Member-only story
Prejudice And Medical Gaslighting
Doctors more likely to ignore the pain of poor black women
I have experienced medical gaslighting. The worst case occurred when I was only in my 20s. I had an infection that might have killed me if I weren’t diagnosed in time, yet the doctor I originally went to, who was Indian (like myself) didn’t take it seriously. Not once, but twice.
The first time he sent me away, I figured — he’s the doctor. He knows what he’s doing. But I didn’t get better, I got worse.
When I went back to him, I could tell he was impatient. I tried to explain that the medication he’d prescribed had not worked but he quickly left after prescribing some more.
But I got even worse. I was driving home when I had to pull over because I couldn’t see the road. It swam in a haze in front of me and I called a friend to pick me up. He immediately rushed me to his doctor, a white, blond man who took the time to run some tests. I was running 104 fever. The doctor correctly diagnosed me, and might have saved my life.
Which just goes to show — stereotypes are crap. I have gotten both excellent and horrible care from doctors of all races. In my personal experience, however, I’ve found women doctors to be better when it came to taking my symptoms seriously and listening to me.
