About the Unsilenced Movement
Advocating for Overdue Reform in Pediatric Urology
The Unsilenced Movement was launched in 2023 to raise awareness about the high potential for psychological harm during pediatric VCUGs. After coming to terms with repressed VCUG trauma, founder Shelby Smith turned to activism in her grief.
After connecting with fellow survivors on a subreddit called r/VCUG_Trauma, what Shelby initially believed to be a small or outlying problem became something far greater: a decades-old institutional failure that has harmed generations of children on a global scale.
It didn’t take long for the Unsilenced Movement to reach survivors from all corners of the world. Since its launch, our grassroots organization has connected with thousands of former patients of all ages and backgrounds, ranging from 10-60 years old.
Who We Are
Our community includes patients, parents, and professionals from the United States, Canada, Netherlands, Germany, UK, and beyond. We aim to unify patients and providers in establishing trauma-informed care in pediatric urology, with a primary focus on informed consent.
To date, VCUGs are promoted as safe, painless, and low risk by hospitals and clinics. This has resulted in generations of patients walking away with life-altering trauma, including suicidality, PTSD, vaginismus, self-harm, fear of sex and intimacy, and refusal of medical care and routine cancer screenings in adulthood.
More importantly, this lack of transparency and disclosure has prevented children and families from receiving the support they desperately need and deserve, such as counseling referrals, psychological evaluations, age-appropriate preparatory materials, and mental health resources for trauma and PTSD.
Our Mission
Unsilenced is committed to closing the knowledge gap and establishing an equal power balance between providers and families navigating a vesicoureteral reflux (VUR) diagnosis by highlighting the need for alternative diagnostic measures and a standardized protocol for pediatric VCUGs.
Even in 2025, medical institutions are failing to disclose pertinent information prior to referring children for VCUGs, violating the patient and parental right to informed consent. This includes (but is not limited to) the proven correlation between VCUGs and child sex abuse and the availability of safer, less traumatic, and equally effective alternatives like ceVUS.
Our five-part mission includes:
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Establishing a standardized protocol for VCUGs, including consistent criteria for referrals, medical necessity, frequency, and follow-up.
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Retire the VCUG as the "gold standard" by establishing safer, equally effective alternatives for diagnosing VUR.
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Hold providers accountable for disclosing all reasonable information under the informed consent doctrine, including diagnostic alternatives and the risk of sexual and medical trauma, before a VCUG is performed.
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Inform patients and parents of alternative care measures when medically appropriate to limit unnecessary trauma and radiation exposure, such as corrective valve surgery.
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Prevent hospitals from advocating against reasonable alternative measures of care that may be appropriate and medically beneficial for the patient.
In the Press
The Unsilenced Movement has gained national and international recognition for its powerful advocacy and storytelling. Together, our community is helping to expose injustice, amplify survivor voices, and drive global awareness of pediatric medical trauma.
Award-Winning Films
More Than a Test (dir. Shelby Smith) is an intimate, award-winning short film highlighting the lived experience of VCUG trauma and its lifelong impact. It won the Social Impact Award and “Best Documentary” at multiple festivals.
Unsilenced (dir. Isabelle Primavera) is an award-winning documentary that explores unethical pediatric practices and shines a light on survivor voices. It won “Best Short Documentary” and was a semi-finalist at two additional festivals.
STAT News Coverage
In September 2023, the voices behind the movement were featured in STAT News, a leading health and science publication. The article brought international attention to the lasting psychological harm caused by VCUG procedures and the urgent need for reform.
Global Outreach
With over 24.6 million views garnered on TikTok alone, the Unsilenced Movement has sparked an international dialogue about VCUG trauma, as well as the broader implications of medical ethics, informed consent, and patient autonomy.
NOTE: The Unsilenced Movement is not affiliated with Unsilenced.org or the troubled teen industry. We focus exclusively on supporting survivors of VCUG trauma and advocating for overdue reform in pediatric urology.