Dr. Melody McCloud on Black Women's Wellness
Dr. Melody T. McCloud author of “Black Women’s Wellness” joins us to discuss the unique challenges Black women face in healthcare. Referencing comparative data for Black, White, Hispanic, Asian, and Native American women, Dr. McCloud gives women comprehensible, actionable information to live healthier lives. We discuss underserved demographics, why representation matters, and how health education will lead to generations of healthier families. Listen in!
More on Dr. Melody T. McCloud:
Website: drmccloud.com
Twitter: @DrMelodyMcCloud
Instagram: @drmmccloud
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Quotes:
Black women's health data, statistics, and outcomes are not always equal to the majority. I want people to realize even though that has been our history, we need to take steps and create a new legacy of health and wellness. Dr. Melody T. McCloud
I wanted to have a comprehensive resource for women. I wanted a directed focus, but I include women's information for everybody: Black, White, Hispanic, Asian, and Native American. Dr. Melody T. McCloud
If you’re spending money at the hairdresser or getting your nails done or you're buying a Gucci bag, you have some money to go to the doctor. A yearly checkup could save your life. Dr. Melody T. McCloud
Show Notes:
Dr. Melody McCloud: I'm an only child. I grew up poor in Washington Heights, part of New York City.
Dr. Melody McCloud: I kind of didn't have any support. So but fortunately, I kept my head down.
Dr. Melody McCloud: Reverend Walker was Dr. King's executive administrative assistant. He was my pastor. And he did help me out tremendously.
Dr. Melody McCloud: The inspiration for me to go into medicine was I actually had a black female pediatrician when I was a little girl.
Dr. Melody McCloud: Hearing that she helped people feel better, I guess that had an imprint on my mind and my spirit, and my heart.
Dr. Melody McCloud: I love the purity of the practice of medicine. I have to say right now, medicine, the profession has kind of become an industry in many ways, and I don't think it's as pure as it used to be.
Dr. Melody McCloud: I love medicine. I love educating people. I like writing.
Dr. Melody McCloud: Even in those books that are written by other physicians, rarely have I seen where there's a sentence, certainly not a paragraph and certainly not a chapter geared specifically to black women's health, despite the fact that our numbers are so far off the chart to other people.
Dr. Melody McCloud: As black women, we're very the majority of folks may be very church minded and just want to pray something away.
Dr. Melody McCloud: The number one killer of everybody except Asians is heart disease.
Dr. Melody McCloud: With breast cancer, more white women may get breast cancer, but more black women die from it. Okay. When it comes to pregnancy, black women die more than twice the rate of white women with with with pregnancy-related mortality. Infant mortality is almost three times that of the white population.
Dr. Melody McCloud: In the last 3 or 4 years, there's been a lot more talk about maternal mortality in the black, in the black female.
Dr. Melody McCloud: It's important that everybody show up for early prenatal care because that makes a key difference with the health of the mother and the health of the fetus. And subsequently the health of the newborn baby.
Dr. Melody McCloud: In a societal framework, black women comparatively are not as well respected.
Dr. Melody McCloud: I have a version of a chart I created years ago that I entitled Societal Stress and Black Women's Health The Rejection Connection.
Dr. Melody McCloud: More black women are graduating high school, graduating college, going on to grad school, starting businesses compared to the black men. And so with that disparity, it's putting more strain and stress on black women. And with that psychosocial stress.
Dr. Melody McCloud: I really am on a tear right now to try to get people, including parents, you know, put those phones down, model for your children.
Dr. Melody McCloud: If you are spending money at the hairdresser on a regular basis or going to get your nails done at a regular basis or you're buying a Gucci bag or whatever, you have some money to at least go to the doctor once a year and get a checkup done. That could save your life.
Dr. Melody McCloud: I'm a giver. I give a lot to people and I'm I'm learning and have been recently told to update and reminded that I need to learn to give to myself more.
Dr. Melody McCloud: I tried to make this book an easy, relatable read. You know, I put in some personal anecdotes in there and things like that. So it's not purely all hard-nosed medicine, but I want people to be empowered.
Dr. Melody McCloud: Check your skin, check your nails, check your hair, examine your breasts, you know, think about your joint pain and kind of just check, check, check, check, check. And then take that to your doctor.
Dr. Melody McCloud: Write your questions down in advance. And in this day and time, don't let the doctors rush you out of the office.
Dr. Melody McCloud: You have this new, beautiful baby in front of you that you have to really take care of. And some people are just strained and wondering, can they do it.
Dr. Melody McCloud: The medical community is more aware of it. There are now counselors specific to postpartum depression.
Dr. Melody McCloud: We are physical beings. We are emotional. We have emotions. Some of us have professional goals. Most women have maternal instincts. But we also have a need for love. And we also have sexual desires.
Dr. Melody McCloud: You want someone who's going to respect you and love you and be good to you. Hopefully, be a good husband or a good father to your children.
Dr. Melody McCloud: Be careful who you're allowing into your secret garden, into your sexual space. Guard your garden.
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TriciaReillyKoch, DoroBushKoch, HealthGig, Longevity, Wellness, PhysicalHealth, MentalHealth, Health, HealthCare, BlackWomensHealth, Women, DrMelodyMcCloud, MelodyMcCloud