Misdiagnosed

Women are all too familiar with the struggle to get their symptoms taken se...

Women are all too familiar with the struggle to get their symptoms taken seriously by doctors. These are their stories, plus pro tips for how you can take charge of that gut feeling that something's wrong.

It Happened to Me: Real talk from women who've been there

Lyme Disease

This Woman Went to Her Doctor With Lyme Disease Symptoms, and Was Told to 'Try Meditation'

At a specialist's office, Katie Wood explained she felt very unwell and bel...

At a specialist's office, Katie Wood explained she felt very unwell and believed it was related to a tick bite. "He looked me up and down and replied, 'You don’t look unwell,'" she recalls.

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Mind & Body

This Woman Refused to Leave the Hospital Until Doctors Properly Diagnosed Her Terrible Pelvic Pain

"You have to help me, something is very wrong," she begged the third ER doc...

"You have to help me, something is very wrong," she begged the third ER doctor she saw. He listened to her and did the right tests, and a much more serious diagnosis emerged.

Pregnancy

If It Looks Like a Miscarriage, It Usually Is. For Me, It Wasn't—I Was Still Pregnant

Cancer

For 6 Years, Doctors Kept Telling Me I Had PMS—but It Turned Out to Be Brain Cancer

Karissa Ostheimer, 34, regularly experienced brief yet terrifying episodes ...

Karissa Ostheimer, 34, regularly experienced brief yet terrifying episodes that left her frozen and unable to speak. But only when she had one behind the wheel and crashed her car did doctors consider they could be related to something far more serious than her period.

Sexual Health

My Vagina Felt Like It Was on Fire for a Year—but Doctors Kept Telling Me It Was Just a Yeast Infection

Breast Cancer

Doctors Kept Dismissing My Back Pain—Until I Was Finally Diagnosed With Terminal Cancer

One doctor insisted Tori Geib's pain was caused by depression; another ...

One doctor insisted Tori Geib's pain was caused by depression; another brushed it off as work stress. Then the truth emerged: She had stage 4 breast cancer that had spread to her spine.

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Sexual Health

When I Told My Doctor I Thought I Had Endometriosis, He Said, 'Stop Practicing Google Medicine'

Lina Kharnak's gut feeling about what was behind her terrible pain turn...

Lina Kharnak's gut feeling about what was behind her terrible pain turned out to be right.

Anxiety

"I'm Not Leaving Your Office Until You Help Me." What It Took to Get the Right Diagnosis.

After my first panic attack, it took a full year to discover the real reaso...

After my first panic attack, it took a full year to discover the real reason for my racing heart and constant exhaustion.

Infertility

After a Decade of Skin, Hair, and Weight Issues, I Was Finally Diagnosed With PCOS

Sasha Ottey, executive director of PCOS Challenge: The National Polycystic ...

Sasha Ottey, executive director of PCOS Challenge: The National Polycystic Ovary Syndrome Association, wants other girls and women to have an easier time getting a diagnosis than she did.

Cold flu and sinus

I Thought I Had the Flu—but It Turned Out to Be Sepsis

This dangerous infection robbed Amanda Flores of her arms and legs. Here, s...

This dangerous infection robbed Amanda Flores of her arms and legs. Here, she recalls the flu-like symptoms that progressed until she was near death, and her hard-won fight to adjust to her new normal as a quadruple amputee.

IBS

Imagine Feeling Lousy Every Single Day for 7 Years. That Used to Be Me.

After fighting for years to get to the bottom of symptoms like bloating, pa...

After fighting for years to get to the bottom of symptoms like bloating, pain, and digestive distress, Ashley Walkley finally found out what was wrong.

Multiple Sclerosis

Selma Blair Says Doctors Didn't Take Her Seriously for Years Before She Was Diagnosed With Multiple Sclerosis

She cried tears of relief when she finally got the diagnosis.

Lung Cancer

Doctors Thought She Had Asthma. It Was Actually Stage 4 Lung Cancer.

For months, Vicky Veness was misdiagnosed with asthma. Her viral Facebook p...

For months, Vicky Veness was misdiagnosed with asthma. Her viral Facebook photo proves that you don't always look sick when you have a life-threatening illness.