Have YOU been affected by the 'gender pain gap'? Doctor admits some medics see women as 'dramatic or manic' an

Are you among the one in two UK women who feel their pain has been dismissed because of your gender?

The gender pain bias, which was discussed on Lorraine this morning, showed how many women feel they are treated worse by the health care system because of its innate sexism - with one doctor blaming the medical system as seeing women as 'called dramatic or manic'.

Speaking about the issue, host Lorraine said: 'Now, look, we're on a bit of a mission this morning, aren't we? 

'It's to get women's health taked a bit more seriously by highlighting what's been called the gender pin gap. 

'According to research, half of women feel that their concerns [have been] ignored or dismissed just because they happen to be women when they said they experienced severe pain every day.'

Dr Amir and Dr Nisha spoke about the gender pain gap, which sees woman taken less seriously by the medical system

Discussing the topic on the show were Dr Amir and Dr Nisha, as well as every day women who themselves had suffered from the gender pain gap. 

One woman said: 'I notice a difference whether you've got a male doctor or a female doctor. I think [having] a female doctor as a female patient I feel much more comfortable.'

Another revealed: 'Usually women have a harder time getting their symptoms listened to and having their symptoms heard.' 

According to another woman: 'Women know their bodies very intimately. They know their energies very intimately. And so it's really unfortunate that they're not listened to in the same way.' 

Responding to the women said, Lorraine said: 'Some really intelligent comments there, and it's called this pain gap - and it really is it really is a thing isn't it?'

According to Dr Amir: 'It is. What it refers to is this unconscious bias that women [have] painful and medical conditions either discounted, or not taken as seriously as men's, simply because of their gender.

'And that's because women can be dismissed as the fairer sex, or having lower pain thresholds or being called dramatic or manic.

'All of these terms are misogynistic and applied to women, and not to men. And all of that is resulting in women's painful medical conditions either being delayed in their diagnosis, misdiagnosed, or not getting the right treatment so they're suffering for longer.'

Lorraine (pictured, left) discussed the issue on this morning's programme with two GPs who spoke about gender pain bias

He noted that 'women are actually more at risk of painful medical conditions. as well. 

This is because, he said, 'not only do they have a more complex pelvic anatomy with ovaries and the uterus and all the conditions that go along with that', but also because 'they carry 2x chromosomes, certain conditions are more common in them and because of oestrogen the way it affects the immune system'.

And furthermore, according to Dr Amir: 'It's particularly bad for women from historically marginalised groups of black and brown women because it's deeply rooted, it's historically racist.  

'It goes all the way back to slavery where so-called scientists did inhumane experiments on black women and said things like, "well, they have thicker skulls or they have a less sensitive immune system...or they have superhuman strength so they can tolerate surgical procedures without an anaesthesia". 

'And lots of people may be watching this going well that was then that doesn't happen now. It does happen now. Women from historically marginalised populations have poor health outcomes when compared to white women and a lot of that is due to colour.'

Lorraine pointed out that getting a diagnosis can therefore take a lot longer.

According to research, around half of UK women feel that just because of their gender, their pain has been dismissed 

According to Dr Nisha: 'Right. And it's not just diagnosis, but it's also treatment as well. So one study in the US show that it took 16 minutes longer for a woman to receive painkillers for acute tummy pain than it did compared to a man.

'In another survey, we know that for 47 per cent of women, it took them 11 months to get their diagnosis within that timeframe, but 66 per cent of men got their diagnosis. 

'So there's obviously that gender paying gap there. And we think are women feel that the longer diagnosis times is because people aren't listening to them taking their pain into consideration.'

Dr Amir pointed out that many conditions that go untreated are unique to women.

He explained: 'Women do get periods that is normal, but they shouldn't suffer as a result of it. There are certain pains that women complain about, that they feel they're not taken as seriously as men headaches, back pain, joint pain, gynaecological conditions, you know, painful gynaecological conditions like endometriosis. 

'On average, that takes seven and a half years from symptoms to develop to getting a diagnosis, and that's an incredibly painful condition...but painful periods are not normal.'

He added: 'So women shouldn't have to suffer and they shouldn't have to fight either. The onus should be on us as health care professionals to listen, understand and include them in everything we talk about. '

The research also found out that many women - one in six - suffer with 'severe' pain every day, so are affected by the bias

And Dr Nisha spoke about the importance of raising awareness when it comes to raising awareness, saying 'the narrative needs to change'.  

'This has a massive impact on the economy, one in five women aren't working because of pain,' she said.

'They're not sleeping, some of them they can't exercise, they can't go out...We've got to change things.'

She added how little the topic is known about, revealing: 'When I spoke to my friends about [talking about this on Lorraine today], they were like "the gender pain what?".'

 Dr Nisha concluded: 'Until we raise awareness of this, we can't get industries and organisations to sit up and take note... and take people's pain seriously because no one should have to suffer.'