Hysteria, Witchcraft, and Bikini Medicine — Dr. Elizabeth Comen Talks the Truth and Lies of Early Medicine

Dr. Elizabeth Comen has dedicated her medical career to saving the lives of women. She’s a Memorial Sloan Kettering oncologist, a medical historian, and the author of “All in Her Head — The Truth and Lies Early Medicine Taught Us About Women’s Bodies and Why it Matters Today.”

In this episode, Mary Alice and Dr. Aliabadi get a crash course in the problematic history that has shaped women’s healthcare, from the catch-all-diagnosis of hysteria that persisted into the early 20th century to the “bikini medicine” keeping women’s healthcare limited today. Dr. Comen dives into the shift from midwifery to gynecology, as women healers became scrutinized for witchcraft and men paved the way for modern obstetrics. She shares findings from her extensive research, including how the desire to control women’s sexuality historically led to outrageous medical beliefs like the idea that scoliosis was caused by masturbation. Dr. Comen and Dr. Aliabadi discuss gender bias as it pertains to female physicians and feminine nurturing in medicine, and the shame they observe in patients who aren’t comfortable sharing symptoms and apologize for natural bodily responses, even in their final moments.

Women’s issues in medicine are typically underfunded, under-researched, and often misdiagnosed. Dr. Comen discusses the root cause of societal stigmas and lingering ignorance that shape women’s healthcare and our relationships with our own bodies. Don’t miss this fascinating episode of SHE MD.

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