Latest news with #MichelleWatts
Otago Daily Times
26-06-2025
- Otago Daily Times
Invercargill couple's airport nightmare
An Invercargill couple spent more than 24 hours waiting and queuing when travelling to the United Kingdom as the Iran-Israel conflict threw their schedule into chaos. Michelle Watts and her husband Martin Watts had left Auckland bound for Doha and then on to London. It started well for the couple with what she said was a routine departure from Auckland and a pleasant flight for 15 hours. "The captain came on speaker and said we were landing in Muscat, in Oman, due to the security situation. Only a 20-minute warning before we landed," she said when contacted yesterday. A quick web search soon revealed the reason for the change of landing — the Iranian missile strike on Qatar. Iranian missiles targeted the largest United States military base in the Middle East, Al-Udeid, although no damage was reported. The plane landed in Muscat and the passengers waited on the plane. "We sat on the tarmac in the plane for four to five hours in Muscat before the all-clear and then took off and continued to Doha. We landed at around 2am. "It was a little confusing but obviously we needed to rebook as we had missed our connecting flight. But every other plane arriving had a similar issue, so with the large number of planes arriving the rebooking system was completely overwhelmed by thousands of passengers. "An eight-hour queue stood up, jostling and waiting for a rebooking." They rebooked a flight and thought they were on their way to London. "Once rebooked we felt much happier, only for the new scheduled flight to then be cancelled without explanation. So we had to start the process again and queued for 11 hours this time to rebook." They were expecting to fly out last night [NZ time] for London after waiting for another five-plus hours. She said there was no real tension at the airport regarding the missile attack but she was critical of the lack of a working system when things went off course. "There was an awful lot of frustration at the rebooking system which was immensely slow and inefficient. It was a model of what happens when a possible/likely event is not planned for at all. "We could make many suggestions for systems improvements, many of which were blindingly obvious. "One or two angry passengers needed to be de-escalated by airport security. Staff were at all times pleasant and professional but clearly overwhelmed and not trained for such an event." The couple hoped to get to London at 2pm today [UK time]. From there her husband had a conference lined up while she would be having a holiday. She was not planning to hang around airports.
Otago Daily Times
25-06-2025
- Otago Daily Times
Couple go through airport nightmare
An Invercargill couple spent more than 24 hours waiting and queuing when travelling to the United Kingdom as the Iran-Israel stoush threw their schedule into chaos. Michelle Watts and her husband Martin Watts had left Auckland bound for Doha and then on to London. It started well for the couple with what she said was a routine departure from Auckland and a pleasant flight for 15 hours. "The captain came on speaker and said we were landing in Muscat, in Oman, due to the security situation. Only a 20-minute warning before we landed," she said when contacted yesterday. A quick web search soon revealed the reason for the change of landing — the Iranian missile strike on Qatar. Iranian missiles targeted the largest United States military base in the Middle East, Al-Udeid, although no damage was reported. The plane landed in Muscat and the passengers waited on the plane. "We sat on the tarmac in the plane for four to five hours in Muscat before the all-clear and then took off and continued to Doha. We landed at around 2am. "It was a little confusing but obviously we needed to rebook as we had missed our connecting flight. But every other plane arriving had a similar issue, so with the large number of planes arriving the rebooking system was completely overwhelmed by thousands of passengers. "An eight-hour queue stood up, jostling and waiting for a rebooking." They rebooked a flight and thought they were on their way to London. "Once rebooked we felt much happier, only for the new scheduled flight to then be cancelled without explanation. So we had to start the process again and queued for 11 hours this time to rebook." They were expecting to fly out last night [NZ time] for London after waiting for another five-plus hours. She said there was no real tension at the airport regarding the missile attack but she was critical of the lack of a working system when things went off course. "There was an awful lot of frustration at the rebooking system which was immensely slow and inefficient. It was a model of what happens when a possible/likely event is not planned for at all. "We could make many suggestions for systems improvements, many of which were blindingly obvious. "One or two angry passengers needed to be de-escalated by airport security. Staff were at all times pleasant and professional but clearly overwhelmed and not trained for such an event." The couple hoped to get to London at 2pm today [UK time]. From there her husband had a conference lined up while she would be having a holiday. She was not planning to hang around airports.
SBS Australia
17-05-2025
- Health
- SBS Australia
Michelle's condition 'ruined' her. Treatment was life-changing, but it has a concerning label
Michelle Watts, 60, once suffered from heavy menstrual bleeding that made everything seem "impossible to do". Source: SBS News A $793 million investment into women's health has been celebrated, but there are concerns over a lack of specific reference to a condition affecting many women. is often excluded from discussions around women's health despite it being a disruptive, and sometimes crippling, condition. "I'd get out the door and I would flood to the point where I'd have to come back and change again," said Michelle Watts, as she recounted a ski trip — one of many occasions where she bled through layers of clothing. "And I'd literally just sit down and cry and think, 'I can't do this anymore', because it was ruining every aspect of my life," the 60-year-old said. For 18 months from 2021, Watts suffered from heavy menstrual bleeding, which the Australian Commission on Safety and Quality in Health Care (ACSQHC ) defines as excessive menstrual blood loss that interferes with a woman's quality of life. "I was about as sad as I could ever be because everything was impossible to do in my eyes by the end. I couldn't go swimming with my friends anymore, swimming became challenging, going to the gym became challenging," Watts said. "All those things that I loved to do, I just couldn't do." After many failed treatments, Michelle finally underwent a uterectomy, traditionally known as a hysterectomy. Dr Talat Uppal is a gynaecologist and director at Women's Health Road and is in the process of changing the language, which she says was inaccurately used to explain women's emotional and physical concerns. "Often when I'm using the word hysteroscopy or hysterectomy it brings back that association of centuries-old myth which is something that is important to defuse and re-word to a more anatomical one", Dr Talat said. Also in the push to change the medical language is the CSIRO, Australia's national science agency, which is responsible for updating global standards for clinical terminology. Katrina Ebril is the Interoperability Lead with the Australian e-Health research centre at the CSIRO and says this change is a first when it comes to women's bodies. "It's definitely time to change ... and we do this for other procedures," Ebril said. "It is a uterectomy, let's call it what it is, and start to use that much more positive language and much more language that aligns to what the actual procedure is." For women like Watts, removing taboos around menstruation is key to making treatment more accessible, and encouraging others to seek help. One in four people who menstruate suffer from heavy menstrual bleeding, according to the ACSQHC, and two thirds of those experience iron deficiency. Yet the commission notes less than half of women suffering from the condition visit a doctor. "Traditionally or historically, women have been left out of research, and sometimes even the animals in the labs were male animals," Uppal said. "And so this is a long historical background of disadvantage of not including women, and we really want to change that narrative when it comes to heavy bleeding." "I think it's just part of that silence around heavy menstrual bleeding ... and I don't think it's deliberate, I feel it's just a culture where it's not front of mind," she said. Watt believes a lack of awareness is why she struggled to receive adequate care for months. "It's just been so normalised ... and I don't think it should be, I don't think it's normal," Watt said. "And it's really hard to get any information because it's just taken as: 'Well, you're a woman, this is what happens.'" She can't imagine what her life would have looked like without undergoing the procedure, now relishing the active lifestyle she was once forced to sacrifice. "My ability to participate in skiing, running, swimming ... all of the things that I wanted to enjoy, that's all possible again, I never have to worry about that ever again, it's like an absolute new lease of life," she said.
SBS Australia
09-05-2025
- Health
- SBS Australia
Hysterectomy: the word that fails women suffering heavy periods
Menstruation can be disruptive for many, but for some women it can be crippling. "I'd get out the door and I would flood to the point where I'd have to come back and change again. And I'd literally just sit down and cry and think, 'I can't do this anymore' Because it was ruining every aspect of my life." Sixty-year-old Michelle Watts is recounting a ski trip - one of many occasions where she bled through layers of clothing. Michelle suffered from heavy menstrual bleeding for 18 months from 2021, which the Australian Commission on Safety and Quality in Healthcare defines as excessive menstrual blood loss that interferes with a woman's quality of life. "I was about as sad as I could ever be because everything was, everything was impossible to do in my eyes by the end. I couldn't go swimming with my friends anymore, swimming became challenging, going to the gym became challenging. All those things that I loved to do, I just couldn't do." After many failed treatments, Michelle finally underwent a uterectomy, traditionally known as a hysterectomy. But the original terminology for this procedure is causing concern among some specialists, due to its links to the Greek word 'hysteria'. Dr Talat Uppal is a Gynaecologist and Director at Women's Health Road - and is in the process of changing the language. "It was really thought to explain a lot of the concerns women might have had.... both on the emotional and physical front, which was actually not factual and not found to be correct." One in four people who menstruate suffer from heavy menstrual bleeding, and two thirds of those experience iron deficiency. Yet less than half of women suffering from the condition visit a doctor. "Traditionally or historically women have been left out of research. And sometimes even the animals in the labs were male animals. And so this is a long historical background of disadvantage of not including women. And we really want to change that narrative when it comes to heavy bleeding." Dr Uppal welcomes a number of measures in the government's multi-million dollar investment in women's health, but would like to see more attention given to this issue. "I think it's just part of that silence around heavy menstrual bleeding... and I don't think it's deliberate, I feel it's just a culture where it's not front of mind." Michelle believes a lack of awareness is why she struggled to receive adequate care for months. "It's just been so I don't think it should be, I don't think it's normal. And it's really hard to get any information because it's just taken as 'well you're a woman, this is what happens." She can't imagine what her life would have looked like without undergoing the procedure, now relishing the active lifestyle she was forced to sacrifice. "My ability to participate in skiing, running, swimming... all of the things that I wanted to enjoy, that's all possible again, I never have to worry about that ever again, it's like an absolute new lease of life." It's part of an international effort to make medical language more accurate. Helping lead the change is the CSIRO, who are responsible for updating global standards for clinical terminology. Katrina Ebril is the Interoperability Lead with the Australian e-Health research centre at the CSIRO, and says this change is a first when it comes to women's bodies. "It's definitely time to change... and we do this for other procedures. And it is a uterectomy, let's call it what it is, and start to use that much more positive language and much more language that aligns to what the actual procedure is." For women like Michelle, removing taboos around menstruation is key to making treatment more accessible, and encouraging others to seek help. For more stories like this one, follow Hysterical - an SBS news podcast series exploring medical misogyny and discrimination in our health system.
