Research shows that 1 in 6 women experience severe pain every single day but over one in two surveyed women (56%) feel their pain is ignored or dismissed due to their gender. To highlight the ongoing unfair dismissal of female pain and work toward closing the gender pain gap, Nurofen has launched phase two of its See My Pain campaign, using packaging to share experiences of female pain.

The campaign, from McCann London, builds upon the success of the See My Pain brand platform which strives to validate the female pain experience and combat medical misogyny. Phase two of the campaign features a series of imitation medicine products, which bring to life real stories of what women have been told when expressing their pain to family, friends and healthcare professionals (HCPs).

Following extensive research undertaken by the brand, Nurofen found that pain in women is more poorly understood and more mistreated compared to pain in men due to systemic gaps and biases. Half of the women surveyed (50%) reported feeling ignored or dismissed by their GP when it came to their pain, compared with just over a third (36%) of men.

To draw attention to some of the unfair dismissals of pain that women hear on a daily basis, Nurofen has created mock-up packaging. A range of imitation medicine products from pill bottles to plaster packs and head pads have been created with labels that describe the dismissals women often hear for their pain, such as ‘it’s all in your head’, or ‘maybe you're stressed.’ 

The products are not real and not available for purchase but mock-ups were launched and distributed at an event held at McCann London earlier this year for International Women’s History Month to raise awareness of the Gender Pain Gap. The imitation products, will now also be featured across a range of advertising platforms, to draw attention to the issue.

As well as the packaging a 90 second campaign film features the real stories of six women who share their experiences of healthcare issues including Endometriosis, Migraines, Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, Sciatica, Fibromyalgia and Osteoarthritis. The brand is also working with the Guardian on a media partnership to dive deeper into women’s pain stories and validate the experiences of women. Over a three-month period, nine topics will be covered, from understanding what is normal for period pain, to how to advocate for yourself in a medical setting.  

“Behind this campaign are thousands of conversations with the 1 in 6 women who experience severe pain every single day.” says Ruth Boulter, Creative Director at McCann London. “Backed by the real business changes and far-reaching commitments being made by Reckitt, we believe we can affect the ingrained gender bias in healthcare and make women’s pain more visible in our world.”

The campaign is now live across OOH, TV, VOD, Digital and Audio. Media spend for this campaign was led by Zenith and Reckitt’s internal media team.

Action beyond communication

Beyond the marketing campaign, Nurofen is demonstrating a commitment to closing the gender pain gap through education of both women and healthcare professionals. As well as raising awarenessm the brand is focused on the creation of bespoke products that directly address the issue and ease pain.

“The second phase of the See My Pain campaign cements the Nurofen commitment to help close the Gender Pain Gap.  By highlighting the excuses that women get thrown at them time and again to dismiss their pain we are shining a light on the problems women face when seeking treatment,” explains Nuria Antoja, Marketing Director at Nurofen, which is part of Reckitt. 

She continues: “Along with supporting these women through our awareness campaign we have committed to a number of short- and long-term commitments in research and training for pharmacists and pharmacy teams. We are immensely proud of our See My Pain platform and the work we will be doing together with MWG to continue to fight pain biases so that everyone regardless of age, gender or ethnicity can take control of their pain.” 

This campaign is an example of how creativity can be used to change the narrative and accelerate action toward closing the gender pain gap. Through actively listening and validating the experiences of real women, audiences are able to authentically connect with the brand. Through action as well as communication the brand is able to push category boundaries and make positive industry change.

To find out more about Nurofen’s commitments to closing the gender pain gap, please click here.