Women’s health issue 'not talked about enough'

Gillian Parkinson is preparing for her talk this weekend, at the latest Waiata in the Woolshed...
Gillian Parkinson is preparing for her talk this weekend, at the latest Waiata in the Woolshed event. PHOTO: SHELLEY INON
A women’s health issue will be stripped bare at a woolshed in the Peel Forest north of Geraldine this weekend.

The free event in the woolshed at Menorca Cottage on Sunday afternoon will see speakers reflecting on their health journeys.

One of them, Gillian Parkinson, is a familiar face in Geraldine.

She will speak about her journey navigating endometriosis and adenomyosis.

Parkinson said ‘‘it is not talked about enough’’.

From a young age, females were taught not to make a fuss.

She had been fobbed off by doctors and told it was something all women experienced.

What made a woman’s health journey more difficult was when it was complicated by trauma, as it left patients disempowered to advocate for themselves.

Parkinson said it was the ripple effect of childhood trauma.

While she was not new to public speaking, she said this would be the most intimate topic she had spoken about.

Preparing for the event was taking a ‘‘tremendous amount of courage’’.

But the thing that kept her going was not knowing who she might be helping.

As an aromatherapist, she said inhaling clary sage was helping her deal with the jitters.

Although the event might have moments which were hard to hear, she said it was vital to speak her truth and not ‘‘dilute’’ anything.

It would be an empowering event.

‘‘Insightful and enlightening, backed with compassion, kindness, patience and care,’’ Parkinson said.

And the main takeaway for audience members?

‘‘Trust your instincts. Always, always trust your instincts.’’

  • Seats for the free event can be booked on Eventfinda. It will be held at the woolshed at Menorca Cottage, 265 Peel Forest Rd, north of Geraldine, on Sunday, 1.30pm-4.30pm.