Sie Pei’s daily life comes to a halt during a migraine attack
Hours on the bathroom floor I had my first attack when I was 23. Headaches that did not disappear with paracetamol, but turned into a maddening pain that lasted for days. Like my head was in a clamp, and at the same time, an impact drill was being held against it. During an attack I […]
As a trans woman, Louisa was not prepared for life after transition
I was sure I was a woman When I was about eighteen, I announced that I wanted to be a woman for the first time. Or actually that I am a woman, born in a man’s body. Through Google, I ended up at Humanitas, a voluntary organisation, where I had nice conversations with a trans […]
Birsen was diagnosed with autism at the age of 21
Lonely As a child, I did not have any friends. I had no idea how to connect. I also did not like unexpected situations. Whenever we went to Turkey for a visit or a holiday, I was constantly upset. I wanted to go back home, where everything was familiar. My parents could not understand my […]
Maxine sustained damage from a heart attack that was overlooked
Misdiagnosis The symptoms started when I was 35. Nausea, fatigue, muscle pain, sweating. I had no energy and looked anaemic. My GP ran all kinds of tests for a few months, and when nothing came up, she diagnosed me with burnout. Sometimes she would even roll her eyes when I returned for another consultation. In […]
Dominique was prescribed PrEP by the GP and later by the GGD
Medication against HIV When I fell in love with a man who was HIV-positive, I was rather nervous. He was on medication, so he was undetectable. That means that the level of virus in his blood was too low to transmit it because of medication. Therefore it was safe to have unprotected sex with him, […]
Yoa has Parkinson’s disease and lives in a residential facility for elderly LGBTI people
An old wretch I was in a relationship with a woman for 20 years. She was a nurse. When I was diagnosed at the age of fifty, she said: ‘If you have Parkinson’s you’re going to be an old wretch and I don’t want that.’ I left the next day. Social work immediately gave me […]
Rosanne (32) is a healthcare psychologist in trans care
‘The most important thing is that you listen properly. That sounds obvious and easy, but it is not.’ Autism spectrum disorder in women When I had just graduated, I worked in addiction care. I was treating a young woman, and her file contained all sorts of diagnoses, including borderline personality disorder. Almost every day, she […]
Mirjam had menopause symptoms that went unrecognised
Vague symptoms Around my 48th birthday, I started having vague symptoms. As if I constantly had the flu: skin pain, dizziness and a ringing in my ears. At first, I got cooperation from the GP. The neurologist and the ENT doctor carried out various exams. I had an operation on my ear, but the symptoms […]
Lidewij had a stroke at the age of 36
Juggling many balls in the air I was always a superwoman. I thought I had to do it all: a full-time job, three children, be a good friend, play sports, organise the family weekends and dance on the table on a night out. ‘My mum does everything’, my daughter would always say. Am I going […]
Kawa (38) is a psychologist and chairperson of a mental health care association
‘Providing good care means knowing that everyone is different, and then treating people equally.’ Her accusations proved true I once had a client from a migrant background in my practice with psychotic symptoms. She accused her GP of racism and said she was not taken seriously. I remember that we saw those allegations as symptoms […]