Let’s talk Little Red Lies™

ON SCREEN TEXT: Bears and sharks can smell your period. True or false?

SUZY: Oh, I think that's true.

LEANDRA: I think so, too.

SUZY: Yeah.

LINDSEY: I saw it on like Snapchat once, I think. Let's do it. True.

ON SCREEN TEXT: FALSE. Period blood does NOT attract sharks and bears.

SUZY: Have we validated this with Shark Week?

ON SCREEN TEXT: Chapter One: The Little Red Lies

ON SCREEN TEXT: Pads were first available in the U.S. in the 1790s. True or false?

SUZY: When did the pilgrims come?

LINDSEY: Yeah, let's go true.

LINDSEY: I want to say true. Yeah.

LEANDRA: Is that true?

LEANDRA: Okay, okay. No way.

ON SCREEN TEXT: FALSE. Pads became commercially available in 1920.

CARLA: That is a scary thought.

LINDSEY: That's a lot of laundry.

ON SCREEN TEXT: Women lose one cup of period blood each month. True or false?

LINDSEY: I know it's really not as much as you see it is really.

CARLA: Think.

SUZY: I'll go true.

ON SCREEN TEXT: FALSE. On average, it’s 2-3 tablespoons.

LEANDRA: Clearly, they don't really have a heavy flow.

ON SCREEN TEXT:: Period blood can kill a man. True or false?

LINDSEY: I'm sure they think that.

LEANDRA: Lots of men would be dead if that were the case.

LINDSEY: False. Please say it's false.

ON SCREEN TEXT:: FALSE. This myth is still common in many countries.

SUZY: These are quite personal questions.

ON SCREEN TEXT:: Chapter Two: The Bigger Picture

JULIANNE: So I just want to thank you guys again for coming. This is so

important, and it's showing people that it's okay to talk about these subjects. What is

it that this day and age, we're so believing period?

CARLA: One is because when things are passed down, sometimes we don't

question and see if it's a valid point.

LINDSEY: You're invalidating my pain and saying, "The moon's full, so it must

be that." Obviously, every woman has a long journey of their menstrual cycle. Some,

it may be easier. For some, it may be harder.

MONIQUE: Raise a hand. Who has PCOS here? We do. Who has endometriosis?

Wow. The majority of us, we all have our own issues.

JULIANNE: Have any of you ever miss school or work because of...

JESSICA: They never really tied the dots that it was happening once a month.

I just like, "I'm always sick." It's tough to be missing work and school and feeling like

you're always left behind.

MONIQUE: Our gynecological things we have going on are also some of the

biggest sources of stress-

JESSICA: And pain.

MONIQUE: And pain and self esteem issues.

GINA: It's very hard being in your head when you have PCOS, when you have

endometriosis, if you have any chronic healthcare condition.

MONIQUE: I think we also all invalidate ourselves like, "Oh, well it's not a big

deal." No, it is. We are not listened to, we are not heard. You have to advocate for

yourself.

GINA: I spent a good five years with people telling me it was in my head.

When I finally found my diagnosis, it's just such a relief.

SUZY: Just because we've had one or 12 bad experiences with a doctor doesn't

necessarily mean that they're all bad. We just have to find the right one.

LINDSEY: I wish I told myself that "Listen to your body. What is your body

saying?"

JESSICA: Writing things down when they happen is probably the number one

thing you could do to advocate for yourself in that doctor's office because of course,

you don't have pain that day. It never happens the day you're there.

GINA: I think the challenge with women's health that comes up is there's still a

lack of research, and there's a lack of conversation, and I feel like that's about to

change.

ON SCREEN TEXT:: 2/10 women have endometriosis or PCOS. Many suffer for 7-11

years before being properly diagnosed. Even more go undiagnosed. That’s not okay...

ON SCREEN TEXT:: You deserve to get answers. Use your tools to talk to your doc

and start your conversation.

ON SCREEN TEXT:: aetna™. This material is for information only and is not a

substitute for diagnosis or treatment by a physician or other health care professional.

Please