On this International Women’s Day, we want to talk about something simple but powerful:

Believe women when they say they are in pain. Women live on average live longer than men, but live on average 4 years longer in ill health.

Across the world, millions of women live with long-term health conditions that are misunderstood, dismissed, or ignored. One of those conditions is endometriosis.

Endometriosis affects around 5-10% of women and those assigned female at birth worldwide, that is roughly 190 million people. Yet in the UK, it still takes an average of eight to ten years from a first GP appointment to receive a diagnosis.

So we have to ask — why?

Many stories begin in a similar way.

A GP appointment.

A short conversation.

Being told it is “just a bad period.”

A prescription for the pill or ibuprofen.

Instead of being investigated properly, symptoms are managed. Instead of asking why the pain is happening, people are told how to cope with it.

Painkillers are prescribed. Anti-inflammatories are offered. But patients are warned not to take them too often because they can affect the stomach, kidneys, or heart. And still, no other options are given.

When symptoms continue, bloating, extreme fatigue, heavy bleeding, people are often told:

“It’s normal.”

“It might be IBS.”

“It could be anxiety.”

Many people without chronic illness mean well, but their words can still hurt.

“We all get tired.”

“You’ll grow out of it.”

“Have you tried a hot water bottle?”

Heat can help. But many people use heat so often that they develop a skin condition called toasted skin syndrome. Some stop wearing certain clothes because of marks left behind.

This is not mild discomfort. This is daily survival.

For many years, medical research focused mainly on male bodies. The results were often assumed to apply to women too.

But women’s symptoms do not always match what textbooks describe. When pain does not fit the expected pattern, it is more likely to be labelled as stress, hormones, or anxiety.

This bias, sometimes called male-centred research, has led to real health gaps. Women are more likely to be dismissed, misdiagnosed, or told their symptoms are normal.

The result? Years without answers.

Living with chronic pain affects every part of life.

It can mean:

At Endometriosis South Coast, we hear these stories every day. They are not rare. They are common.

There have been recent changes in UK primary care. A policy often called “Jess’s Rule” encourages GPs to reconsider or escalate care if someone comes back three times with the same unresolved symptoms.

Almost half of people with endometriosis report seeing a GP more than ten times before receiving a diagnosis. That shows how often persistent pain has been dismissed.

Encouraging earlier review is a step forward, but culture change is just as important as policy change.

If you have gone back to your GP again and again without answers, your persistence is not dramatic. It is justified.

You know your body.

You deserve investigation.

You deserve respect.

You deserve to be taken seriously.

Find resources here

International Women’s Day is about equality. And equality must include healthcare.

Believing women’s pain is not radical. It is basic clinical care.

By understanding the barriers women face, and by speaking up when care falls short, we move closer to a healthcare system that listens, investigates, and treats people properly.

At Endometriosis South Coast, we will continue to raise awareness not to create fear, but to demand fairness, accuracy, and accountability.

Because believing women’s pain should never be optional.

Dr Jodie Hughes