The price of medical misogyny
Sent home with paracetamol. Retiring with 25% less. Sound familiar?
If you’ve ever been told it’s ‘just anxiety’, you already know this story.
If you’ve ever been sent home with paracetamol, waited years for a diagnosis, or been made to feel dramatic for describing your own pain – you may have encountered medical misogyny.
March is Endometriosis Awareness Month, and for many women and gender-diverse people, endometriosis is where gender bias in healthcare becomes painfully real.
Endometriosis affects an estimated 1 in 7 uteruses in Australia. It’s a chronic condition in which tissue that’s supposed to line the uterus grows outside it as well. This can cause severe pelvic pain, fatigue, infertility and organ complications.
For Natasja, the disruptive pain and heavy bleeding would leave her bed-bound – but the psychological symptoms from hormone imbalances made things even worse. “Anxiousness, moodiness, existentialism and dread were only compounded by that disruption into a real sense of loneliness,” she recalls. “I missed school. I missed swim training. I missed uni, then work. I missed parties and moments of community building.”
Natasja was finally diagnosed at 22, having suffered throughout her menstrual life. On average, diagnosis takes an average of six and a half years.
That’s six years of being told to ‘monitor it;’, of pushing through work. And of your body being treated as an inconvenience. This is a structural issue, more than a health one.
What’s ‘medical misogyny’?
You may have seen the term ‘medical misogyny’ in media coverage. It describes gender bias in healthcare – where women’s pain and symptoms are more likely to be dismissed, minimised or misattributed.
With endometriosis, patients who share their experiences are often invalidated, trivialised or dismissed – told it’s ‘normal’, ‘not that bad’, which often puts people off seeking further treatment. More than half of global endometriosis patients surveyed in 2023 were told to have a baby to treat their endo.
Natasja grew up in an area with few female doctors - “the waiting list to see one was six months.” As she pursued a diagnosis, “the second GP I saw called me ‘melodramatic’. I knew something beyond just menstruating was wrong. My mother told me that her pain as a teen had been so bad she once tore her bedsheets – and she’d also been told she was melodramatic.” But this family history was dismissed. “It’s not some Mitchell-esque hysteria. It’s lived experience. Hers and mine.”
When Natasja later moved to the city and saw a female GP, she found more empathy, but not much more knowledge of the condition.
In November 2025, the Victorian Government released the final report of its landmark Inquiry into Women’s Pain. More than 13,000 people contributed. The findings were clear: many women experience their pain being ignored, downplayed or inadequately treated, with significant consequences for their work, mental health and quality of life.
The Inquiry made 27 recommendations aimed at closing what it described as a ‘gender pain gap’, including improving research, clinical training and models of care.
This isn’t about individual doctors. It’s about systems that were historically designed around male bodies as the default – in research, in clinical trials and in diagnostic frameworks.
When the system underestimates women’s pain, the ripple effects don’t stop at the clinic door.
The economic cost of not being believed
Endometriosis alone is estimated to cost the Australian economy billions each year in healthcare expenses and lost productivity.
To illustrate its economic impact at an individual level, Natasja counts the cost of her diagnosis.
“My journey to diagnosis alone totalled over $5,400 – mostly on regular GP appointments, specialist consults, ultrasounds, blood testing, genetic testing, stool testing, all the bloody testing... then eventually, a laparoscopy. This is just what I paid for, not including what my parents spent at the GP and pharmacy when I was a teen.”
Since that diagnosis, she estimates she still spends around $1,360 a year managing her condition via LARC, specialist check-ins, pain medication, physio and an anti-inflammatory diet.
Then there’s the lost earnings - “not something we talk about enough,” Natasja says. “Before my diagnosis I took a lot of sick days, then annual leave days.
“As a shift worker, you have nowhere to go. I remember as a swim coach there was a morning I couldn’t afford to miss, though I was vomiting from pain in the toilets between stroke corrections and sprints. The financial stress is so real, and so unsung.” Only when she was on a full-time salary did Natasja feel free to take the time she needed to pursue a diagnosis. “And when I did find the doctor who took my pain seriously, his initial consult fee was $435 – totally inaccessible to most people.”
Many people with endometriosis reduce their hours, take extended leave, change careers or exit the workforce entirely because unmanaged pain makes full-time work unsustainable. More than 1 in 6 lose their employment due to managing the disease, and 1 in 3 are overlooked for promotion. 70% have to take unpaid time off to manage symptoms.
And endometriosis is just one example.
When menopause hits, around 13% of women reportedly leave the workforce due to their symptoms, retiring an average of 7.4 years earlier than men and missing out on an average $155k in the process.
Modern medicine still also regularly dismisses the link between hormones and mental health. Women with low mood or anxiety might be sent home with antidepressants or told it’s just part of ageing, without any assessment of the underlying cause. In reality, hormone changes show up around the body, including brain function and mental health.
From autoimmune conditions to heart disease (which can present differently in women), gender bias in diagnosis and treatment has been widely documented internationally.
As well as interrupting earning capacity, delays and misdiagnoses prolong suffering unnecessarily.
“Getting diagnosed sooner would have benefited me financially, socially and psychologically,” Natasja says of her endo. “Lots of women share a mutual feeling of relief when they’re finally diagnosed, which really speaks to the psychological torture of not knowing.”
So how does all this affect women’s retirement balances?
High medical and healthcare costs impact people's ability to save... but more directly, superannuation is tied to wages. When income drops, so do contributions. That impacts not just our today, but our future.
Overlay that with the existing gender pay gap – currently 21.1% in Australia’s private sector, meaning women earn on average 79 cents for every dollar earned by men – and the impact compounds over time.
By retirement, women have around 25% less super than men on average. And women live longer. So when we talk about medical misogyny, we’re also talking about economic inequality.
Less belief > less care > less income > less super. Not very bloody fair.
What needs to change
The Victorian Inquiry was a powerful step. It acknowledged what women have been saying for decades: the problem is real. But recognition is only the beginning.
For a fairer system, we need:
More funding for research into women’s reproductive and chronic pain conditions.
Clinical education that properly addresses sex and gender differences in symptoms.
Workplace policies that support people managing chronic illness without financial penalty.
Super settings that don’t punish people for time out of the workforce.
What we don’t need? Relying on women’s individual resilience to survive structural bias.
What you can do right now
You shouldn’t have to become an expert to be taken seriously – and you shouldn’t have to fight for your healthcare. But until systems fully catch up, there are practical steps that can help protect both your health and your financial future.
In the healthcare system
Keep a written timeline of symptoms and their impact
“Keep a symptom journal,” Natasja says. “I used to resent having to collect evidence or proof in a way that somehow discredited my word, but I came to learn this is critical in differentiating certain women’s health conditions, while also laying the foundations for better treatment or management.”
Bring a support person if you can
“A friend, family member or whatever,” says Natasja. “Someone you trust and can be vulnerable in front of, so they can advocate for you if you fall foul of medical misogyny. They can also take down information and help you navigate next steps when it feels overwhelming.”
Ask questions
“Ask what other diagnoses are being considered ... and seek a second opinion if something feels dismissed,” Natasja suggests.
Understanding your rights and researching your condition and taking notes of your symptoms and consultations can all help you to advocate for yourself. Here’s some more great tips for navigating gender bias in healthcare.
At work
Adapt Verve Super's workplace policy
Our parent company’s workplace policies include paid Menstrual and Menopause Leave for better support in the workplace, something Verve has been advocating for in Parliament.
Like all our workplace policies, it’s open-source, so you can copy and paste, adapt and edit and share with your employers to advocate for more supportive policies for endometriosis and other women’s health conditions. (Please seek appropriate advice and consider the specifics when determining suitability for your organisation.)
In your super
Use your health benefit
Remember, as a member you already have access to expert medical consultations through Verve Super, thanks to your 360Health benefit. Specialist menopause support and expert medical opinion services are available to you at no extra cost, saving you money on diagnoses and management plans.
Reduce impact on your savings
If illness has disrupted your work history, small financial resets can matter. Here’s a few things you can do to reduce the impact.
Check for multiple super accounts and consolidate if appropriate to reduce duplicate fees.
Review your contribution history after periods of leave.
If and when manageable, consider small additional contributions. Even modest amounts can compound over decades and help your super catch up.
Verve Super membership also includes access our team of coaches, who can help you make a catch-up plan that works for you.
We’re not done having this conversation
At Verve, we exist because the financial system wasn’t designed with women front of mind. The same can be said for parts of our healthcare system.
Calling that out isn’t about blame. These are deep structural inequalities ensnared in years of traditional patriarchy. Calling it out gives governments, medical schools and health providers an opportunity to build something better.
Women and gender-diverse people deserve to be believed – in clinics, in workplaces and in the economy. And we’ll keep pushing for systems that reflect that truth.
Because women’s pain is real. And our retirement security matters, too.