Women's health vs Men's health (split)

[Annapurna]

Women get more illnesses, at least according to Tibetan Medicine.

Dear Drolma, will you kindly allow me to protest here, and do so without asking first what is defined as illness in Tibetan Buddhism ? (which I highly respect). Please explain it some more, if this is allowed on a Theravada board, because I would like to learn more.

So....

For me, only my own experience -plus medical statistics count

So- no. I don't agree with that notion that women get more illnesses than men.

What we know through medical statistics is, that (usually)

1.women seek advice and help more often, early and in time for a cheap treatment,
2. men more seldom, often too late and thus needing a more expensive treatment.

The reproductive system of a woman is highly complex, with monthly cycle, pregnancy, breastfeeding, menopause, and the body produces natural (stress) reactions to those repetitive changes. But they are not illnesses.

The reproductive system of a man is, in comparison to that, a lot simpler: Get off.

So, that said, I would entirely agree that women seek medical advice more often, and thus may appear ill more often than men, but for said reasons it is an error.

They experience more stress due to their highly complex tasks, but I don't call them illness for a second.

Those stress reactions are normal. A menstruation or pregnancy is no illness.

It is a normal body function, and a healthy woman can cope with it wonderfully.

Only if she is not allowed to live out her nature as a woman, she will become ill.

Which is why I insist on

My way

or highway.


Anyhow.... so what did you mean?



A

PS: Higher life expectancy of women, less infant mortality, too.

[Ngawang Drolma.]

Dear Annabel,

Wow, thanks for this reply! I appreciate all the thought you put into it, and it's very interesting information.

What I wrote was what I've heard from a person who is studying Tibetan Medicine on a serious basis. The context in which the subject came up was in an explanation of one of the tantric vows practitioners take in Tibetan Buddhism. The particular vow we were discussing is to not disparage women, and I was told this is because women get more illnesses than men.

Sorry my explanation isn't any more interesting than that! Maybe someone else will add.

Best wishes,
Drolma

[Annapurna]

Hey, now that Retro gave us our own thread, we gotta come up with more than that...

Hm....

Ok. How about that:

Some take vows to not disparage women because they appear ill more often then men.

I already said this is probably a misinterpretation of normal body functions as "illness".

I further claim that beings who can endure the tasks of a woman must be equipped to do so.

Mentallly and physically. So who has the higher potential, here.

But I am not really a friend of "this vs that" discussions, and placing one above the other, that is why I stand up in defense of women.

I feel we all have our challenges, talents, shortcomings, and imo they are equally distributed amongst the genders.

Men are burdened with the sex drive, yes,burdened with constant desire, whilst women are less.

I also believe that this is the reason why all religions which were made by men dwell so much on the renunciation of desire.

It is their very own problem, which is naturally at the fore front of their thinking´´, also because they don't experience direct results as much as women.

A woman made religion might look different when it comes to priorities.

Would it look like a man's religion or philosophy at all?

(Retro, perhaps you can think of a another title of the thread, not just a health thread...?

Something like:

Objections against women as the lower rebirth /being, from modern and dhammic POV's.

[Ngawang Drolma.]

What is interesting, is that the reason for that particular vow is that women get more illnesses. But in the tradition of Buddhism I practice, female is the source of discriminating wisdom and shunyata (as I understand it). That's pretty cool!

From a Theravadan POV I must be honest that I'm pretty unfamiliar with gender issues. From a modern psychological point of view I'm slightly more familiar. As you said, we all have different capacities and tendencies based on who we are as individuals.

It would seem like in this day and age, female and male health issues would be a little more similar than in days past, given that our lifestyles have become more similar. Just a theory I'm throwing out there

/\

[Annapurna]

Dear Drolma,.

I see women's and men's health issues in a perfect balance.

They both have illnesses and weaknesses, just in other realms.

They both have strength, just in other realms.

They are complementary.

The male gender is just a bit more prone to abuse it's muscular strength and equates(confuses it with mental superiority.

Of course only the not so intelligent ones.