"I Was Shamed by My Gynecologist"

"I was 'too young to be making that decision'"

"Every male gyno I've been to refused to give me an IUD because I was 'too young to be making that decision' (I was 25 at the time)." —Dana, 28

"She scolded me for my weight"

"I had already had my first child and was a bit overweight. She scolded me for my weight, suggesting I needed to meet with a nutritionist—which wasn't the worst part. The worst part was when she went to insert the speculum and grumbled, commenting, 'See, I can't even use the regular-sized speculum. I need to get a larger one for you.' Laying there completely vulnerable in stirrups while being shamed for my weight was one of the most humiliating experiences I've ever had." —Gigi, 42

"She said, 'Your cervix is terrible!'"

"About 10 years ago I was on the table and the gyno couldn't find my cervix for swabbing. She started grunting and making huffy noises, clearly indicating she was annoyed. She finally shoved the speculum so far to the side that I almost jumped off the table. She said, 'Your cervix is terrible! What's wrong with you?' I left feeling bruised, embarrassed, ashamed, and crying." —Leah, 45

"Come back when you're in a relationship"

"When I was around 20, I went to my GP and asked her for a prescription for birth control pills, which I hadn't started taking yet. She asked me if I had a boyfriend, I said 'no.' Then, she advised me not to start taking them and said something along the lines of, 'Come back when you're in a relationship.'" —Elizabeth, 33

"She said (very angrily), 'Then why are you having sex?!?'"

"I mentioned something about having an active sex life. My gyno asked me if I was in a committed relationship. I told her I wasn't. She said (very angrily), 'Then why are you having sex?!?'" —Jaya, 26

"He said, 'God, this is small enough for a child.'"

"When I expressed pain when he used the speculum to do my pap, he said, 'God, this is small enough for a child.'" —Alice, 34

"He said, 'I don't even understand why I need to be here right now'"

"I was nearing the end of my first pregnancy when I found out that I was going to need to have a medically necessary C-section. I was a little nervous about the procedure, so I asked for a consultation with the doctor. I just wanted to make sure I understood how everything was going to go. You know, because it is a major surgery! A nurse led me into his office. Then he walked into the room, looked at me like I was an idiot, and said to me in a very condescending tone, 'I don't even understand why I need to be here right now. Do you honestly not know what a C-section is for?' Needless to say, that baby was delivered by a different doctor." —Katie, 33