Doctors dismissed her gangrenous appendix multiple times as “anxiety”… uttering some of the scariest words in medicine: “You’re young & healthy - what do you want us to do?” A horrifying story of medical gaslighting, misogyny and neglect: www.cbc.ca/news/canada/... - ThreadSky

broadwaybabyto.bsky.social • 113 days ago

Doctors dismissed her gangrenous appendix multiple times as “anxiety”… uttering some of the scariest words in medicine:

“You’re young & healthy - what do you want us to do?”

A horrifying story of medical gaslighting, misogyny and neglect:

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/newfoundland-labrador/joy-spence-appendix-er-1.7370548

Comments

jewelzinaz.bsky.social•112 days ago

The patriarchy thinks we are property. Like a dog who cooks and they can F#*k. They don’t see us as people.

kellyartaf.bsky.social•113 days ago

I had something similar in my 20's. Docs seemed convinced it was one thing, I KNEW it wasn't & begged for over a year for a laparoscopy. When I finally got one, it showed my appendix were dead & rotting. Doc said he didn't know how I was still alive.

broadwaybabyto.bsky.social•113 days ago

Wow! I’m glad you survived that and I’m sorry you suffered for so long.

librariandad.bsky.social•113 days ago

Seriously, who fucked up this timeline? This wouldn’t even make a good dystopian horror film, it’s so horribly written. Nobody would be able to suspend their disbelief. And yet here we are.

smpa.bsky.social•112 days ago

By the time my (*) doctors realized I had double pneumonia, my lungs were 100% full of fluid, and I was intubated that night. 34 days in the ICU, had to relearn how to walk.

(*) I should say ANY doctors, for all I know my official set at the time never noticed; I went to an ER ~75 miles from home.

corabora5.bsky.social•110 days ago

Women know their bodies better than any doctor or NP.
At 8 weeks pregnant I complained to gyn dr about stomach pain. “Oh, it’s your first baby; things are shifting around.” At 16 weeks, couldn’t walk — emergency appendicitis. Listen to your body and persist.

thatfriendismoi.bsky.social•113 days ago

It’s infuriating. Reading that article is horrible, I can’t imagine how it must have felt to actually experience and go through it! 💔

injore.bsky.social•113 days ago

At 20 I had an urgent care misdiagnose an tonsillar abscess as mononucleosis and prescribe me steroids to reduce the swelling in my throat, even though my WBC count was extremely high. I went to a different ER because it felt wrong to me. Thank god I did. I could have died. Trust your gut!

broadwaybabyto.bsky.social•113 days ago

Yikes! I’m glad you went somewhere else - that’s so dangerous!!

injore.bsky.social•113 days ago

I was very lucky. Last thing you want to do when fighting a bacterial infection is take steroids! They’re great for some things, not for that though. :/

smpa.bsky.social•112 days ago

Literally just occurred to me that all the steroids they prescribed me over the four months they blew my breathing problems off may have played a significant role in turning my community-acquired pneumonia into sepsis/ARDS/etc. Pseudomonas aeruginosa (which is omnipresent) doesn't normally do that.

injore.bsky.social•112 days ago

I’m sorry, that’s awful! Steroids can suppress your immune system and make infections more severe. It seemed weird to take them when my white blood cell count was so high and the mono test had been negative (the nurse was still convinced I had it) so I went for a second opinion. Glad I did!

theelword.bsky.social•112 days ago

Jesus that is terrifying. That poor girl

sirschming.bsky.social•113 days ago

Ugh. That's just awful.

tara4711.bsky.social•113 days ago

This is so…grrrr. Literally takes 2 seconds to confirm McBurney’s sign. And if positive, straight to imaging. A bursting appendix can turn septic very quickly. Grrrr 😖

solitude4peace.bsky.social•112 days ago

Had something similar happen. Almost died of sepsis due to appendix rupturing. That story was hard to read. ❤️‍🩹

knittergamer.bsky.social•113 days ago

oh joys, misogynist medical care is universal 🤬🤬🤬

tara4711.bsky.social•113 days ago

Totally is. Canadians are not immune

lisbear48.bsky.social•113 days ago

I had a ruptured necrotic appendix removed. When I had the ultrasound that identified appendicitis, a doctor had to come in and point it out to the technician because she was busy examining my ovaries. Sometimes it seems like they forget that young women also have digestive systems

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