4: Did I Dream?

What happens when a doctor's dismissal leads you to question your own sanity? This is what patient advocates call "medical gaslighting." Lara Parker knows all about the consequences of not being believed. She lives with pain all over her body. She's passed out from the pain multiple times. She's constantly nauseous, has horrible cramps, and has chronic vaginal and vulvar pain. But, after years of dismissal from doctors, Lara starts to wonder: Am I imagining it?

What is Tight Lipped?

Tight Lipped is a storytelling podcast that makes public what is often thought of as “private pain.” We ask big questions about female chronic pain. We explore how gender, race, sexual orientation and class impact women and non-binary folks' experiences of healthcare and of their own bodies. Our show focuses on conditions that are extremely common (like vestibulodynia, vaginismus and endometriosis), yet carry with them a social stigma and often impact mental health, identity and intimate relationships.