WELLBEING

GP Dr Nighat Arif on medical gaslighting and the myths surrounding menopause

As an expert in women’s health, Dr Nighat Arif (left) is a regular on our TV screens, appearing on BBC Breakfast and This Morning.

Now she is publishing her debut book, The Knowledge: Your Guide to Female Health, which covers puberty, fertility, the menopause and beyond.

Nighat tells hello! she wants to break stigmas around each aspect of women’s wellbeing with this book: “What I talk about in my GP surgery – the pill, STDs and hormone replacement therapy – are taboo in so many communities. I really want conversations about women’s health to start at home. You’re then empowered to go to your GP and say: ‘This is what I’m entitled to.’”

Here, the Wellbeing of Women charity ambassador answers questions on the menopause and tackles the topics that women are often too afraid to bring up.

Nighat, why did you write The Knowledge and who is the book aimed at?

“It’s aimed at everybody. It’s not a medical textbook: it’s an illustrated guide of the whole female biological journey, because there’s not one out there at the moment. I started making content on TikTok as I thought there’s a real need for people of under-represented communities to be seen. I got quite a lot of backlash at first, mainly from women and men from my community. It’s not often you see a hijab-wearing doctor talking about sexual dysfunction.”