11 Pros and Cons of Being a Woman

These days, women are becoming powerful and starting to make it even in what used to be territories of men. Today, there are women politicians, CEOs and even presidents of countries. However, despite the achievements of women and the continuous awareness in equality of men and women, the fact still remains. There are still benefits and setbacks to being female.

List of Pros of Being a Woman

1. Longer Life Span
One of the good things about being a woman has something to do with mortality rate. Women are said to outlive men and this has been happening for centuries now. In a comparative study done in Sweden where men and women who lived in the 1800s and in the present century where compared, records show that women before and now live longer than men, about 5% longer. This is also happening in other parts of the world.

2. Menstrual Cycle
Another benefit of being a woman has something to do with the menstrual cycle. There is what is known as the “jogging female heart” hypothesis. Because the heart rate of a woman increases at the second half of her menstrual cycle, this helps in making the heart stronger. This is because the heart pumps more blood during this period the same way it does when a person is dong cardio exercises. As a result, a woman can have a healthier heart than a man.

3. More Accessories and Clothing Choices
One perk of being a woman is that she has many options when it comes to clothing design and color. This gives her the freedom to wear the dress she wants and not be confined to limited choices. A woman can wear jeans, skirts and gowns as well as accessories that are colorful and fancy. Moreover, they can wear their boyfriend’s clothes.

4. Little Perks
Normally, a woman is given respect and is taken care of especially by men. These gives women some perks to enjoy like having a man open the door for her, being given a seat in the bus or experiencing simple acts of chivalry from men. And since women are less likely to commit DUI, their insurance coverage premiums are lower.

5. Better Communicators
According to studies done in the last 30 years, women are better than men when it comes to communication. Men may talk more but women know more vocabulary words than men. This is also partly because women are said to be more emphatic and better listeners. Proponents to this say that this can be traced back to history when men and women still live in caves. Men were the ones who were expected to look for food and hunt while women are left behind to build the family and tend to the children.

List of Cons of Being a Woman

1. Weaker Sex
Although this is not true especially nowadays, some still consider women fragile and dependent on men when it comes to manly chores and activities. Not all women can do physical work that can be done by men like changing a car tire, plumbing or cleaning the roof. This is because some women are not as tall as men or have the body mass men have. Most women, especially the feminine ones are not that physically strong to carry heavy objects or do tasks that will make them become dirty.

2. Emotional
Some women, if not all, tend to be emotional when it comes to situations and this sometimes takes the best of them. A study published in Psychoneuroendocrinology showed that the brains of women have the tendency to process negative emotions. According to the study, women have greater emotional reactivity. Having said that, women have the tendency to be affected more when it comes to situations or problems in their lives. This is also the reason why there are more cases of depression and anxiety in women than men.

3. Prone to Sexual Harassment
It might be that men also experience being harassed but more women are most likely to be harassed or be discriminated on about their gender than men. This is also the case when it comes to having a stalker. Perhaps this is because women are smaller and weaker than men physically or this is how some men regard women.

4. Menstruation and Makeup
There are women who do not mind having their menstrual period but there are also those who are not comfortable or happy each time this time of the month comes. This is because some women suffer from menstrual cramps or dysmenorrhea which can be painful. Marilyn Monroe, for one, was said to have suffered from this that she would not be able to get out of bed for days when in pain. In terms of wearing makeup, some women love the idea of applying makeup while there are those who find it an inconvenience especially that they have to reapply it several times a day at work or have to carry all these products inside their bags.

5. Complicated Labor and Pregnancy
There is joy in being a mother but the lives of women are at risk when they are pregnant or in labor especially of there are complications in the pregnancy. Women who get pregnant later in life can have pre-eclampsia or eclampsia, a condition where the blood pressure becomes elevated and this can put the lives of the pregnant woman and her baby at risk. Another disadvantage associated with this is that women can have reproductive disorders like ovarian cancer and breast cancer that although can be cured if diagnosed earlier, oftentimes, these remain undiagnosed until the cancer has spread.

6. On Having Children
Apart from the fact that women are the ones giving birth and becoming at risk with complicated pregnancies, there is a limit to the reproductive age of women or the age until they can get pregnant, give birth and become mothers. Several reasons can affect their capability to become mothers like surgeries that have affected their reproductive system, infertility and age. Men, on the other hand, can be fathers so long as they do not have medical conditions. A man can still be a father at 70 years of age while a woman cannot get pregnant in the natural way once she has reached her menopausal age.

Women do enjoy some privileges and there are rewards that come with gender but there are also setbacks. Whether the pros outweigh the cons is a question that will depend on how a woman feels about herself and her life.