Australia’s first inquiry into women’s pain, was designed to respond to what has been described as the “gender pain gap”, the growing recognition that women’s pain is not taken as seriously, or managed as effectively, as men’s. At the heart of it all? Structural stigma. Here, we delve into the results of the inquiry.

We spoke with Gillian Love, Assistant Professor in Sociology and Criminology at the University of Sussex. Her work spans abortion, fertility, parenthood, and trans inclusion in perinatal services. Her message is simple: stigma shapes whether people feel safe enough to seek treatment, and that can be life and death.