healthcare — Disabled Girls Who Lift Blog

Let's circle back to Episode 32.
Have you listened?

On that episode, the panel of spoons reconvened from across America to discuss all things prescription medication and marijuana. We talked about scheduling training sessions, symptom management, stigma, shitty doctors, our stupid healthcare system, and more.

Here are a few gems!

GIF shows drag queen, Alaska Thunderf*ck, pouring pink and white pills from an orange bottle into her mouth.

Fuck a stigma, buy that pill organizer. Save a few daily spoons and 'meal prep' those pills folks!

GIF shows Wiz Khalifa alternately smoking two blunts.

You don't have to get high with your friends, or feel pressured to keep up! Marijuana use is medicinal, take your meds as you see fit. Forget the movies, live your life the way it makes sense FOR YOU.

GIF shows Seth Meyers on “Late Night” making two comparisons with his hands, one arm lifted higher than the other.

COMPARISON IS THE THIEF OF JOY. You might find yourself in a room of similar diagnoses with the longest list of meds. Or you might be the only one in the room not taking any meds. Every body is different. Ask questions, sure. But don't give any fucks, focus on you.

GIF shows Kaa the snake (Jungle Book) with colorful hypnotizing eyes saying, “Capitalism.”

Yes, the cannabis industry is kinda bullshit. Buying beautifully packaged edibles at a premium while BIPOC are in prison for possession charges does not feel good. It definitely makes us feel some type of way. It's okay to acknowledge that nuance.

GIF shows a woman from Rock Content pointing down with two hands wearing a #loverocks pride shirt.

Click below or find us on your favorite podcast platform!

Medication, Marijuana, and the Gym! (Panel of Spoons) on Anchor

Large disparities exist between the health of Black and white Americans. Is it because black people are uneducated, poor, or lazy? Is it because black people eat too much fast food, smoke too much weed, and drink too much? Don’t be obtuse.

GIF image showing Donald Glover on “Community” saying, “That’s racist.”

The health gap between Black and White Americans persists BECAUSE OF racism. Racism is a system that engulfs all sectors in America, including healthcare. For example, mortality rates for Black people are 20% higher than White people (1). Black people are more likely to report chronic illness, and black children are more likely than white children to have a disability (2,3). Even socioeconomic status does not account for racial health disparities (4). Rich? Doesn’t matter babe, you black. Same shit.

GIF image showing Desus on “Desus & Mero” saying, “You thought!”

Three paths can lead from racial bias to poor health outcomes for Black Americans. First, being the target of PERSISTENT discrimination takes both a physical and a psychological toll (5). Second, physicians’ perceptions about race create subpar treatments (5). Third, physicians’ implicit bias leads to poor communication and provider-patient interactions (5). And no, being colorblind or “ignoring race” does not fix this problem.

GIF image showing Stephen Colbert on “The Late Show” saying, “But then wouldn’t I be a racist if I thought about racism?

If you call a problem by it’s name, then MAYBE just maybe you can actually work towards solving it. We can't fix what we don't acknowledge. Physicians, providers, and healthcare facilities need to first acknowledge racial disparities in health care, and then work to address it. One step providers can take is to individuate patients, by treating each patient as a unique individual rather than a representative of a race (5). Hard sell apparently. Clinics and facilities can work to aggregate information and audit that data for racial disparities (5). Then use that data to fix it.

TLDR: Healthcare is racist. Might not be capital R racism in all cases, but bias be fucking us up. Do better.