Women Are Sick And Tired Of These 17 Female Issues Not Being Brought Up Enough, So I'd Like Everyone To Pay Attention Now, Please
This week, Reddit user u/Wifix2 posed the question, "Women, what's a women issue that doesn't get brought up enough?"
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And so many women pointed out important problems that don't get the attention they deserve. Here are some of the top-voted responses:
1."Endometriosis: 1 out of 10 women suffer from it, but even some doctors have never heard about it. So many women go undiagnosed with doctors thinking they're overreacting when they come to them and complain about the pain."
"It took over 10 years of seeing doctors for someone to finally take me seriously with my period pain (endo runs in my family). They just kept prescribing me birth control and wouldn’t listen to me until I read a woman’s story on Facebook. She said as soon as she told her gyno she was trying for kids, they scheduled a transabdominal and transvaginal ultrasound. I’m recently married and approached my gyno (the SAME one I’ve been going to for years) the same way she did. As soon as I mentioned I was trying for kids, the tests were scheduled. I found out I have a few things growing in my uterine lining and need surgery. I cried because it took years of me trying to convince doctors and nurses that it wasn’t in my head, and that the pain isn’t normal. There is a chance I can never get pregnant because of the growth. I am livid that there’s a chance I can’t have kids because no one listened to me."
2."Not being taken seriously just because I’m a young adult woman."
"I’ve had to justify my abilities in a male-dominated field multiple times even though I have the qualifications and work experience to do the job. Just sick and tired of old male customers coming in and demanding a male worker."
3."How much we have to pay for pads and tampons."
4."The thousands of ways that men being treated as default 'human' and women the 'other' have shaped our society to the detriment of women."
"For decades, medical research excluded women yet was extrapolated to women. Many women died unnecessarily of heart attacks because they didn’t present with 'typical' (i.e., male) symptoms."
5."The fact that we are taught as kids to be nice, polite, and, if we absolutely need to say no, we have to let the other person down nicely. And then we’re blamed for sexual assault on us because our no isn’t clear enough."
"Exactly this! If you’re direct, then you’re too mean. If you’re not direct enough, you’re leading them on."
6."Postpartum depression and how it can manifest itself as crippling anxiety."
"The first few months after a baby is born can legitimately be the hardest of a woman's life (if she chooses to have kids). It's physically, psychologically, and mentally taxing. I don't think we talk enough about how hard it is. Lack of sleep. Prioritizing another's health over one's own. Money issues. Hygiene, diapers, bathing. Lack of sleep. Healing from birth. Establishing new routines. Lack of sleep. All the stuff you used to be able to handle with no problem is suddenly put on the back burner because you have to devote 100% of your attention to keeping your new little person alive."
7."Old guys catcalling school girls in the street."
"They're never arrested for making a kid afraid to walk. They're never arrested for being a pedophile. It's gross and terrifying and needs to stop."
"I'm currently 25, and almost all the sexual harassment I received was when I was younger than 19. All the catcalling, the rude comments in public, the inappropriate messages, dick pics, and grabby men at clubs. It seems sexual harassment is more of a power thing to do with being vulnerable and has little to do with what you look like or you're wearing."
8."The pH levels in your vaginal discharge can bleach your underwear! And that's if your pH levels are BALANCED!"
"I had to find this out from Google because neither my mom nor my GP (who are both normally very good about these sorts of things) ever once mentioned it as something that can happen!"
"I kept asking my doctor, and they were like, 'IDK.' WTF am I paying you for?! Give me my money back! Especially since you're so goddamn expensive."
9."The fact that birth control can be so hard to get on a regular basis."
"Your doctor has to prescribe it right, your insurance has to approve, and you have to call the pharmacy to restock it. It can take a few hours every month just to make sure you’re still able to take it on time. Plus, your doctor is only open during business days (when you might be working). And sometimes you can only get one pack at a time, three if you’re lucky.
Also, the government had to pass legislation to force insurance providers to offer some contraceptives for free, but if you switch carriers, the one you’re on might not be free, so you have to appeal or swallow the cost, which can be $80 per month. Or take a new formulation, which can really mess your body up. I go through this process way too often, and it makes me want to rip my uterus out."
"And the idea that taking BC is 'easy.' I've literally never taken one that didn't give me some kind of disruptively annoying side effects. And we're just supposed to accept it."
10."Dick pics. I've never met a girl who's enjoyed being sent an unsolicited penis picture. It's sexual harassment."
11."I feel like I still don't understand what PCOS is despite being diagnosed with it. And in part, it's because the presentation of symptoms is different in each person. But I think it also shows that there is a gap in healthcare about the female body, which just cannot be accepted."
"I should be able to understand anything that I am diagnosed with. How it works, how it happened, etc. But it's just unclear."
12."Bras cost an arm and a leg. Ninety percent of the time, they don't fit and can even hurt. And big boobs hurt. Women are shamed for having small boobs, but then they're shamed for having saggy boobs."
"Boobs don't hold their own. If I have big boobs, they're going to sag! And they jiggle at every little thing, especially if you can't find a bra. And guys think they're automatically given a free personal peep show! Stop staring at me!"
13."Postpartum healthcare for women is a joke."
"When you’re pregnant, everyone in the medical field falls all over themselves making sure you and the baby are perfectly healthy. Once the baby is born, they continue to heavily focus on the baby and their health and development. You, now merely the box the baby came in, get exactly that level of mental thought and care."
"I was on Medicare when my son was born, and I ended up having to have a scheduled C-section due to his becoming breach in the final weeks. I was supposed to have a post-op follow-up with my doctor 30 days after the C-section. But I couldn't go because Medicare threw me off after two weeks. I called and tried to get them to extend my care to cover the 30-day appointment, and they wouldn't. I've had problems with scar tissue ever since."
14."Menopause. It wreaks havoc and does not get the attention it deserves. The mental aspects alone are mind-blowing."
15."Miscarriage. It's very common; 1 in 4 women experience it. Yet it's still such a taboo topic that a lot of women feel shame for it and alienated by it."
"Also, the fact that there are multiple types of miscarriages! I didn't know missed miscarriage was even a thing until I experienced it. Worst experience of my life, and I had been given no education on it before going through it."
16."Fake, tiny, or the complete lack of pockets on our clothes."
"And it starts so young! Fake pockets start in infancy for girls, but boys get real pockets before they can walk. I do not understand."
17.And finally, "Most of the time, when I try to bring up a problem I've had with sexism, men will pipe up about how they have to pay on dates, they also have it bad, etc. I acknowledge and care about these issues. But it seems anytime I want to talk about an issue of sexism I've experienced, it's immediately drowned out and invalidated under men's issues."
"It feels incredibly in bad faith. It's not a competition. I am not your rival. I'm addressing one of many subsets of problems caused by the same set of gender roles. Please let me speak my turn."
"One experience that illustrated that was when I told a story to my then-boyfriend and his male friend about how, the night before, I was afraid of a guy who was following me. But he noticed and changed to the other side of the street, which I found super considerate. Only for my ex's friend to get mad at me for being afraid because 'it's hurtful if a woman is afraid of you.' Like, dude, I get it – it doesn't feel nice. But women aren't afraid of being followed, harassed, etc. just because they're in the mood for it."
Can you think of any women's issues that deserve more attention? LMK in the comments below!
Note: Responses have been edited for length and/or clarity.
