Life on Pause; Premature Ovarian Insufficiency With Author and surgeon Siobhan O’Sullivan

Our guest on the podcast today is not only an author of the book, My Life On Pause, and she is also training to be a surgeon. Siobhan O’Sullivan was diagnosed at 31 years old with premature ovarian insufficiency, a condition where the ovaries stop functioning as they should under the age of 40. Siobhan ignored her diagnosis for a number of years feeling betrayed and ashamed by her body, and the impact it on her fertility and how Siobhan felt she was carrying around a big dirty secret. She felt isolated, it was only when she caught covid and had to isolate for 10 days that she was forced to confront her diagnosis and her book, My Life On Pause was born. She is now on a mission to break societal views of womanhood, youth and fertility, giving people a space to be unapologetically themselves. We talk about the impact of menopause in your 30’s, confronting your own fertility, dating and socialising, the stigma of being in your 30’s and single and how Siobhan is redefining her identity. We also ask Siobhan about being a female surgeon.  In the Book Collective we continue reading Caitlin Moran’s, What About Men? We are full of disbelief at chapter 11 The Manosphere and through chapter 12 The Fatherhood of Men it gave us a deeper understanding of our dads. You can join in with our Book Club, send us a DM or voice note with your thoughts on the book. March is Endometriosis Action month with the theme ‘Could it be Endometriosis?’ So Jinty talks endometriosis symptoms and has some startling facts. In the WI find out how our running challenge is jogging along. Plus, we chuck another WI into the mix!It’s another episode brimming with chat, your comments, and all the usual sweary shenanigans! So, settle in for this hour(ish) podcast full of meaningful chat. If you’ve enjoyed our Podcast you may like to consider buying us a Ko-Fi at  https://ko-fi.com/womenkindcollectivepodcastHere you can find updates, photos and some inclusive content we won’t post anywhere else and your donation will help us ensure we continue to bring you great quality of content and sound.Our campaign for a Menopause Clinic in Devon is moving closer but we still need signatures on our petition: https://www.change.org/p/wheresmyclinicOr to send your testimonials please email us: [email protected] finally, if you would like the templates to send to your MP or CCG please visit our website: https://menopauseclinicfordevon.co.uk Siobhan O’SullivanBook: My Life On Pause. Olympia publishersI: @mlop_poiYou can watch the full unedited interview on our YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCFgmHLcdx28eco-XlkWYwUA--- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/womenkindcollectivepodcast/message☕ SUBSCRIBE for honest chats on women’s health, feminist issues, sisterhood & smashing the patriarchy, one cuppa at a time.💛 Enjoying the podcast? Please share, leave us a review or comment!If you would like to you can Buy us a coffee at Ko-Fi: https://ko-fi.com/womenkindcollectivepodcast💬 We love hearing from you, email us your ideas here Jinty & Lou @ [email protected]👀 Join us on instagram here https://www.instagram.com/womenkindcollective?igsh=ZmxmbGs2d3BjcXA1&utm_source=qr🎧 Listen on Apple Podcasts https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/womenkind-collective/id1557937820🎧 Listen on Spotify https://open.spotify.com/show/42KniEtc5WGQhNvREsN1WP?si=e14a83c93a304bb3And all your favourite Podcast PlatformsThank you for Listening Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.