written by Team Liberty Road

When Sameena Rahman, MD, joined Instagram about six years ago, she was floored by what she saw and read. "There's so much misinformation, so much confusion," the board-certified OB/GYN tells us. She was concerned for her patients and all women trying to navigate their health and the medical system. People go online and think, "What is the real deal when it comes to hormone therapy and when it comes to sexual dysfunction?" adds Dr. Rahman.

Clarifying this confusion charges Dr. Rahman's work today. Beyond her private practice, she's built an online educational empire via her @gynogirl brand, where she educates women on her YouTube channels and social platforms about what we must know about our health. With her experience, which includes holding a seat on the board of the International Society for the Study of Women's Sexual Health and working with The Menopause Society, we're all ears. Dr. Rahman is also part of the "Menoposse," a group of boots-on-the-ground clinicians focused on banding together to provide women in midlife with true, modern, life-empowering information about menopause.

Nada recently spoke with Dr. Rahman about the misinformation we face, how we can better advocate for ourselves, and the menopause misconceptions that continue to live. The following are three key takeaways from the sex-med gynecologist that we want to shout from the rooftops.

#1: Find a Doctor Who Will Listen (They're Out There!)

"People tell me, 'I don't know how to talk to my doctor about this.' If you don't feel heard, find someone who will hear you, or directly tell your clinician you're working with that you're not feeling heard. We know implicit bias is real in medicine. We also know there are limitations to what can happen at a normal visit in normal practices. The system is rigged against women in so many ways. If [a doctor] has to see 40 patients a day in a practice that is only there to generate revenue, it's hard to say, 'I'm gonna sit here and spend an hour talking to you about the last 10 years of your journey.' So, I always tell people who DM me, 'You have got to find someone. These are the organizations I'm a part of, and there are other clinicians like me all over the country and also all over the world.'

#2: You Don't Have to Suffer

"The big New York Times article, Women Have Been Misled about Menopause, by Susan Dominus was a real jumping point for many people. When she came and spoke to the Menopause Society last year, she said the consistent theme that she found, and I think most of us who take care of patients also find this, is that women are accustomed to suffering, Pelvic pain, the pain around your periods, sexual pain—it's all normalized. Then, clinicians tell them this is just a normal part of everyday life. The suffering of women is so entrenched in patriarchy and misogyny that women believe it. It's so ingrained. But women should not and do not have to suffer like this."

#3: Think Beyond the Waiting Game

"There's a lot of misconceptions, some of them being that you can't get treated until you've had your final period. I have a lot of patients who say they've been suffering from perimenopausal symptoms for years and are having irregular cycles, but they were told they had to wait until their final period to get treated—which is not true. That's one of the biggest misconceptions.”

We pulled these excerpts from Nada’s conversation with Dr. Rahman. To listen to their entire chat, visit ‘The Liberty Road Podcast.’

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