CW: vomiting, medical, medical incompetence, and pyloric stenosis
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Scheduled my MRI this morning and the person asked me if I had any abdominal surgery. I said I had to have my pyloric valve fixed because of pyloric stenosis and I'm ngl I don't think she had ever heard of it before so that's fun. So please let me educate y'all.
Pyloric stenosis is a condition in which the opening between the stomach and small intestine thickens. It typically occurs most often in male babies under six months. When this occurs, it means the pylorus muscles block food from entering the small intestines.
When this happens, it typically means the infant is going hungry while actually eating. This leads to forceful vomiting, dehydration, and weight loss. This does not resolve itself and requires medical intervention. More often than not, it may require surgery to correct.
Now, I'm gonna go back to the first part a bit. I said it typically occurs in boys, but it also occurs in girls too. I am the example of this. Because of this, our doctors did not think I had pyloric stenosis—they'd only seen it in boys. However, because of this, the doctors insisted it was reflux. This was dangerous because I could have died because of this. Thankfully, my parents were persistent, and the nurse treating me knew about the symptoms from boys, so she was like, "I think I know what this is."
We were LUCKY to have had that nurse because without her, I might not be here right now. So if the drs are trying to tell you your baby is fine, it's just reflux, meanwhile your baby is projectile vomiting? Demand a pyloric stenosis test.
If they say "oh but it's a boy's illness", then call them out on that sexism. It's not just a boy's illness. Girls can be affected by it too. And this goes for ANY "gender-specific" illness. Demand that test because it might save your life or your baby's.
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