A review by skoppelkam
Doing Harm: The Truth about How Bad Medicine and Lazy Science Leave Women Dismissed, Misdiagnosed, and Sick by Maya Dusenbery

3.0

I didn't read this in entirety, as it seemed redundant and frankly I needed to return it to the library before I left for the summer. BUT I really want every doctor/nurse/medical professional to read this, as well as every non-male person who has ever sought medical care. Dusenbery is extremely thorough in her examination of the way that women's healthcare has been systematically excluded from research throughout the 20th century, leading to an astounding ignorance of our bodies. While I went into this hoping for more information about reproductive health, I do think its cool how she chose to focus on non-reproductive health issues and the way they can manifest differently across genders. I feel like this book is the ammunition I have needed in so many frustrating conversations, and I'm glad Dusenbery took the time to put this out into the world. I am reading this alongside "Ask Me About My Uterus" by Abby Norman, and the two pair quite well. The lingering legacy of the diagnosis of hysteria is something that everyone should read up on.