Unbelievably, in the 21st Century, we have a lot of people who believe that the female reproductive system is full of myths designed to "get out of work", invoke "false sympathy" and to "get attention." We have young men who believe that a woman can just hold her period flow and go to the bathroom on scheduled breaks like men do. I have news for him, employees regardless of gender take more breaks than scheduled when they think that they can get away with it. It's a game of cat & mouse. But to say that a woman controls her period is simply ignorant. We have old men in Congress who think that reproductive health needs end at a specified age. Misinformation abounds.
The medical research field isn't very responsible in dispelling these myths. Research and production are heavily focused on making sure that men can enjoy sex throughout every decade of life. While women do have over the counter medication to help with menstrual cramping and a vast array of products to prevent embarrassment in case of leakage, so that we can maintain our productivity, we only have the Pill to help with the more mysterious symptoms of heavy bleeding, vitamin deficiency and hormone imbalance. There is no known cause or cure for Endometriosis, Pre Menstrual Dysphoric Disorder, and Poly Cystic Ovarian Syndrome. All three of these disorders can be debilitating to the women who experience them. Some of these conditions affect as many as 75% of the female population. And I suspect, due to the "invisible" nature of the condition, the source of the mythological accusation.
The only thing doctors have to combat these symptoms, when they are willing to do so is the Pill. It isn't just a contraceptive. It is a necessary medication to treat these conditions. It only treats the symptoms and not the cause. And it certainly doesn't negate the outcome. The current anti-science and radical pro-life mentality in America would eliminate this necessary medication on the false belief that these conditions are, at best, nothing more than "A bad period" and, at worst, "imaginary & attention seeking behavior". Clearly, the emphasis on men's sexual functioning is more important than women's reproductive health.
You see, if left untreated any one of those will lead to infertility or cancer. To be pro-life and not be willing to deal with a medical condition which will prevent life from forming is not pro-life. To be pro-life but ignore the quality of life beyond birth is not pro-life. To be a person who believes in the sanctity of life but discourages the study of reproductive health to prevent cancers from these diseases is to be a liar. There are, as we know, a good many of them in Congress. They are out to defund Planned Parenthood. This organization is a major service provider to poor women across the country. Pharmaceutical companies are only looking at hormonal treatments which have dubious effect. A percentage of men have decided that these conditions are just made up.
If there truly was equality why is this the case? I've done a little research on the Constitution and realized that none of the proposed bills to constitutionally recognize women's rights never hit the books. True, we can not be denied work, wages, housing or service based on gender. However, there is no defined Amendment for those Rights. There is no statement in the Constitution which designates women as persons. Why is that important? Samantics.
It only takes a clever lawyer to strip rights from persons not specifically mentioned in the Constitution. The persistence of belief that women's gynecological issues are made up for sympathy is not much different than the way fascists negate the value of their enemies right before they destroy them. It doesn't matter to me anymore why this happens. I don't care about the psychology or changing minds that are already made up. I care about inspiring people to make a noise and resist giving in to the illogical premises and conclusions. To fight the good fight and resist being negated. If American women can not find proper treatment and the equality that others insist that we do have there is a huge problem here.
It won't go away by ignoring it.
It won't go away unless we make the issues known.
It won't resolve itself unless we do something to bring the issues to light.
It won't be better unless we make it better ourselves.
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