#pain meds are meds not some evil drug that should be withheled

[ziggy-solarecreator]

i had an IUD put in before I finally got my hysterectomy (and it took 20 years to get THAT because of the patriarchy) and it wasn’t until a year ago I learned you can request pain meds for that procedure - which was excruciating for me.

but we’re just expected to suffer when it comes to our nether regions, aren’t we?

Medically speaking, informed consent does not just apply to things you want done to you or for you, it also applies to things that you don't want done to you or things you don't want withheld from you.

I don't think a lot of people realize that, and I don't think a lot of medical professionals want to acknowledge that, because it means they would have to reevaluate the ethics of denying treatment to patients. Also they would have to reckon with their patients' agency and right to self-determination. Both of those things really freak some medpros out.