We Deserve More: Why Reproductive Healthcare Is Broken--And What You Can Do about It - Hardcover

by Nikki Sapiro Vinckier (Author)

Navigate reproductive health systems with confidence and get the care you've always deserved

We Deserve More: Why Reproductive Healthcare is Broken--And What You Can Do About It, by Nikki Sapiro Vinckier, OB/GYN PA-C, exposes the systemic failures plaguing reproductive healthcare and shows readers how to advocate for themselves with clarity and confidence. Vinckier, a nationally recognized OB/GYN Physician Assistant with over a decade of clinical experience, reproductive health creator, and founder of Take Back Trust, takes on the root causes of medical dismissal, rushed and inadequate care, and the quiet traumas that leave millions of patients feeling invisible in exam rooms across America. Written through a nonpartisan lens, this book pulls back the curtain on what's broken in reproductive healthcare--and offers practical tools to speak up, be heard, and finally get the care you deserve.

Drawing on her extensive clinical background and advocacy work, Vinckier unpacks how flawed medical training, restrictive insurance policies, relentless time pressures, and systemic bias intersect to leave patients unheard and underserved. She examines everything from the routine downplaying of women's pain to the role social media has taken on as an unofficial medical resource, while centering the lived experiences of patients dismissed, delayed, or denied care--from Black maternal health inequities to overlooked menopause symptoms and years-long waits for an endometriosis diagnosis.

• Self-advocacy tools that work in the room: Practical scripts for pushing back when your pain is minimized, step-by-step prep for visits, and strategies for documenting encounters so you can be heard and taken seriously.
• Behind-the-scenes truth of the system: A clear look at how OB/GYN training, insurance rules, and time pressure actually shape the care you receive--and why so many providers end up overlooking conditions like endometriosis, menopause, and perinatal mental health.
• Validation with evidence: Blends clinical expertise with real patient stories to confirm what so many have felt--medical gaslighting, bias, and delayed diagnoses aren't "in your head," they're systemic patterns that can be named and challenged.
• Comprehensive navigation for every stage: From painful periods to fertility struggles, from respectful birth to menopause, the book offers strategies to find affirming providers, advocate for pain management, and build care that finally centers you.

This book serves women, queer people, and people with uteruses ages 18-60 who have felt dismissed, confused, or traumatized by reproductive healthcare--and are ready to demand better. It is equally essential for healthcare providers, advocates, and supporters who want to understand and address the systemic barriers shaping reproductive care.

Whether you are navigating painful periods brushed off as "normal," searching for answers after years without a diagnosis, struggling to find real menopause care, fighting for respectful reproductive healthcare, or simply trying to be heard in the exam room, We Deserve More provides the validation, strategy, and solidarity you need to transform your healthcare experience and finally be heard.

Front Jacket

AN INSIDER'S GUIDE TO NAVIGATING A HEALTHCARE SYSTEM THAT ROUTINELY FAILS PATIENTS

Millions of individuals experience dismissed symptoms, medical gaslighting, and systemic barriers when seeking reproductive care. We Deserve More: Why Reproductive Healthcare Is Broken--And What You Can Do About It reveals how training gaps, insurance structures, institutional bias, and the absence of trauma-informed care leave patients unheard and underserved--and shows you how to navigate a system that too often fails to listen.

Written by OB/GYN Physician Associate and reproductive rights advocate Nikki Sapiro Vinckier, this book blends clinical insight with practical strategy. Drawing on over a decade of frontline experience and her work founding the digital platform Take Back Trust, Vinckier exposes the cracks in the system--from gaps in OB/GYN education to the trauma patients carry into exam rooms--and provides real-world scripts, scenarios, and tools to help readers advocate with clarity and confidence.

Whether you're preparing for your first gynecologic visit, navigating pregnancy or loss, seeking affirming care, or entering an exam room as a survivor in need of safety and dignity, We Deserve More offers both validation and a plan. This is more than a critique of a broken system. It is a roadmap for reclaiming your voice, rebuilding trust in your body, and demanding care that honors your whole experience.

Back Jacket

PRAISE FOR WE DESERVE MORE

"Changing reproductive healthcare isn't just about policy--it's about culture, trust, and who gets heard. We Deserve More is a powerful example of how we can reach people in new ways, validate their experiences, and build confidence to demand better care."
--MINI TIMMARAJU, President and CEO, Reproductive Freedom for All

"There's no question that our healthcare system is failing women when it comes to reproductive care, and this book opens your eyes to why you deserve so much better. Nikki weaves together her personal journey with hard truths about the system, drawing on her years of experience as a PA-C in women's health. Her real-world experiences give weight to every recommendation, making this both an eye-opening critique and an empowering resource."
--BAYO CURRY-WINCHELL, MD, MS, board-certified Family Medicine Physician and Health Advocate

"This book should be required reading from an insider whose expertise tells us what's broken about the reproductive health system, and what we can do about it. It is as important as Our Bodies, Ourselves was when it was released in the 1970s. It empowers all of us to speak up and take our healthcare seriously when the system does not."
--LORETTA J. ROSS, Reproductive Justice Activist, author, professor, and Co-Founder of SisterSong

Author Biography

Nikki Sapiro Vinckier, PA-C, is an OB/GYN Physician Associate with over a decade of clinical experience and the Founder of Take Back Trust, a digital reproductive health platform offering evidence-based guidance and advocacy tools to patients across the United States. She works at the intersection of medicine, media, and the reproductive health movement, using her clinical expertise to inform her education and activism. Her content reaches 30-40 million people each month through social media. She has been featured in Newsweek, Huffington Post, Courier News, and Gander Newsroom, and has appeared on numerous leading reproductive justice podcasts. She is known for translating complex medical systems into accessible, empowering language that helps patients navigate their care with clarity and confidence.