CYSTERS – if you’ve had a painful hysteroscopy – recently or in the past – this anonymous survey is for YOU. https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSc2XTOe81rEy7zV2ARNPECceYyE–wTtR0mA10XHIxNQVOBrw/viewform?fbclid=IwAR0Fx-7O2Eql_55k0UUb-dPI5MHq8EoOZ4MKHetNIbfgz1b92ZIyfCyYe58 The Campaign Against Painful Hysteroscopy compiled the survey. We’re a community group of several hundred women who’ve all had shockingly painful NHS outpatient gynae experiences. We run a public Facebook page, plus a Continue Reading
White Saviourism – Why would I ask you to save me, when you can’t even save yourselves?
I’m sure you’ve all heard of the term white saviourism, but not all of you may be familiar with what it actually looks like in practice. Originating from colonial thought – Rudyard Kipling’s “The White Man’s Burden” is where this whole thing started. Let’s go back in history, to a time where the UK and Continue Reading
Endo – what?!
From the time I started having my periods at age 11, I do not remember having a pain free period. I spent my teenage years going from doctor to doctor for relief. Most of them told me that it was my “normal”, gave me pain killers and anti-nausea medication then would send me on my Continue Reading
Period Shaming
By Sheila Harrington Jane Garvey, one of Women’s Hour’s presenters, recently sent a pre-show tweet saying that she was going to be talking about how women feel about having sex while on their period (period sex). Some of the replies she received were as follows: ‘Crikey’ A range of disgusted GIFs ‘It’s just eeewww to Continue Reading
Stop making your equals pay for a seat at the table!
So, recently there was a post here on our Cysters platform that highlighted concerns around race and cultural stigmas within the community which is meant to be empowering women to take care of their bodies – NO MATTER WHAT COLOUR IT’S WRAPPED UP IN! The reason why I’m writing this post today is that it Continue Reading
Use it or Lose it – White Privilege and the Danger of a Single Story
For anyone who doesn’t know me, my name is Nikita Aashi Chadha and I’m 27 years old. I’m a British national by birth, but I’m from the Indian Diaspora – desi (in my own way) and proud. I was diagnosed with endometriosis and PCOS last year in 2018, following a laparoscopy. The road to referral and diagnosis Continue Reading
Virginity – A Social Constraint?
I’ve always believed that the concept of virginity was a social constraint. Actually, that’s a lie. It’s taken me years of constant unlearning to get to this point. My belief that it is a social constraint doesn’t mean that I don’t think that virginity and sex doesn’t carry emotional weight. Because it does, and it Continue Reading