5 Good and bad things about being a woman

Yesterday was International Women’s Day so I thought it would be fun to share some things that I enjoy and things that I find annoying about being a woman. Before writing this post, I felt a little worried about how it would be perceived, specifically because of all the LGBTQ movements that have been happening in recent years. So as a disclaimer, I would like to say that by no means is this post related to any of that… I prefer not to have an opinion on people’s lifestyle choices because I’m having enough of a challenge trying to figure out my own! Now with that disclaimer out there, let’s spill the tea.

Being a woman is awesome because we are…

Multifaceted

Womanhood is a very beautiful journey to be on. We are caring, compassionate and extremely loving beings. Our ability to love unconditionally is something that I am very proud of. It is unfortunate that this quality is not valued as one of the best gifts we can give. But every woman knows just how much our love is worth. Having a woman in your life is like securing a brighter future with someone who will love, honour and respect you. Well, most of us would.

And yet, that is not the only thing we are good for. We are intelligent, highly skilled, and very much capable of carrying the world on our shoulders. Women are strong and resilient, despite having such big hearts. In fact, I would even say that it is the magnitude of our love and passion that keeps us going on. Woman = amazing. That’s the only equation that matters.

Women are great assets

As a woman, you could call me pretentious for putting this out there, but I stand by my words. I am a woman and I am proud to be one. Men objectify me or belittle my thoughts, and yet, I can use those very things to my advantage. With emotional intelligence ranking high, we women are able to turn any bad situation into something worthwhile. You know this, I know this, and yet we still need to remind you. But that’s okay because still waters run deep.

Have you heard the saying that “behind every great man is a woman”? Believe me, it is true. Without women, great leaders wouldn’t be born. Without a woman, your house wouldn’t be a home. And without women in this world, nothing would make sense.

You may also like: To the amazing woman

But it sucks to be a woman because of…

Mother nature

There’s no pretty way to say this, so we’ll call it Mother Nature… period. And yes, that was meant to be punny. We ladies try to be cute about it in the office by speaking in code to our gals, even though most of the time, the guys know exactly what’s going on.

“Aunt Flo came around, do you have anything I can give her?”
“Do you have any pain killers? I’m not feeling too great today!”
“I’m breaking out again, but I need chocolate!”

Are you wondering why this one sits so close to home? Well, despite the obvious reason of my genetic makeup, I have a few too many stories to tell. I work with a team that is evenly split between men and women – ie. there are more men in the room but the maturity of the women cover up for the immaturity of the guys. Therefore, we are the most prominent figures. But when we get upset about anything that can be considered sexist or just rude, it’s blamed on our periods.

If we are looking a bit stressed out – blame the period. And when it is actually that time of the month, we have to tip-toe around the guys to sneak our feminine products out. Only to be greeted by the comment “where are you going?” Is there ever really a correct answer to this? Or maybe we are asked, “Why are you in such a bad mood?”

Perhaps, “I’m off to go shopping” or “I don’t feel like working anymore” are the answers they want to hear?

Mood swings

Ladies, I am very much aware that there are several men with anger problems. You might even have to take a restraining order on some “gents” from your past. But the thing is, they don’t have the hormone imbalance that we get every. single. month. Those hormones though!

I have been told that essential oils work wonders with the PMS. But I wonder if there is some magic pill we can take to keep our mental state constant throughout the month. If there is something I haven’t heard of, please tell me! Until then, I will continue to block out all social events in the week leading to my call from mother nature.

Weight gain

Being a woman is great when it comes to how we look, the way our clothes fit, etc. But the maintenance part is extremely hellish. Ever since having a child, I have felt that things have been downhill. It doesn’t matter if I do CrossFit every morning and follow a rigid eating plan. The fat will just work out with me and get bigger too.

I know there are many women out there that eat more than a male NBA player without gaining a gram of fat. But the majority of us just don’t work that way. Personally, the times I gain the most weight are when I choose to go on a diet. When I don’t sleep enough. When I eat normal amounts of healthy food, and even when just I exist. At least when I was younger I would need to sniff the food to gain weight… Now my mere existence is sufficient to make the weight-gain stars align! By a show of hands, who else is living this struggle? I’m willing to bet that there are quite a few gals out there that have the exact same problem.

Since we are now in a time when equal rights is the norm, why don’t our male counterparts have equal problems? Why is it that the women continue to be objectified and yet have to endure the eagerly growing fat cells too? How’s that for equality!

Despite all of this…

Despite the negatives, which are really just periods and weight gain, being a woman is wonderful. I am grateful to have many strong and loving female figures in my life that need to be celebrated. So let’s celebrate the wonderful women in our lives.

If you are a woman too, help me celebrate the amazing person that you are. And also, share some things you love and hate about being a woman.

By the way, let’s connect on Instagram and Pinterest.