posted March 29, 2012 01:28 PM            

I remember some time back you had a post about painful periods in H&H. I'm going to see if I can find it because it was interesting and you are not alone with that problem..

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Remember, love can conquer the influences of the planets....It can even eliminate karma.

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posted March 29, 2012 01:59 PM            

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Remember, love can conquer the influences of the planets....It can even eliminate karma.

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posted March 30, 2012 07:10 AM            

And I don't have OK periods because I'm an awesome and magical person, I have them because I biologically lucked out with the body I was born into. Simple as that.

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Originally posted by Betty Boop:
OK? So you think you have it so bad because you are a woman in a man's world?

OK! Do you know what I have to say to that?

GET OVER IT!!!!

Because frankly feminism has achieved a lot and it continues to achieve things now.

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This is contradictory. Feminism is achieving things BECAUSE women are not willing to just "get over it" when legislators try to interfere with our healthcare, when 1 in 6 American women is sexually assaulted in her lifetime, when homicide is a leading cause of death of pregnant women, when street harassment is still an epidemic.

"Get over it" it is poison advice. If you aren't affected by a particular injustice that's great, but you don't have the right to dictate to poeple who are that they should shut up and take it.

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We are not now where we were 50 yrs ago.. so things are progressing.
There is no reason to cry about it and write dramatic posts about being in a pool of blood.. to draw attention.

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Why shouldn't a woman write how she feels about a part of her life? Why should she keep quiet and behave because it makes you or somebody else uncomfortable? Betty, I really think you are the one who needs to 'get over it.' Different women have different experiences. Some of them will make you uncomfortable. That's life.

Attempting to force women into a straitjacketed view of how YOU think they should behave in front of the men is not feminist or supportive of women at all. The day we will know feminism has truly succeeded is when ALL women are respected for what they have to bring to the table, even if it's an emotional discussion of menstruation that makes you personally uncomfortable. Dismissing women has "emotional" or "attention-seeking" is one of the oldest sexist tricks in the book.

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If you want to do something for the sake of feminism.. go and get a career in PHILOSOPHY for example.. because the classes are usually 80% or more.. male!!

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What even is this? Why should philosphy departments be a priority when the crisis right now is with legislation affecting women's health? Our problems are coming from legislators, who want to make actual rules intruding into the female reproductive system. Rick Santorum supported a rule that would allow doctors to LIE to pregnant women about what their ultrasound results showed... if there was something wrong with the baby and the doctor thought she might get an abortion. So a woman could be thinking, based on her doctor's words, that she is carrying around a healthy baby when her child actually has something terribly wrong. She wouldn't know until the day of birth.

Do you understand the absolute cruelty of such a rule? If philosophy departments are your biggest problem, recognize that you are leading an incredibly privileged life.

posted March 30, 2012 12:40 PM            

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Originally posted by Frozen Queen:
I seriously don't know what to say when people can't understand sarcasm. There's a reason I bold-ed the text at the end.

This whole post is written in exaggeration and sarcasm to highlight the conclusion at the end. Please read before commenting or agreeing.

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"Cara" obviously used hyperbole to make a point in protest to the recent conservative laws against Planned Parenthood. That's how I saw it. That's how FQ saw it.

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Originally posted by Frozen Queen:
This post cropped up on a blogging site in response to the pernicious bills that keep cropping up in the Conservative states.

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It's a hot political issue here in the US.
See: http://www.salon.com/2012/03/30/the_gops_abortion_offensive_reaches_new_hampshire/ singleton/

I very much doubt that "Cara" hates her body or biology.

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Betty Boop:

And I think it is counterproductive to make a feminist argument whilst belittling your own body and female biology --- as well as mentally unhealthy, on a more personal level.

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posted March 30, 2012 06:47 PM            

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Originally posted by Betty Boop:
There was something else I wanted to mention. We all have bodies. We can all be healthy or unhealthy, whether we are male or female. Waking up in a pool of blood regularly, every month - is a sign of illness. A healthy woman does not normally go through this. So this is not something she can use to make the men of the world feel a little bit worse about themselves. Because a man can also fall ill. Men also have painful and upsetting health problems. Her post is basically using a health problem and generalizing it to make a woman's period sound like the most horrendous thing the world has ever seen. This is not a very accurate generalization, since a majority of women would not feel this way -- unless they had serious health problems themselves.

Overall I just don't think her argument is strong enough and her message gets completely lost. The message feminism should be sending as far as I'm concerned is that women are BORN equal, and this should be recognized socially and politically. But the message her blog entry is sending is more like: would you look at just how bad I have it being female? Would you look at how difficult it is to keep on living and existing in this world in a female body? Pity me! Feel guilty about it! And then go and pity me some more!
It is definitely not what I would see as a strong message or a message that can effect positive change.

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I have never denied the fact that men do have health problems that can be far-reaching in their physical/emotional/monetary burdens but have you seen a legislature that seeks to make men's reproductive systems a matter of the public sphere?

posted March 30, 2012 11:26 PM            

Yes, I have a condition where the lining of my uterus grows inside the muscle walls of my uterus which causes my uterus to grow two to three times larger than normal.

Never mind the considerable pain - Every month I have at least 2 days where I can not leave the house. I've had times where I couldn't leave the bathroom for more than 10 minutes at a time because of blood 'flooding' and huge clots.

An average woman can fill a DivaCup 3 or 4 times for her entire period. I can fill a DivaCup 4 times in one hour. I often suffer from anemia because of this. I often have to sleep with a DivaCup, a MASSIVE pad and towels under me and still wake up several times a night to change.

So although I appreciate the fact that some women can appreciate their periods or celebrate them - I also have to remind myself that their periods are VASTLY different than mine and they simply do not comprehend what many MANY other women have to deal with.

posted March 31, 2012 02:47 AM            

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Originally posted by Betty Boop:
The way I see it -- just because every person on the face of this planet goes through painful things in their life, including myself and everyone on LL and everyone else OUT there - whether they are male or female - whether it is period pain or something entirely different.. just because we all die.. just because we all suffer, undergo surgery, possibly have chronic illness and problems ... it does not make the world an ugly place in the end... because there's always a balance of good&bad.

One can always be a glass half full or half empty person.

:edit: Almost every second person I meet is under the impression that their pains and their problems are the worst and the greatest. It really doesn't *feel* real to me... I mean who's to compare or measure these things anyway? I doubt any person alive has a perfectly healthy or happy existence. sigh I don't know.. I guess it is just human nature to assume that the grass is greener elsewhere. I know this is basically off topic, but the original blog-entry reminded me of this attitude. I see people who will list the problems they have, not in a 'getting things off their chest' kind of way - but rather in a more aggressive & combative way. It almost seems to me like they are trying to start a competition. I feel like: OK? Would you like me to list all the problems I have daily ... so we see who tops who? Is that the general idea? I don't know.
Or would you instead like me to pretend I have no problems and act as though I am in awe about yours? Like - "oh that must be so hard… I just have no idea what this would be like, since my life has been a basket of cookies and cream”..
Maybe this is something people would like to hear. :edit:

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So because kids are starving in Africa and people are being killed in Gaza and the US is still fighting in Iraq and Afghanistan right at this moment and others have it worse and some people don't even have limbs ffs, that someone's problems don't "feel real"?

You might want to take a break here because you started off quite well but every subsequent post is now variegated with generalisations and "GET OVER YOURSELF" attitudes that are callous at best, privileged at worst.

Also the example you listed, about summing up one's problems and the Woe Is Me attitude is not what is being talked about here. I have pointed this out to you several times but you choose to continue with extreme tunnel vision and focus on Cara's phrasing instead of her message. And if women are coming out and talking about their periods on this thread, well, good for them. Why should they not be allowed to talk about them on an adult forum?

If you think other's problems are not worthwhile, well, don't post on those threads.

posted March 31, 2012 09:45 AM            

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Originally posted by Betty Boop:
How are you Lexx?

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posted March 31, 2012 01:15 PM            

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Originally posted by Betty Boop:

If you do relate to this - Do you find this attitude towards your body and your period - has helped you in any way?

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I understand where the poster is coming from when she expresses herself that way. I wouldn't say I feel like that all the time - not at all. But there have been moments when I've been stuck in the house, can't go to the store for anything, can't do housework or laundry, can't leave the couch, in pain, sick, tired, etc. where I completely understand where those sentiments come from.

I think the OP's anger is inflamed by the current war on birth control pills which help women in similar situations. It really does make me angry when Viagra is covered but birth control pills aren't because of religion when there are so many other serious and valid health reasons that women NEED contraceptive pills for quality of life. Sometimes being demure, accepting, polite doesn't get a point across. Sometimes people have to be graphic. It's probably not how I would have expressed it publicly but I know I've ranted in my private journal when I've had my moments of despair - and yes - they are moments of despair. Those moments don't last but they should be acknowledged, processed, accepted and *not* buried away. How else do you move on to focusing on the positive?