Dr. Alopi Patel and Dr. Meera Kirpekar, better known to their patients and followers as the Female Pain Docs, are anesthesiologists and pain medicine specialists who met during training and quickly realized they shared more than just a career path. They shared a mission to make women’s pain visible, measurable, and treatable. Together, they founded The Female Pain Docs, a platform dedicated to education, advocacy, and innovation in women’s pain medicine, particularly in the area of chronic pelvic pain.

In this episode, we talk about what it means to be women, and women of color, n a field that is 87% male, how gender and cultural stigma still silence women in pain, and why pelvic pain remains one of the most under-diagnosed and undertreated conditions in medicine Dr. Patel and Dr. Kirpekaralso discuss their pioneering use of interventional therapies, from nerve blocks to neuromodulation, and how education and empathy are as essential as any procedure.

We explore why women’s pain is still dismissed as “psychological,” how centuries of bias continue to shape diagnosis and treatment, and what needs to change in both policy and medical training to ensure women are believed. From cultural taboos to systemic failures, this conversation is a powerful reminder that women’s pain is not invisible, inevitable, or imaginary—it’s data that deserves to be studied and treated with urgency.

Episode Resources:

The Pain Gap

Instagram: alopipatelmd, meerakirpekarmd, and thefemalepaindocs

To learn more about Anushay Hossain's work, check out Anushay's website or sign up for her substack. To continue the conversation, feel free to DM @anushayhossain or email me at [email protected]