Comments on: Harpy Hall of Fame: Margaret Sanger (1879-1966)

By: Spark

Spark — Fri, 06 Mar 2009 15:49:51 +0000

I go to a female gyn at a practice in a teaching hospital. The first time I went to see her, mid-exam, I suddenly hear a chorus of voices. Then when we were done, the other people had left. At my next appointment, she said, “Oh, let me call in the girls” and explained that they were students/interns. (She’s young herself, so the “girls” thing sounds friendly, not patronizing.) I’m not sure if she failed to give me the heads-up that first time, or if I didn’t hear her… It was a little disconcerting, though I’ve come to really like her.

I’ve always admired Margaret Sanger. She’s a hero.

By: BeckySharper

BeckySharper — Fri, 06 Mar 2009 01:02:02 +0000

With me, the more chat the better. Fortunately my doctor likes to chat and joke while she’s got what feels like her whole hand up in my business.

By: HanaMaru

HanaMaru — Fri, 06 Mar 2009 00:59:05 +0000

Becky- Oh, I do see a woman gyno as my primary care doctor and she’s great. I forgot to put in my above comment that those best doctors were all women. I know all women don’t like chatting during their pap smears, but I do, it puts me at ease.

By: BeckySharper

BeckySharper — Fri, 06 Mar 2009 00:24:28 +0000

@HanaMaru: I’m sorry it’s so traumatic! You should definitely seek out a good all-woman practice the next time you go ob-gyn shopping. I always think those all-woman practices are way more empathetic and non-judgmental, both about anxiety and about actual sexual health issues.

By: BeckySharper

BeckySharper — Fri, 06 Mar 2009 00:11:43 +0000

@HanaMaru: oh, that’s weird. And if she was a slutty ho, so what? She made it possible for me to be slutty without getting diseases or pregnant. God bless her.

By: HanaMaru

HanaMaru — Fri, 06 Mar 2009 00:10:58 +0000

I HATE having pelvic exams/pap smears. I get very anxious and uncomfortable and sometimes I cry. I had been open minded about male gynos, but so far I’ve seen two and they were awful: they used cold hands and instruments, ignored me when I told them something hurt, and one of them was incredibly dense when it came to discussing birth control. He seemed to think they were all the same(??) The best docs I’ve had(including my current) were cognizant of my unease, chatted with me and explained what they were about to do and I’ve been fine. I definitely think there’s something to women generally having care and empathy for female patients and I am so grateful we have the option today.

By: HanaMaru

HanaMaru — Thu, 05 Mar 2009 23:56:52 +0000

she’s one of my heroes. BTW, if you look her up on facebook, the groups are almost all anti-Sanger. The oddest one is “MARGARET SANGER IS A SLUTTY HO” and the description includes this gem “Let’s face it, she slept with H.G. Wells and a host of other guys. ” I can’t figure out if it’s pro or anti.

By: jdregent

jdregent — Thu, 05 Mar 2009 16:15:39 +0000

exactly my sitch, Becky.

By: BeckySharper

BeckySharper — Thu, 05 Mar 2009 16:11:36 +0000

That’s so weird–I’ve seen female docs in a few different states and never had a nurse in the room. Maybe it’s a practice-by-practice thing? Huh. I learn something new ever day!

And yeah, JD, I think primary care docs tend to overreact on STD scares b/c they simply don’t have the same level of experience with the beauty and wonder of our ladyparts. That happened to me when I went to the student health center at my college, which was staffed only by GPs.

By: jdregent

jdregent — Thu, 05 Mar 2009 16:08:04 +0000

Yeah my female ob/gyn always has a nurse in the room too. I only had a male ob/gyn once when mine was out and he was nice and fine and all, but just the way he touched me was so cautious that I felt weird and awkward. I prefer a doc, whatever their gender, to be brusque and matter of fact. He also gave me a false STD scare, partially I believe because he wasn’t used to dealing with all the possible things that happen in and to vaginas. This was in a primary care setting so I think that was part of the problem.