Host: When it comes to our personal lives, some subjects are a bit more delicate to discuss than others. In fact, many people especially women would rather suffer in silence than discuss those embarrassing health related topics with even their closest friends. Well here to open that Pandora’s Box and let out some of the most common taboo health topics women are reluctant to share, is Gynecologist Dr. Lauri Romanzi. Hello doctor.
Dr. Lauri Romanzi: Good morning. How are you?
Host: And today, we're talking about topics no one really likes to discuss but you say really should be brought on unto the open.
Dr. Lauri Romanzi: Oh they absolutely should. Everyday in my office, I have women coming to me with their secret problems, I call them and one of the biggest ones is bladder control.
Host: Bladder control? Really?
Dr. Lauri Romanzi: Bladder control.
Host: And that is something, you know, you don’t want to let everyone know that you are having problems going to the bathroom.
Dr. Lauri Romanzi: Oh nobody. It’s terribly embarrassing and there is a recent Harris Poll put up by TENA that showed that up to 40% of women with bladder weakness are still a credibly reluctant to discuss it and up to 20% of them are so terribly affected that they change the way they dress, you know, they feel like it’s destroying their lives. It’s a huge problem.
Host: Why do think it should be brought out into the open?
Dr. Lauri Romanzi: To increase the comfort level so that women will come for it sooner. You know I see women everyday who have dealt with problem for decades—literally decades and wait until it’s—
Host: It’s nothing new—it’s not.
Dr. Lauri Romanzi: No.
Host: And there are so many women who are having these issues, so go ahead and talk about it. The next one, I think a lot of people don’t like me saying the word ‘hemorrhoids.’
Dr. Lauri Romanzi: No they don’t.
Host: I get embarrassed just saying it but—
Dr. Lauri Romanzi: Oh my goodness, yes, bladder control and hemorrhoids are something that often crap up after pregnancy and can then recur throughout your life. They ca be painful or not. They can be cause medically disfiguring or not. There are all sorts of non surgical ways of treating them and the early you treat them, the better response you get. So, if you have hemorrhoids and they are bothering you in anyway, get right into the doctor.
Host: And although these topics are very difficult to discuss, you say good resources to go online to look up information and discuss.
Dr. Lauri Romanzi: That is right. A lot of women find the internet very reassuring. They go there first, they realize that they are no the only ones and it makes easier for them to come forward. And one great website is tena.us which has exercise program there and their Core Wellness Program, it is a DVD that is free and it is an excellent way to get your pelvic floor in shape which is a very good treatment for a lot of bladder control problems.
Host: And we are—we are discussing bladder control, hemorrhoids, what are some of the other big ones that you hear that women are just terrified to talk about.
Dr. Lauri Romanzi: Menopause. Menopause is a big one. A lot of women as they get toward menopause and start having symptoms and what have you are very reluctant to discuss it. They will often go to the doctor complaining of symptoms if the symptoms are bad enough but one of the biggest issues with menopause is that they are health issues that you want to consider as you move through menopause that can be affected by the hormone changes like cardio vascular health, bone health, even mental clarity and cognitive function can be affected by menopause.
So, if you are having—you are starting to have menopausal symptoms, particularly if you are having them very early, well in advanced in age 50, you want to get into your doctor to talk about some of the preventive aspects.
Host: What would you say to women who are having some of these problems and maybe even others that they don’t want to discuss? What would be your advice?
Dr. Lauri Romanzi: You have to discuss it. You can’t just ignore. It’s your life you need to take care of it and if you are fortunate to live in this country where we have so many resources and so many different specialist who are ready to help you, all kinds of information and to not take advantage of that as simply silly.
Host: Bring it out in the open. Thank you so much doctor for joining us today.
Dr. Lauri Romanzi: Thank you.
Host: Hopefully this will help a lot of women.
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