Keisha Ray, PhD, was recently quoted in Oprah Daily in an article titled, “Getting an IUD Doesn’t Have to be Painful. Here’s What Your Doctor May Not Be Telling You.” The article discusses what to expect when considering IUD insertion and how to advocate for oneself, particularly related to pain control.
Ray commented that the politicization of reproductive healthcare may complicate patients’ requests for pain control for the procedure. She also noted, “Women’s health is underfunded and understudied,” explaining that enslaved Black women were frequently experimented on in the development of many gynecological tools and procedures. Belief that Black women are biologically less sensitive to pain than their white counterparts persists, as do beliefs that women’s sexual organs are hardy, further complicating pain management for this and other gynecological procedures.