Long nails, makeup, silly ex-boyfriends, high heels that hurt the toes, periods, hair maintenance, weight maintenance, youth maintenance… All these things can be classified as “Female Problems.” Not to say boys or non-binary folk can’t experience ’em, but by society’s norms and “traditional” gender roles, this is what we attribute to women.
Why not laugh at the silliness of it all? Life’s too short to be grumpy when you can be fabulous! Thanks to the Facebook group conveniently named “Female Problems,” we’ve got quite a bit to chuckle about. However, whilst we have the silliness, we should also talk about the very serious problems women of today face.
The drive towards gender equality and the feminist movement are some things that have rooted themselves in society quite recently when considering all of human history. That, of course, means that the journey towards a society where gender determines very little is still a long way away, with female issues still prevalent in the world.
As listed by UN Women, these issues include violence against women and girls, the gender pay gap, the digital gender divide, domestic work versus career, period poverty and stigma, and underrepresentation as leaders. We’re just scratching the surface with these, but they’re good enough to start with.
Every day, in every country in the world, women are confronted by discrimination and inequality. As stated by Oxfam International, women all over the world face violence, abuse, and unequal treatment at home, at work, and in their wider communities—and are denied opportunities to learn, to earn, and to lead.
Women form the majority of those living in poverty. They have fewer resources, less power and less influence compared to men, and can experience further inequality because of their class, education, ethnicity and age, as well as religious and other fundamentalism. The World Economic Forum estimates it will take another century before true gender equality becomes a reality, as long as these elements continue to drive a gap between genders.
While both men and women contract various conditions, some health issues affect women differently and more commonly. Illnesses such as breast cancer, ovarian and cervical cancer, as well as pregnancy complications, heart disease, and gynecological health matters, present themselves most often.
Sadly, many women’s health conditions go undiagnosed, and most drug trials do not even include female test subjects. It may come as a surprise that including female participants in clinical studies only started in the late 1980s and was only made mandatory in the US in 1993, per National Institutes of Health guidelines.
Even some 30 years later, the scales remain out of balance. For example, as shared in Harvard Health, 70% of those affected by chronic pain conditions are women, whereas 80% of pain research is conducted on males. Although medicine is finally moving towards a more inclusive practice, it’s not close to the level it needs to be.
Speaking of medical practices, one should not forget about the practice of female genital mutilation (FGM), a procedure where the female genitals are deliberately cut, injured or changed, without a medical reason, but for a cultural, religious or social reason in the mistaken belief that it will benefit the girl in some way.
According to UNFPA, an estimated 200 million girls and women alive today are believed to have been subjected to FGM; but rates of FGM are increasing, as a reflection of global population growth. UNFPA and UNICEF jointly lead the largest global program to accelerate the elimination of FGM and provide care for its consequences.
Although we laugh at the little things that being a woman brings, there are a lot of things that still need a lot of work and effort to make the world a more welcoming place to live. It’ll take generations for anything to shift in a significant way; however, it can start with each and every one of us.
As you scroll through this list, make sure to upvote your favorites and leave some comments below, and I shall hope to see you in the next one! Arrivederci!
