“because i pushed myself through it, a lot of time, my pain was overlooked as an exaggeration,” she said. “people thought that i wouldn’t be able to do all of that and keep going.”
‘i’m still feeling like i should let them do their job’
the limitations of the health care system also exacerbated her situation, fleming says. her gp’s office had a sign that said, “please bring one concern at a time.”
“so i guess i can’t talk about my pain if i’m here with a gallbladder issue,” she says. “one concern at a time? ok, i’ll wait another six months for an appointment.”
she makes sure to note she’s grateful that canadians have access to a subsidized health care system — but she wishes it worked better.
“i thank god every day that we have health care and that we’re able to go to the doctor,” she says. “but the amount of time that people are waiting for service… our system is very, very broken.”
she felt the brief, impersonal appointments she did get essentially boiled down to “you have arthritis, it really sucks,” she said. “i was just another number.”
it can be hard for women to assert their needs in that kind of setting, no matter who they are, norris says. despite her knowledge of medicine and of gender inequities in health, when she visits the doctor, her instinct is still to keep quiet and defer to their expertise.