Women's History Month
What are some unique challenges women with sickle cell face?
The only thing I would add is everything people normally think about before having a baby - the financial costs, health risks - is just tripled with sickle cell. There are way more things I have to think and worry about with pregnancy. It is pretty insane how pregnancy can affect your body and that's even more of a concern with sickle cell, pain crises, needing blood transfusions, more doctors appointments, not being able to take some of the regular pain medications. And then for me the fear of giving my child sickle cell which they will have the trait no matter what but not dating HbSS so they don't have the disease and things like that I'm not sure everyone else thinks about. But I agree with what they said too! It's a lot to think about.
Thank you for chiming in. That is a LOT to think about. -Corene (team member)
I’ll add fertility preservation for women who want to have biological children, the need for holistic psycho-social support at home, understanding the impact of sickle cell on our mental health, knowing the importance of self-care and self-compassion, overcoming medical bias that can negatively affect your care, iron overload, genotype screening of potential suitors to avoid a recurrence of sickle cell disease in future generations, family planning etc. Women are often times the primary caregivers so juggling a career while maintaining their household presents a myriad of problems.
Likesaid, can chime in. I appreciate your insight on this topic. That is a lot to deal with on top of daily life responsibilities. I can't imagine how exhausting that must be. Thank you for your continued contributions here. Best, Corene (team member)
financial difficulties, pain every time Im in my period, discrimination and stigma, being compared to drug addicts, ets. I’m sure and can fill you in on others Thanks for sharing,
. Those sound like very difficult challenges to live with. I actually just read your article on triggers (it was an incredibly insightful read). Since emotions are one of your triggers, do you feel that also makes your periods even more intense? -Corene (team member)
