Too Busy to Be a Woman

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Even though we have more knowledge available about the female body, we are more ignorant than ever before in human history.  Somewhere between being a teenager and being an adult we have develop a disconnect with our female bodies.

Sometimes it is more of a curse to be a woman.  We have a never ending parade of female issues such as PMS, birth control decisions, pregnancy scares, pregnancy, post partum, infertility, yeast infections, breast lumps, and menopause.

And whenever there is a “glitch in the system,” our reactions range from annoyance to outright anger.  We feel betrayed by our bodies.  How dare our female bodies interrupt our lives!  But a lot time, we chose to ignore the subtle messages that our bodies are sending.

A co-worker of mine recently develop constant heartburn when and whatever she eats.  It is a sign that her body is telling her to take better care of herself.  Though she consciously ignored the emotional fallout from her divorce for the past year to battle with her cheating ex-husband on custody and child support, her body knows that she is stressed.  Her constant heartburn is a sign of her body physically manifesting her inner turmoil externally.  But what does she do?  She take Rolaids like it is candy.

How many of you are aware of your hormonal and reproductive rhythms?  These two areas of our health is the most important aspects of being female and yet we chose to focus on the dimples in our thighs.

Whenever I read historical fiction such as The Red Tent, there is always an elder woman (or a groups of women) passing down the mysteries of womanhood to a younger female.  There is such a ceremonious feeling to how Dinah’s mothers pitch up the red tent every month when they have their periods.  For 3-4 days, the women lounge around the tent, resting and connecting with their bodies.

I got a box of pads and a warning of “watch out for the boys.  They only want one thing.” from my mom.  At 12 years old, I have no idea what that “one thing” was.

And in the 21st century, we take a pill to mask the symptoms so we can “continue with our lives.”  We are almost too busy to eat or sleep, let alone celebrate our monthly periods.

If I were to ask where you are in your cycle, would you be able to tell me?  Periods are practically a relic of the past if we chose to erase them by taking birth control pills continuously.  And labor can be scheduled in advance at our convenience!

Menopause to not the same as old age. Menopause usually occurs between our late 40s to our late 50s, but it is just another stage in life.  With the average women’s life expectancy well into the 80s, there is still plenty of  “working life” left in our female bodies.

As women, we need to develop a nonjudgmental awareness of who we are and the ability to listen to the insistent murmuring of how we feel, not to mask the symptoms to get on with our lives.  Our physical wellness is a reflection of our lives.

Until next time and thanks for stopping by Small Steps to Health.

Photo by:  Laura Chifiriuc.

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