Rise In Women Turning To ‘Dr Google’ For ‘Unusual’ Symptoms: At different stages of your life, you may have questions about women’s health, such as periods, discharge, and abnormal bleeding.
New research from Bupa Health Clinics shows a greater need for women’s health awareness, with an increase in women turning to Dr Google for their ‘unusual’ health worries, rather than speaking to their GP. Our research also found that 1 in 5 women said they wouldn’t visit their doctor if they had pelvic pain or an unusual discharge or bleeding, and 1 in 3 women admitted they wouldn’t see a doctor if they had bleeding outside of their usual menstrual cycle.
You may be googling your symptoms because you worry about wasting your doctor’s time. However, no problem is too ‘embarrassing’ or ‘unusual’ to share. GP surgeries are open and here to listen to your concerns. Your health worry isn’t a waste of time – symptoms like abnormal bleeding and unusual discharge can be a sign of a serious health problem, so it’s best to always get checked.
While the internet is a good starting point, it shouldn’t be your final answer to diagnosing your symptoms. There’s no doubt it can sometimes be uncomfortable to talk to your doctor about private worries going on with your body.
Here Dr Sam Wild, Bupa’s Clinical Lead for Women’s Health and GP, share these recent findings, along with expert advice on when to see a doctor about your ‘unusual’ symptoms.
Menstrual cycle
A growing number of women in the UK have turned to Google for support with their menstrual cycle, with 47% more women asking, ‘is it normal to miss a period?’, over the last 12 months.
As well, 81% more women are asking whether it’s normal to feel sick on your period and 65% asked whether it’s normal for your period to be late.
For some women, their menstrual cycle is regular which means the same duration at the same time every month. Others may experience irregular periods. Some women’s periods are lighter while others have heavy periods, and it can vary even for the same woman. Some women’s periods are painful, while others are pain-free.
Tracking your menstrual cycle is a great way to get to know your body better and learn what’s normal for you. It will help you to quickly spot any unusual discharge, abnormal bleeding, or any unusual symptoms, and to flag these changes with your doctor.
Being able to recognise patterns in your emotions can be beneficial for those who experience either PMS (premenstrual syndrome) or PMDD (Premenstrual dysphoric disorder) symptoms, too. If you notice certain symptoms before your period is due, understanding why you’re feeling this way can really help.
Abnormal bleeding
Any abnormal bleeding should be checked out by your doctor, particularly if the bleeding occurs during or after sex.
We’ve seen an 400% increase in women searching online for whether it’s normal to get your period again after a week, and an 850% increase for ‘is it normal to have your period twice in one month?’ over the last 12 months.
If you usually have a regular cycle, a change in your cycle (such as suddenly having two periods in a month) could indicate an infection or other conditions such as polyps, and cervical and endometrial cancer (cancer of the womb) will need to be considered and excluded.
Pain during sex should never be ignored either, as it could be a sign of endometriosis or an infection. You should always discuss any concerns about abnormal bleeding or pain with your doctor. No issue or worry is too embarrassing it’s always best to get checked by your GP.
Vaginal discharge
Another area we’ve seen increases in is vaginal discharge. 376% more women are asking ‘is it normal to have discharge every day’, and there has been a 50% increase in women wanting to know what ‘normal discharge’ is over the last 12 months.
Whilst vaginal discharge isn’t usually anything to worry about, an unexplained change, along with any other symptoms like itchiness, pelvic pain, and bleeding during sex, can be sign of an infection.
So, it’s important to get any unexplained abnormal changes checked by your doctor.
Three ways to make women’s health your priority
Attend your smear test
Having regular cervical screening will identify any abnormalities – these may not be cancerous, and mild abnormalities don’t always need to be treated. Even if you’re showing no unusual symptoms, you must attend your checks as these can detect abnormalities before you start showing any symptoms. Early detection is key to effectively treating cancers; attending all appointments – even if you’re feeling well – is vital.
Depending on the result, you may need to have treatment to remove or destroy the abnormal cells. In any case, your GP should contact you with next steps, and will be able to answer any concerns you have.
Reach out if you spot anything unusual
With most female health concerns, the key is spotting and treating problems early. You should regularly check your body to spot any changes. Becoming more aware of how your body looks and feels will help you to feel confident about noticing any changes. If you do spot anything unusual, it’s important to speak to your GP and get this checked as soon as you can.
Unusual symptoms – such as a change in vaginal discharge or abnormal bleeding – should always be shared with your doctor. There’s no doubt it can sometimes be uncomfortable to talk to your doctor about private worries going on with your body. But it’s important to remember we’re here to help and no problem is too ‘embarrassing’ or ‘unusual’ to share.
Confide in your friends
Everyone’s experience of getting your health checked is different – one way to ease your nerves is to open-up about how you’re feeling with your loved ones. Your friends may share their own experiences, and this can help to calm your nerves.
Samantha Wild qualified as a General Practitioner in 2001 and was a partner in a busy NHS practice for 13 years. She joined BUPA in 2015 as a Primary Care Physician carrying out Health Assessments and private GP consultations.
Throughout her career she has developed a particular interest in women’s health, paediatrics, and safeguarding, and is passionate about shifting the stigma surrounding many female health related subjects. Via her writing, lectures, podcasts and live Q&A events, she hopes to empower women to receive the correct information and enable them to develop the confidence to deal with their concerns.
- Rise in women turning to ‘Dr Google’ - 14th June 2021
