Women's Illnesses - A Social Stigma

[Aimz]

I don't pretend to know everything - especially on a subject as broad as this one. Perhaps my opinions were generalised to some extent but I was only going off my observations over the past few days.

I completely agree with both of you about the men's issues (prostate, testicular, infertility etc) as well as mental issues (my friend is bipolar). These issues, along with those mentioned are all to some extent "shunned" by society and are left to be discussed behind closed doors.

I just found it very interesting to observe what people were comfortable talking about and what they weren't comfortable talking about - even people who I am relatively close to.

[Aimz]

Sometimes even my own DH screws his face up when things like heavy periods, thrush, UTI's and sore nipples are brought up. That is not to say that he won't talk about it with me, but it's not his favourite topic. I think that is because I am his wife, his friend and his lover and things like the above mentioned "get in the way" of me being sexual. That is my opinion, not necessarily his.

[Bathsheba]

I missed this the first time it was posted Amy... very interesting... *mulling for a while*

[Footsteps]

amy,
its sooo true, my own dp goes quiet when i talk about womens prob atm the gynae has told me im gna need a hystorectomy and he wont really say much...female probs are a taboo i think huni iv noticed that with alot of things y i dont know y... men dont talk about their probs either.
you av brought up a very good point huni.
xxx

[Aimz]

Wow I haven't seen this post for months! I'm not sure if I quite agree anymore with some of the points I raised but certainly some of them are valid. I'm interested in what you have to say Bath.

[butterfly_warrior]

I also missed this the first time... And the thoughts running through my head as I read went along similar lines to Dach and Bec. I think it's just a typical male response. Try talking to them about male illnesses and see what happens. I seriously doubt they'd stay in the room for a discussion about penile cancer, testicular cancer, impotence, and there's very few of them will talk about infertility!

I also want to add that the people around me end up with no option but to be faced with these things. I talk quite openly about our infertility and our IVF journey with our friends and my colleagues. There are some young single men that I worked with (and some not so young!) that have gained a damned good understanding of what it actually takes to get pregnant, stay pregnant and now know that being pregnant isn't just simply growing an enormous bump and having everything else in your body remain the same.

I'm not entirely sure whether it's an aspect of life that is changing and people are becoming more willing to talk about these things, or it's just that I've changed the people I associate with because they had no choice but to be confronted with these things.

BW

[Trillian]

I only just saw this now too LOL. I'm with Dach and Bx on this one - it's not that it's a female issue, its that its a personal one and you would find the same response with the *male* ilnesses too. People just don't know what is the appropriate way to act upon hearing news of a pg loss or *female* illness - both males and females so they just shuffle around the topic, they acknowledge it, but not address it kwim?