Anonymous

I still have a lot of anger about how I was treated by multiple doctors in the process of trying to conceive. The process was very dehumanizing, not person-centered.

Dear Medical Professionals,

One of the things that angers me most is that at no point during two years at two different clinics, did anyone tell me that I should stop or move on to another type of treatment. I wasn’t even given a diagnosis of unexplained infertility. Why were problems initially identified never explored any further?

Doctors at the first facility, you stole my humanity. I was not treated as a person; all you cared about was my reproductive organs. I felt stupid when you chose the timing of the inseminations, rather than work with me based on my menstrual cycle. You chose medical efficiency that fit me into your schedule over patient care. I felt like another item to check off your schedule when you showed up late and didn’t bother with a hello before asking the tech for a smaller catheter. I felt unseen when you referred to a “partner” during consultation. It hurt me that you couldn’t take 30 seconds to glance at my chart to see I was single before starting the consultation.

No one considered mental health or any other aspect beyond the inseminations. Medical care should be about the whole person.

Photo by Hush Naidoo Jade Photography on Unsplash