#3 Woman = Uterus

This is a continuation of my previous posts talking about the myth of stress decreasing your chances of getting pregnant.

3. It only values women based on their ability to have babies, and if you can't, you aren't a good woman.

If you're having trouble having babies, it stresses you out. Then being told that it's your fault that you can't have babies devalues you as a person. Taking extremely thin evidence and blanket-statement-ing it to all women turns them into uniform baby-makers who all have the same experiences and same reactions. So, if all women have uniform experiences and reactions, then anyone who is abnormal (i.e. too stressed out to get pregnant) is doing it wrong. This one is pretty simple and doesn't require a whole lot of discussion, but it is still an extremely destructive implication to all women who are struggling to conceive.

Thankfully, I have not been hit with this part of it yet, and know that I won't from my wonderful support crew. Again, my journey has been extremely short, but I want to bring out these ideas for all women who are further along the path than I am. If I need to hear it, if these ideas gave me such an extreme sense of relief, I hope they can help another woman with any level of struggles in conception.

You are not the sum total of your ability to have babies. A woman is many things, and some women choose to become mothers or not to become mothers, and some become mothers or cannot become mothers without choosing it. That does not determine your value or your purpose in life. Being a good person does not depend on your gender, and everyone can do that. Having a baby is another piece of life, it happens when and how it happens, and it does not make you better or worse for it happening sooner or later.


Other posts in this series:

1. The Stress Cycle
2. Victim Blaming
3. Woman = Uterus
4. Dismissing Emotions
5. The Myth Continues