Latest news with #womenshealth
ABC News
2 hours ago
- Health
- ABC News
Surfer India Robinson returns after concussions and 'debilitating' endometriosis
Every time India Robinson got her period, she used "as many painkillers as possible" just to make it through the day. As an elite surfer, she was used to pushing through pain and forcing her body to perform. But when the painkillers stopped working and the constant fatigue and sickness took its toll, she realised she had "nothing left" and knew something had to change to get her career, and life, back on track. In a common tale for many women, after years of unexplained pain, the 24-year-old discovered she had stage three endometriosis, and a cyst on her left ovary. "It was debilitating. Every time I was trying to compete, and I knew that maybe my period would overlap, it was going to be really difficult for me and it did impact my career a lot," she told ABC Sport. According to the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare: About 14 per cent of people assigned female at birth are estimated to have endometriosis, and it takes an average of six to eight years to receive a diagnosis. In the most extreme instances, Robinson's symptoms included vomiting and fevers that could last several hours on the first day of her period — in addition to the constant back pain, sickness, fatigue, and an exacerbation of the symptoms resulting from repeated concussions. So when she suffered her latest concussion in July last year, it was a chance for her to reset and finally prioritise her overall health. "The best thing I did was get (endometriosis) surgery, get all of that toxic stuff removed from my body," she said. "That then allowed me to become my full healthy self again, and I definitely feel like although it was the hardest year of my life, it was probably the biggest blessing in disguise as well. "Once I realised that (endometriosis) can be addressed, it can be fixed, and now I've been through that and I'm on the other side of it, it's the biggest game changer. "I also took time to address my mental health, focusing on seeing what underlying issues I had there, and that was pretty important as well." After spending nearly a year on the sidelines, Robinson will return to the World Surf League Challenger Series in Newcastle this week. During her time away from the sport, she's focused on building a workshop based educational program, 'Queen in Me', designed to empower girls and help them navigate societal pressures. "(I want to) give girls the tools they can use every single day to help them stay connected with who they are and what's important to them, rather than being sucked into something that they don't want to do, or they feel pressured into doing," she said. Robinson says there's a big focus on body image pressures and combating unrealistic expectations amplified by social media. "By scrolling on Instagram and comparing yourself to some model in America, is that gonna take you towards your goal of becoming the next Matilda star"? she said. "It's being really logical and opening their eyes to what decisions they're making." After being crowned the 2023 Challenger Series Champion, Robinson is hoping to once again earn her spot in the WSL, and become the 'best surfer and athlete' she can be.
Yahoo
6 hours ago
- Business
- Yahoo
'Big beautiful bill' threatens family planning services in West Virginia
FAIRMONT — President Donald Trump's budget may defund women's health care in some areas should the bill passed by the House of Representatives move through the US Senate unchanged. The bill, H.R. 1, prohibits federal funds from reaching agencies that provide family planning services, reproductive health and related care. However, family planning encompasses more than just reproductive or abortion-related services. 'There's so much more involved than just planning for contraceptives,' Marion County Health Department Director David Whittaker said. 'There's many components. There is breast and cervical cancer screenings, there is sexually transmitted disease testing and pregnancy tests. They get to see a doctor, a physician they may not normally get.' The Marion County Health Department doesn't currently offer family planning, but is working on bringing it back. The service was discontinued during the pandemic. Whittaker said the Health Department is targeting July 1 as the return date for family planning services. Whittaker said broadly, family planning can be considered as women's health care. Family planning provides women with checkups for the underlining symptoms of breast and cervical cancer, which help reduce the risk of cancer. He said the teen pregnancy rate can also be lower in areas that provide a comprehensive family planning program. The rate of sexually transmitted diseases is also lower in communities where family planning programs are utilized. Brian Huggins, health officer at the Monongalia County Health Department, said abortion tends to get mixed into family planning because of Planned Parenthood. In states that haven't banned abortion, Planned Parenthood offers the service. However, abortion is banned in West Virginia, meaning health departments like Monongalia and Marion do not offer the service. Family planning, however, can prevent abortion in the first place by providing people with resources that prevent unintended pregnancies. Children born from unwanted conceptions face higher risks in life. 'A lot of the research has show that children that were unwanted conceptions are at greater risk of being born at low birth weight, of dying in the first year of life, of being abused and not receiving sufficient nutrition for healthy development,' Huggins said. Huggins said funding for family planning is handed down by the federal government to the states, and the state distributes the funds. Funding for family planning programs is paid through Title X grants, handled by the Office of Population of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. According to the office's website, Title X family planning clinics have ensured access to a broad range of services for more than 50 years. According to a locator tool on the website, Fairmont Statue University Student Health receives Title X funds, as does the Harrison-Clarksburg Health Department and Community Care of Clarksburg. Whittaker said the Marion County Health Department has received a notice of award for its family planning clinic from the state government. Huggins said family planning does not fall under basic public health services, meaning it can't use state funds which are reserved for things like immunization. Family planning is considered an enhanced service, so the program either has to make money on its own or the funding has to come from an outside source. The federal government covers the funding for a lot of these services, but few Title X programs exist in the state. If H.R. 1 cuts funding for family planning, Huggins said realistically, family planning wouldn't be available in the state. 'It's just another way that people that are already struggling are probably now potentially going to lose access to birth control they need and may end up with unwanted pregnancies, which comes with additional costs,' Huggins said. 'And I talked about the risks to the babies in those situations. 'And our foster care system in West Virginia is also overwhelmed. To lose family planning services could put more kids into that system.' The teen pregnancy rate in West Virginia is 22.5 births per 1,000 girls. Overall, the teen birth rate declined by 50% from 2007 through 2020. According to Mission WV, a community welfare organization, only 50% of teen mothers receive a high school diploma by 22 years of age. Ninety percent of women who do not give birth as teens graduate high school. With funding for family planning being cut, public health experts like Whittaker and Huggins worry the drop in teen pregnancy might reverse. 'A lot of the people that come in are between the ages of 16 into their late 20s, and that's when you're trying to get your life off the ground,' Huggins said. 'So really being able to give them their choice in this, is really critical and important.'
BBC News
9 hours ago
- General
- BBC News
Amenorrhoea: 8 reasons you fit miss your period and you no dey pregnant
To miss periods for women of childbearing age na amenorrhea, and although di best-known cause na pregnancy, many reasons dey why period fit delay or miss. Normal-normal, women of reproductive age dey get dia period every 28 days, although e dey common to get slightly shorter or longer cycles, between 24 and 35 days. Occasional missed period no dey considered as serious problem, but if na issue wey dey happen again and again, e fit be signal to underlying issue. "You need to know yourself and how your body dey work, so you go know wen sometin no dey right. And every woman dey function differently; no two women dey di same," gynaecologist Dr Amira Alkourdin Martinez tell BBC. Di UK National Health Service (NHS), recommend say make you dey consult doctor if you get missed periods for three months back to back and you no dey pregnant, or if your period stop bifor di age of 45. Di Mayo Clinic for United States also recommend medical consultation for girls wey never start to menstruate by age 15. Dis na di eight common causes - excluding pregnancy - wia woman fit experience amenorrhea, according to both institutions. 1. Stress "Stress na di most important reason and a real pandemic of our time," Dr Amira Alkourdin Martinez tok. Stress dey trigger di production of hormones like adrenaline, put di body in a high state of alert as defence mechanism in dangerous situations. Long exposure to dis hormones fit affect menstruation - make cycles dey longer or shorter, cause missed period, or make periods more painful. In some cases, e fit cause make woman experience two periods within di usual four-week cycle. If stress na di cause of a late or missed period, di NHS recommend to take measures like regular exercise or to practice breathing techniques. If dis measures no dey effective, e get cognitive-behavioural therapies (CBT) wey fit help individuals cope with stress and anxiety. 2. Too much or sudden weight loss To seriously restrict calories wey you dey consume fit stop di body from producing di hormones wey dey needed for ovulation. Registered nutritionist fit help patients wey dey underweight, including adults wey get body mass index (BMI) below 18.5, gain weight in a healthy way. Wen weight loss dey caused by eating disorder, like anorexia, di help of a psychiatrist usually dey necessary. 3. Overweight or obesity To dey overweight fit cause di body to produce excess oestrogen, one of di hormones wey dey regulate woman reproductive system. Increased levels of oestrogen fit affect di frequency of periods and, in some cases, cause periods to stop altogether. For women wey dey experience amenorrhoea wey dey overweight or get BMI over 30, doctors often dey refer dem to nutritionist for support to achieve healthy weight. 4. Extreme physical exercise Di physical stress of intense exercise fit also affect di levels of hormones wey dey regulate menstruation, and di loss of too much body fat fit prevent ovulation. For professional athletes, sports medicine specialists fit advise on how dey fit keep performance at di right level of intensity. 5. Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS) Polycystic ovaries dey contain large number of follicles wey be underdeveloped sacs wia eggs dey grow. In women wit dis condition, dis sacs most times no dey able to release eggs, and therefore ovulation no dey happen. For UK, NHS estimate say PCOS dey affect one in 10 women. E dey account for missing periods in 33% of cases. 6. Menopause or Premature Menopause Along wit pregnancy and breastfeeding, menopause na one of di natural causes of amenorrhea. As women dey approach menopause, oestrogen levels begin to drop, and ovulation go become less regular. Menopause normally dey happen between di ages of 45 and 55. However, medical studies estimate say one in every 100 women dey experience menopause bifor di age of 40, a condition wey dey known as premature menopause or premature ovarian failure. 7. Contraceptives Some birth control pills, injections, implants and intrauterine devices fit also cause amenorrhea. Even afta di stop of oral contraceptives, e fit take some time bifor di body ovulate regularly again. 8. Oda medical conditions and long-term medications Menstruation fit also dey absent sake of result of long-term medical conditions like diabetes or hormonal disorders like hyperthyroidism or hypothyroidism. Amenorrhea fit happen sake of certain medications, like antipsychotics, chemotherapy, antidepressants, and treatments for high blood pressure and allergies, according to di Mayo Clinic.
Washington Post
11 hours ago
- Health
- Washington Post
This nonhormonal hot-flash remedy gives options to women, experts say
During breast cancer treatment, Sharity Keith started experiencing hot flashes and night sweats. She had been placed on medications that caused her to start experiencing menopause symptoms. But because of her cancer, she was not a candidate for hormone therapy, which is considered the most effective treatment for many menopause symptoms, including hot flashes and night sweats.
Irish Times
a day ago
- General
- Irish Times
Contraceptive pill pushback: ‘I think the demonising has gone too far'
While writing her latest book, Not Just a Period, Dr Hazel Wallace, a former NHS doctor and health influencer, says she 'stumbled across a dark corner of social media' where 'widely exaggerated' claims were being made about the combined oral contraceptive pill, more commonly known as 'the pill'. In this dark corner, Wallace noticed creators talking about how the pill was damaging women's bodies, causing infertility and other 'often incorrect claims'. It's an online movement that, she says, has led to the pill 'currently going through a bit of a rough patch in terms of its public image'. This move away from the pill isn't all too surprising for Wallace, given the 'huge gap' in research around female health. This knowledge gap, she says, causes women to turn to 'social media for answers because they're not getting the answers from their own doctors or health professionals'. What she's noticed instead is a 'big drive to go back to natural', because of something called 'hormonal phobia', which she explains is an 'irrational fear of artificial hormones ... We see that with lots of other kinds of medications and medical interventions, that people feel like big pharma is out to get them,' she says. READ MORE [ 'Menstrual health affects everything - our work, our relationships, our mental health. Yet it's still whispered about' Opens in new window ] As a medical professional, she falls somewhere in the middle of the debate. 'I'm not saying the pill is amazing, but I'm not saying it's terrible either. I think women need to have all the information. You don't really get all that information in 10 minutes with your doctor.' 'You get the top-line risks, but you don't get all of the risks. For some women, certain forms of contraception can cause less-spoken-about effects like maybe a change in libido or change in mental health ... but some pills are really transformative for women. They allow them to work when they've got really painful periods, they help with their acne. So I think the demonising has maybe gone too far.' In this wide-ranging discussion, Wallace also talks about why periods are still so poorly understood, the benefits of tracking each phase of your cycle and when to seek advice from your doctor. She also discusses her own experience with polycystic ovary syndrome, her decision to freeze her eggs, and why she left the NHS to focus on nutrition and female health. You can listen back in the player above or wherever you get your podcasts.
