Why Women Are Still Fighting for Better Care

🚨 Let’s talk about the waiting game.
Waiting for a diagnosis.
Waiting for someone to believe your pain.
Waiting for research to catch up—or even start.

This week, we’re unpacking why that wait exists—and what’s keeping women from getting the care they deserve. I break it all down This week, I’m laying it all out in my article for Rescripted—why NIH funding matters more than ever, and how its gaps are hurting women with endometriosis, PCOS, menopause and beyond.

🎧 Ever been told “it’s just stress” when you were in real pain? Dr. Peta Wright has seen it all—and she’s calling out the system that keeps gaslighting women with endometriosis. This one’s part validation, part mic drop.

🎧 And if you’ve ever felt like your vagina changed overnight and no one told you why, this episode is for you. We talk about how vaginal health shifts during and after menopause, why no one talks about it, and what you can actually doabout it.

Plus, I’m testing something new: a monthly roundup of headlines you need to know. From drug cost gaps to a $100B+ opportunity in women’s health—this is where policy, research, and money collide with real life.

👇 Scroll down, dive in, and tell me: should I keep the roundup?

 💦 Your Vulva Deserves Better

What if we treated vulvar health like heart health? Or prostate health? According to Dr. Maria Uloko, we’d see fewer infections, less pain, and a lot less suffering.

Dr. Uloko is a urologist who specializes in comprehensive sexual health. In this episode, she breaks down the truth about genitourinary syndrome of menopause (GSM)—a common but poorly understood condition tied to hormone loss.

Spoiler: if you're not watering the garden (a.k.a. replacing hormones), things start to dry up. And it's not just about sex. GSM impacts urinary health, comfort, and quality of life—and it’s often entirely preventable.

🚨 Why are so many women misdiagnosed—or not diagnosed at all? 💡 What’s the real story behind vaginal estrogen and breast cancer? 🧬 How do testosterone and estrogen both impact vulvar health?

We dive into the myths, the data, and what clinicians and women need to start doing differently.

🎧 Listen to the full episode

📚 For a deep dive, check out:

• Dr. Uloko’s work on vulvar sexual medicine at UC San Diego

• The Menopause Society provider directory to find qualified clinicians

Because your vulva deserves the same care and science as every other body part. It’s time to change the system.

🙌🏼 Related: More menopause stories! Always helps to know you are not alone. Tamsen Fadal, journalist and advocate just published How to Menopause.

😔 The Iceberg of Endo

This was never supposed to be an episode. It was a 5 AM intro chat with Dr. Peta Wright of Vera Wellness in Australia and author of Healing Pelvic Pain. Kids were waking up. We were both in our realest selves. And then she dropped truth after truth—and I hit record.

“I don’t care,” she said. “It’s my truth. Do it.”

And I did. This became the most downloaded episode of Fempower Health—because it hit home for so many.

🧊 Why endometriosis is an iceberg—what’s visible is just the start
🩸 What it really feels like to be dismissed, misdiagnosed, and gaslit
💡 How we reclaim our stories when the system tries to erase them

This isn’t a clinical breakdown. It’s raw, lived experience. It’s laughter through tears. It’s the kind of conversation you never forget.

🎧 Listen to the full episode

📣 And share it—because information like what Dr Peta Wright shared are how we melt the iceberg, one truth at a time.

🙌🏼 Related: Learn more from the fabulous Caitlyn Tivy, DPT about how pelvic PT can support those struggling with endometriosis and pelvic pain.

👩🏻‍🔬 Who’s Funding Your Health? (And Why It Matters)

What the NIH Gets Wrong

We all know women are waiting way too long for diagnoses—and better treatment—for things like endometriosis, PCOS, and menopause. But have you ever stopped to ask why?

🧠 It’s not just stigma or lack of awareness.
💸 It’s about how research is funded—and what happens when it’s not.
🚫 Spoiler: Pharma can’t save us here.

I break it all down in this new article: how NIH funding actually works, why women’s health gets overlooked, and what it means when public research dollars disappear.

📖 Read the full article

Because if we want better care, we have to understand why it’s missing in the first place.

🙌🏼 Related: Join the conversation and ones like this in the newly formed Fempower Health Women’s Health Slack Community.