medical procedure or reported the same level of pain.
There is also such a thing called "Medical Gaslighting," where most women are told it's only "stress" or in the mom of 3-year-old twins' case, her symptoms are just chalked up to becoming a mother.
TikTok users shared their frustration with doctors ignoring women's concerning symptoms.
Underneath the woman's video, thousands of people shared their own experiences of doctors dismissing their symptoms.
"My rheumatologist said 'that’s just part of being a mom!' when I brought up my chronic fatigue. Fired him; found out I have lupus," one user wrote.
Another user added, "[my husband] and I both go to urgent care because we had the flu. Both see the same [doctor]. He gets Tamiflu, I got 'go home and rest.'"
"Mine just told me I was fat. After advocating over and over for myself, we found out I had cancer in my uterus and cervix. Just fat though, right?" a third user chimed in.
A fourth user wrote, "It’s maddening. My husband gets excellent care. I get ignored. I’m depressed over it."
Nia Tipton is a writer living in Brooklyn. She covers pop culture, social justice issues, and trending topics. Keep up with her on Instagram and Twitter.