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A Woman’s Health Rebellion
When caring for my body became radical
I spent most of Wednesday this week at obstetrics and gynecology, getting routine preventive healthcare assessments that I had been postponing for a couple of months now, due to the obvious culprit — work deadlines. As I waited in the lobby between different tests, clumsily rummaging through slips and notes that I had been handed in quick succession to go from one appointment to the next, the place filled up quickly, but mostly with pregnant women.
Everyone from the nurses to the OB/GYN sonographer seemed surprised that I was there in the middle of a workweek, not because of a health complaint, but to get a routine gynaecological exam. My OB/GYN even seemed mildly amused when I insisted that she go through the electronic medical records to confirm the date for my last Pap smear and HPV because I couldn’t remember it and couldn’t find it in my calendar.
I have been seeing her for close to a decade, including for an annual exam every year, so I guess my peskiness didn’t come as much of a surprise to her as some others on her team. Nevertheless, it didn’t stop her from asking me if I was sure that I needed a mammogram every single year, given that I don’t have a high genetic risk.
I reminded her that my mother did get diagnosed with breast cancer at the age of…
