Nicola Brown: Why I’m using comedy to tackle a taboo women’s health issue

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Clinical psychologist Nicola Brown turns her experience with pelvic organ prolapse into the comedic Space Invaders at Auckland Fringe.
THREE KEY FACTS
Nicola Brown is a comedian, speaker, writer, MC and clinical psychologist from Ōtepoti/Dunedin.
OPINION

My solo comedy show, Space Invaders, is about something considered so taboo, it’s hardly ever spoken
about.

As a clinical psychologist for more than two decades, I’d had the privilege of people trusting me with their closely held secrets. It takes a lot to shock me – but here I was, blindsided by my anatomy. Parts of me were not where they should be. “How can it be,” I pondered to the gynaecologist who diagnosed me, “that I’ve had thousands of conversations with women about their most intimate problems, and NOT ONE PERSON has talked about this?” “It’s more common than you think,” she said.
When staging my show about pelvic organ prolapse (POP), I decided I needed a way to make my explanation of the condition accessible. So I use colourful, crocheted pelvic organs as props – bladder, bowel and uterus (and a clitoris, thrown in for fun) – to discuss this medical condition that affects around 50% of women who have had a child at some point in life. POP is a form of pelvic floor dysfunction where the pelvic organs move from their usual positions, bulging into (or sometimes out of) the vagina. This can happen when the pelvic floor, which acts like a support bra for the internal organs, has been damaged or weakened and can no longer fully perform its role.
I was told I had a minor bladder prolapse when my son was born, 17 years ago. Because the prolapse caused me minimal strife, I barely gave it a moment’s thought, assuming it was the inevitable aftereffect of birthing a generous-sized baby via a difficult delivery. But by the time I was 48 years old, unbeknownst to me, my bladder, rectum and uterus had all moved into areas of the apartment building where they had no business being.
Before seeing a doctor, I noticed something was adrift. I had a strange sensation – almost like there were a couple of Kinder Surprises inside me. If I’d put them there, surely that’s the kind of excitement I’d remember? By the end of each day, it seemed like my insides were dragging towards the floor, especially after strenuous exercise. I had constant lower back pain, but somehow I’d convinced myself this was all entirely normal.
Other symptoms of POP include painful sex, difficulties using tampons, and changes to bladder and bowel function. POP ranges from causing so little difficulty that people don’t know they have it, to being overwhelmingly debilitating. Women often don’t know what to make of their symptoms and aren’t sure where to turn for help. When diagnosed, people can feel embarrassed and confused – the secrecy around this condition adds an unnecessary layer of shame.
Fast-forward three years from that diagnosis and I’ve made some progress. Exactly what that involved is the basis for the show – plenty of farcical things happened in the process of finding ways forward. Annoyed by the conspiracy of silence around a condition so common, I decided to do what any sane person would and turned my experiences into a comedy show. What better way to bring something seemingly unspeakable out into the open than have people laugh and learn at the same time?
To my knowledge, Space Invaders is the only show in the world centred on this niche topic. (It’s also about romance scammers, being gay, long-term relationships, horoscopes and has an abundance of Venn diagrams). With the support of producer Georgie Lush, I have turned an infuriating condition into comedy on a mission. Feedback from audience members, reviewers, health professionals and women with POP has been superb.
When Space Invaders was performed at the Dunedin Fringe Festival, I won an award to bring it to Auckland Fringe. If you or anyone you know has a vagina, please join us for the mayhem. The crocheted pelvic organs are already packed.
Nicola Brown’s Space Invaders will be performed at the Auckland Fringe Festival from September 12-14 at the Basement Theatre.
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