Most people have become a little annoyed over all the strange news about the Presidential Election. I do think that many hot social issues have come up despite all the nonsense. Our country has come a long way with equality, but there is still a lot of gender bias.
Many women are angry about the gender roles still around. “Boys will be boys” is still a widely accepted phrase justifying certain behavior. Since many people are uncomfortable talking about women’s health issues, many important topics are unknown to most women.
This is why I want to talk about how many of women’s common health experiences can be even worse for those who have von Willebrand Disease (vWD).
According to The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, von Willebrand Disease is one of the most common bleeding disorders in women. It affects up to 1.3% of all women.
Why is vWD very difficult for women? What are the “secrets” that women with von Willebrand (vWD) have to deal with?
- Monthly Menstruation: Every month women get the lovely gift of having their period. No matter what, on thing is for sure: it is not fun. On top of it, women with vWD can have prolonged and heavy menstrual bleeding. It can end up feeling like having a period for most days out of every month. Now I don’t know about anyone else, but to me this sounds like a living hell.
- There are both hormonal and non-hormonal ways to help manage bleeding, but its just another thing to add to the daily list of crap to deal with. In the opinion of The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, all women who are being evaluated for heavy menstrual bleeding should be examined for common bleeding disorders.
- Diagnosis: Recognizing the symptoms associated with vWD is tough. What’s even worse is that the tests done to confirm vWD rely on the levels of von Willebrand factor in the blood. This can vary due to hormonal fluctuations and cause inconsistent test results. This makes diagnosis super difficult and reliant on a lot of different tests and specialists working together.
- Pregnancy: As I mentioned before, the levels of von Willebrand factor fluctuates with hormones. Imagine not only having mood swings, but changes in your ability (or inability) to clot your own blood?! Stressful stuff.
- During the third trimester, vWD needs to be monitored very closely. This is because there are a lot of things that can or cannot happen depending on the ability to stop excessive bleeding. This is probably one of the last things you would want to have to think about while preparing to bring a tiny version of yourself into the world.
- Children: How can this affect your kid? There is a 50% chance you can pass vWD onto your children because it is a genetically inherited disorder. This is a decision that is different for everyone, but still yet another thing to add to the list of things that are not so easy!
When the stigma of talking about menstruation is changed, women will feel more comfortable talking about their experiences. It is how all individuals can help people with rare diseases. We can change our social culture by participating and encouraging conversations about all health issues.
