Why Women Suffer in Silence

Dr Fadi explains how childbirth, ageing and menopause all affect the pelvic floor, and why so many women end up living with stress incontinence, prolapse and faecal incontinence without ever mentioning it to anyone, sometimes for years. He walks through the full range of treatment options available, from physiotherapy and pessaries to urethral bulking, Botox, sacral neuromodulation, robotic surgery, and the mesh procedures that have been paused in Ireland since 2018. 

The Decisions Women Are Rarely Told About 

The conversation also takes in interstitial cystitis, vaginal estrogen, and the impact of long inductions on older mothers. Laura and Dr Fadi discuss the trade-offs women need to weigh up between a vaginal delivery and a caesarean section, and the information they need to make those decisions, which is too often left out of the conversation until it’s too late to plan properly.  

A Different Kind of Perspective 

Dr Fadi closes with a reflection on his time working with Syrian refugees, where he met thirteen-year-old mothers and a twenty-six-year-old grandmother. It's a striking way to end a conversation that's already covered so much, and it puts everything discussed before it into a wider, humbling context. 

This is a genuinely useful one to have on hand, whether it applies to you right now or not. Give it a listen when you can. It's the kind of information worth knowing before you need it.