Every year in March, the country celebrates Women’s History Month, a time dedicated to looking back to appreciate the hard work, struggles, and triumphs of women throughout history, as well as working to make the world of tomorrow a better place to be a woman. Since 1987, the United States has celebrated Women’s History Month, and in 2023 there are so many wonderful ways to celebrate! Here are just a few.
Learn About Amazing Women
History is full of women who did incredible things and lived remarkable lives, and Women’s History Month provides the perfect excuse to learn about some of them! There are women in the history of every field and every walk of life, so whatever your interests are, you’re sure to find something worth doing a little research on. If you’re a computer nerd, consider looking into Ada Lovelace or Grace Hopper. If you love literature, you could read up on Mary Shelley or Alice Walker. At Renewed Vitality, we love taking this opportunity to remember female pioneers in medicine and science, like Elizabeth Blackwell, Rebecca Lee Crumpler, and Rosalind Franklin.
Support Female Artists
Gender biases can make it hard for even the most talented women to make it in the entertainment industry, which makes the month of March a great time to actively seek out books, movies, music, TV shows, and other forms of media that are created by women. Pump up your favorite songs from female singers or check out a movie that was directed by a woman this month. In looking for something new, you might find something you didn’t even know you would love!
Give to Charities That Support Women
Women’s History Month is about celebrating the past and working towards the future in equal measure, so this time of year is a good chance to donate or volunteer for charities that support women. There’s probably a local women’s shelter in your area running food or clothing drives, or you could consider giving to organizations like the Malala Fund, the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence, or the Breast Cancer Research Foundation.
Encourage Women’s Health
In spite of the many recent advances that have been made in women’s health, there are lots of women out there who are still in the dark about their bodies and their health. Women’s History Month is the time to work towards changing that. If you’re a woman, take this opportunity to be proactive! Schedule your regular checkups with any doctors you see, do your monthly self breast exams, and do your best to take care of your body overall. If you’re not a woman, encourage the women in your life that you love to do these things! Screenings like mammograms and pap smears save lives, and so does promoting general awareness about women’s health issues. Every small step counts!
A big part of women’s health that is often overlooked is hormonal health. If you’re interested in learning more, make sure to continue reading our blog here at Renewed Vitality!
Happy National Women’s History Month! It’s March, and that means it’s time to look back and celebrate the accomplishments of incredible women of the past and present who made amazing advances in their field. Medicine was regarded as a man’s profession in many places and times throughout history, but that didn’t stop their female counterparts from making contributions to the medical sciences in spite of the barriers in their way. For instance, Florence Nightingale is the reason that nursing is a profession today, and many of our modern medical sanitary practices can be traced back to her work. There are plenty of other amazing women in medical history to be discussed, so let’s take a look at some of them!
Elizabeth Blackwell
Elizabeth Blackwell was the first woman in America to receive a medical degree. Early in her life, she had an experience in which a friend of hers became very sick and remarked that if she had been able to have a female physician, she might not have suffered so much, and this inspired her to pursue medicine. Blackwell, who began her professional life as a schoolteacher, began applying to medical schools and was turned away almost everywhere she applied, except for Geneva Medical School, which is now the Norton College of Medicine at State University of New York Upstate Medical University. Her admittance there was put to a vote of the all-male student body, with the rule that if even one of them voted no, she would not be admitted. As the story goes, the students assumed it was a joke and unanimously voted to accept her. Blackwell got the last laugh, as she graduated from Geneva Medical School in 1849. Ultimately she went on to found medical schools and infirmaries, organize nurses for the Union during the American Civil War, and publish several books on medicine.
Margaret Higgins Sanger
Margaret Higgins Sanger is one of the pioneers of the field of contraception, which was a dangerous profession during the early 20th century. Her work was so controversial, in fact, that at one point she was forced to flee America and stay in Britain until she knew it was safe to return. She was arrested for opening a birth control clinic in 1916, but was undaunted, and went on to found the American Birth Control League in 1921, which later became Planned Parenthood. In New York City, she organized the first birth control, which was staffed by all-female doctors, and she also organized a clinic in Harlem with an all African-American advisory council. Her work was pivotal in contraception becoming not only legal but socially acceptable in America.
Rebecca Lee Crumpler
Rebecca Lee Crumpler was America’s first female African-American physician, which is especially amazing given that when she attended medical school and was named a Doctor of Medicine, America was in the midst of the Civil War, and Crumpler faced not only sexism but intense racism in opposition to her becoming a physician. After the war, she worked in Richmond, Virginia, caring mostly for poor African-American women and children, which she considered to be excellent missionary work. Eventually she published a book, titled A Book of Medical Discourses, in 1883, which focused mostly on the care of women and children based on what she learned working in Richmond.
Gertrude Elion
Gertrude Elion was an American biochemist and pharmacologist who won a Nobel Prize in 1988 in Physiology or Medicine, an honor she shared with George H. Hitchings and Sir James Black. Their work focused on a principle called rational drug design for the creation of new medicines. Her parents were Eastern European Jewish immigrants, and after she graduated from Hunter College in New York, she had to work as a secretary and teacher and take an unpaid position doing research in a lab, since it was incredibly difficult for women to find paid research jobs at the time. The work she went on to do later in her life would lead to the creation of AZT, one of the first drugs available to treat HIV and AIDS. She also helped create immunosuppressants used for organ transplants, treatments for leukemia and viral herpes, and other lifesaving drugs.
Becky McClure
Last but certainly not least, Becky McClure is an incredible woman in medicine! She helps to change people’s lives with her individualistic approach and cutting-edge hormone replacement therapy. Her work helps both men and women to feel revitalized, active, and healthy. She’s been in healthcare for over 30 years now and has been practicing state of the art pellet therapy for over 10 years, and helping people to take their lives back is her passion. Her work might be able to help you too, so don’t hesitate to contact Renewed Vitality today to learn more!
