Why Didn't Anyone Tell Me This? | S1 #E9 Dr Marieke Bigg: This won’t hurt: how medicine fails women

Marieke Bigg writes about bodies and culture. She holds a PhD in Sociology from the University of Cambridge, where she studied the technological transformation of human reproduction. She now writes both non-fiction and fiction about the cultural dimensions of biology and bodies. In addition to her books, Marieke writes freelance, hosts podcasts and panels, and collaborates with scientists and biologists to discuss and produce art that conjures new social worlds.

Here latest non-fiction book called This Won’t Hurt (Hodder, Feb 2023). This book is about all the ways medicine is not gender-neutral, from research to treatment to diagnosis. Throughout history, flawed mindsets have paved the way for sub-par treatment, and the prevailing attitudes that still exist today have had terrible repercussions for women and their bodies.

Her current fiction is called Waiting for Ted (Dead Ink Books, October 2022) “After all these years, I was surprised to find that we were still in the process of trying to assemble two fully self-sustaining parts into one.”

In this episode, Marieke will explain how research into women’s bodies has failed women so far.  The conversation opens with a discussion of female ejaculation and how Masters and Johnson ignored this, even though 40% of women experience it. We discuss how Marieke feels about medicalising women’s health, such as the narrative that all menopausal women need HRT. And how so many diseases are misunderstood in women as we are not the same as men, such as heart disease, cancer and pain. And we talk about the future of sexy science, such as Femtech and artificial wombs.

For more information and to access the transcript: https://joyceharper.com/podcasts/

Date of episode recording: 2023-03-22
Duration: 35.57
Language of episode: English
Presenter: Joyce Harper
Guests: Marieke Bigg
Producer: Joyce Harper 

What is Why Didn't Anyone Tell Me This? ?

Season 4 Joyce Harper is Professor of Reproductive Science at the Institute for Women’s Health, University College London, author, public speaker, scientist and host of the podcast Why Didn’t Anyone Tell Me This? Together with expert guests and people with lived experience, this podcast offers practical tools to help you build a life of good health and happiness. www.joyceharper.com Instagram, TikTok: @profjoyceharper Facebook: Global Women Connected