Season 1 (Part 1) | Episode 2: Strength, Dismissed Pain & Being Your Own Advocate

☎️ Episode 2: Strength, Dismissed Pain & Being Your Own AdvocateSometimes strength looks like survival, especially when your pain keeps being dismissed.When you’re constantly told you’re fine, the body starts to protect itself by going quiet.In this episode of Hysteria Hotline, Vesna, Paula, and Jacky explore the complicated relationship between strength, pain, and dissociation and what it means to live in a body that medicine too often refuses to see.Vesna opens up about how her body learned to survive through dissociation, the kind of numbness that looks like resilience from the outside but feels like absence from the inside. Jacky shares her own experience of being dismissed by doctors, the disbelief that left her questioning her own instincts, and the slow process of rebuilding trust in her body. Paula brings insight from inside the healthcare system, naming how women’s pain is too often minimised and how that fuels the cycle of silence and shame.Together, they talk about:* The fine line between strength and shutdown* How dissociation can look like coping, but keeps us disconnected* The exhaustion of self-advocacy and the power of finally being believedThis conversation is raw, reflective, and deeply human, a reminder that real strength isn’t about enduring pain silently, but about finding your way back to yourself after being dismissed.💌 Subscribe for honest conversations about women’s health, invisible illness, and healing, because being strong shouldn’t mean being silent.🎙️ Listen now → Episode 2: Strength, Dismissed Pain & Being Your Own Advocate(Available wherever you get your podcasts.)Disclaimer:Hysteria Hotline is for listening, laughing, and occasionally raging, not for medical advice. This podcast contains strong language, sensitive topics, personal stories, blunt opinions, biting truths, and the horrors of the patriarchy. By tuning in, you accept that we’re here to expose bias, share experiences, and spill the tea on medical nonsense — not prescribe treatment, give medical advice or diagnose.If you have health concerns, always seek the guidance of a qualified healthcare provider with any questions regarding a medical condition. For everything else like commiseration, validation, and a healthy dose of outrage, then you’re in the right place.Side effects may include laughter, rage, validation, and the sudden urge to demand better care.By listening, you acknowledge that the hosts and producers of Hysteria Hotline are not responsible for any actions taken based on the content of this podcast. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit hysteriahotline.substack.com