It's kind of crazy to think how little some women know about their bodies. I was especially surprised by the fact that women can't identify their organs (myself included). I think that it is important for women to understand their bodies from a physical and mental perspective. For example distinguishing the physical difference between the vulva and the vagina. Many may think it doesn't matter, referring to their vulva as a vagina. I found an article on Huffpost which goes into greater detail about this topic. The article talks about whether it does or doesn't matter whether we say vagina or vulva. I strongly agree with the Huffpost article and I found their arguments very interesting. One argument I found valuable was that knowing the specific and correct terms for body parts actually empowers women to take full ownership of them. This therefore links the physical and mental side of knowing your bits. A women's mentality may be influenced just by being able to distinguish her bits.
We also explored the expectations of the physical appearance of women's vulvas and vaginas in the lecture. I strongly believe that if women talked about what their bits looked like and we were shown and taught about them at school there would be far less insecurities in women. Pornography is having a huge impact on expectations in the way girly bits should look. Pornography display 'perfect' looking vaginas and create the expectation for men and women that they should look like that. It was mentioned in the lecture that women as a result of their insecurities, get plastic surgery to look a certain way. The girls in the video all had an idea of what their girly bits should look like. They described that they were so insecure about their bits that it eventually took over their life. I would have surgery too if insecurities were controlling my life. What I'm trying to say is if everyone was open with one another and everyone is aware that everyone is different and you don't have to look a certain way these insecurities would be far less prevalent. It's a hard topic to tackle because their are heaps of businesses that depend on womens insecurities to make a living now days. It should be common knowledge among girls AND boys that vaginas and vulvas come in all different shapes, textures and sizes and they are all normal and healthy.
Week 3 Reflection: Women in Popular Culture, Advertising, and The Media
This weeks lecture reflected on how women are portrayed in popular culture, advertising and the media. Women are often sexually portrayed, which I think demoralises women. Women start to believe that they have to be sexualised to be noticed. A particular young girl comes to mind when talking about women being sexualised. Her name is Thylane, and she was featured in a number of 'high fashion' shoots when she was just 10 years old, where she wore provocative clothing and a full face of makeup. I believe this type of portrayal is harmful to women and young girls as it normalises the sexualisation of women and young girls.
Women are much more than a pretty face or a slim body. The sexual portrayal of women creates huge mental health problems for women. This video below shows some great examples of how women are expressed in advertising and the awful messages they tell.
The objectification of women in these kinds of advertisements sends messages to women and girls that their value comes from their looks and sexuality. This causes immense physical and mental health issues. Many women strive to be the "perfect" girl displayed throughout our culture and the media, which creates huge body image issues. Depression, anxiety, eating disorders, low self esteem are a few of the health implications that stem from these advertisements. Women should love their bodies no matter what size they are and not feel pressured to be sexualised or a certain shape to be noticed or feel valued.
Week 4 Reflection: The 'Right' Time to Have a Child
This week really opened my eyes, I never understood how much pressure and judgement women experience in regards to when they choose to have their child. Being only 20 years old I haven't experienced the pressure from people wondering when I am going to have a child. My parents had 4 children all very spread out and have experienced being a young and old parent. They haven't had expectations on us in regards to time frames for when is the 'right' time to have children. Only now after I have reflected, I realised that my eldest sister experienced pressure regarding her age and having children . My eldest sister was single till she was 29 and people were constantly telling her the clock was ticking. It wasn't a pleasant experience for her, every family occasion people would ask if she had found a partner yet and I remember her being quite upset about it. It's really awful to put pressure on someone regarding something they can't change. The experience is different for everyone, some people don't want to have a kid till later in life or not at all and it is entirely up to them. Many factors influence when an individual wants to have a child, these could include work, education or travel. As soon as a women has a baby and she steps out of work she is immediately behind the men that are continuing to grow and move forward in the work place. Women's careers are put on hold, and therefore motherhood is a form of oppression.
Abortion is another topic covered in this lecture that I am really interested in. Abortion is common and I feel it should be openly talked about among people. I know if I fell pregnant right now while I am taking contraception I would have an abortion. I am in no way capable of raising a child, nor have I finished my university degree and I am not in a financially stable position. These are factors that are real and have REAL impacts on peoples lives and health and therefore influence an individuals choices to have an abortion. I should not feel ashamed of my choice nor should anyone else. Society has created a stigma around abortion being wrong and shamed upon. People like Tony Abbot are out there telling people that abortion is a cop out. No it is not a cop out, it is a choice based on factors that impact lives. It astounds me that abortion is illegal in Queensland. According to Legal Aid Queensland abortions are generally regarded as lawful if performed to prevent serious danger to the women's physical or mental health. This should be a womens choice to analyse her situation and make a decision whether she is in the right position to bring a child into this world. Yes I believe the prevention of unplanned pregnancies is desirable, however it is unrealistic to expect that all women will never experience an unplanned pregnancy. I love this quote from the photo below "My body, my choice, no debate.", it's a good quote to end on.
Aspen Baker talked about her experience of abortion on Ted Talk, which I found valuable to listen to.
Heres the link: https://www.ted.com/talks/aspen_baker_a_better_way_to_talk_about_abortion#t-130646
Week 5 Reflection: Gender and Work: How Does it Work?
This week we discussed the different work roles given to men and women. Women and men have traditional work roles, women do the housework and men have a paid job. There is a stigma that stay at home women with children don't work, but really it is just unpaid work. Slide 5 showed common phrases, sentences or questions such as "I work and she stay at home." which imply that women don't work.. when the reality is that being a mum is HARD work, really hard work. This is comedian Bill Burr's take on motherhood. blob:http://www.mamamia.com.au/f322a6da-3a2e-41fd-b0e2-2e8c9a137aaf
Sounds like he has been through motherhood right? NOT. He is comparing men and women and making women sound petty when complaining about motherhood. Yes women understand that working in a mine is tough and many labour jobs are tough but that doesn't make motherhood not tough. This is why there is a stigma that mum's don't really work, they just go out for lunch and relax. Here is it from a two womens perspectives who have actually been through motherhood: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iBAQnyC3M9g
Motherhood is a full time job!! I love those two ladies. They do really great videos about the reality of being a mum.
I have reflected on how my own family is structured. Yes there is still the classic gender roles within my family like my mum cleans, however I do think my family has a balanced workload and doesn't conform to most gender norms. My mum and dad share cooking duties, either my mum or dad will cook and the other will do all the dishes. My dad does the hard labour in the garden and my mum does the other stuff. When assigning jobs to the kids they weren't based on gender norm, we would swop our jobs so everyone would get a turn at everything. I think they have modelled a well balanced structure of jobs. I want to go on to model a similar structure to my family.
Week 6 Reflection: The Impact of Domestic Violence on Women Locally and Globally.
Approximately one woman per week in Australia loses her life at the hands of a current or ex-partner. Domestic violence is abusive or intimidating behaviour in a relationship. Abuse can be in the form of verbal abuse, psychological abuse and emotional abuse. A really important point that was discussed in todays lecture was that women can't just leave. A common misconception is that women can just get up and leave and everything will be okay. We watched Leslie's Ted Talk about why domestic violence victims don't leave. Victims can still be in love with their perpetrator and Leslie was one of them. It's very easy for people to judge others situations and say what they would do in that situation. I don't think people truly know what they would do in a situation until they are in it. https://www.ted.com/talks/jackson_katz_violence_against_women_it_s_a_men_s_issue?language=en
Sophie from DV Connect came and talked to us in week 13. She made a really good point that men don’t normally experience the same amount of fear as women. Women are in these horrendous situations and don’t know what’s best for their children or themselves. Their lives or their children’s lives may be at risk. Anne brought up how the current structure supports inequality. I had never thought about that before but she is completely right. Why is it that the victim has to give up and leave everything whilst the perpetrator continues normal routine? Again contributing to the gender pay gap where a woman has had to sacrifice her career due to her circumstances.
Julie Anne raised the point that domestic violence starts at slogans such as “We speak boy”. It’s this mentality that men are superior to women that impacts women's position is society. The basis of domestic violence begins at behavioural norms such as girls being restricted to wearing skirts at school and women more often than not playing supporting roles in movies. These are behaviours our society believes are normal that create inequality!! The movie Wonder Women recently came out, which represents women very well. I thoroughly enjoyed it and would recommend it. The movie has a women playing a dominant character who defies the expectations set upon her.
Week 7 Women who Love Other Women: The Social Treatment of Lesbians and the Consequences for Health
This topic is a passionate topic of mine. Lesbian couples experience homophobia, legal discrimination, religious discrimination, medical discrimination and the list goes on. I don’t think people really think through or do the research regarding the deeper consequences of not accepting lesbian couples in society and not allowing them to get married. In the lecture it was talked about how many health insurance policies do not cover unmarried partners, lesbians fear telling doctors about their sexual orientation and they experience negative encounters with medical professionals. Lesbian couple’s health is being negatively impacted due to health professionals!?! NOT OKAY. This is a very concerning topic to me. As I talk to many people around me about the upcoming plebiscite and the many important reasons people should vote yes I am shocked as to how little people know and the assumptions that are made. I can only imagine how little the people voting no really know and understand about the topic. This is why subjects such as this and health, culture and society are so important! Lesbians face a huge amount of health issues including anxiety, depression, high rates of smoking, sexually transmitted diseases, obesity, drug and alcohol abuse. Simply accepting everyone for who they are would have a huge impact on many groups health including lesbian’s health.
A common misconception is that children of lesbian couples are disadvantaged. When in reality research shows that children raised by gay parents do as well as kids raised by straight parents. This video is of same sex couple’s kids and their responses to some questions. http://iview.abc.net.au/programs/you-cant-ask-that/LE1617H008S00#playing
I really liked the way one of the young boys described a family -“ any family that can care for you, anyone who looks after you and cares about your wellbeing. “ Who’s to judge a family with two mums that care about their kids and looks after them, I mean that’s exactly what my parents do… Another question they were asked included, “how awkward was it telling everyone your parents are gay?”
Some of their responses include:
“It was terrifying..”
“All the worst scenarios go through your head- I’m going to be bullied everyday”
“Didn’t really want to bring people into my world”.
These responses are heart breaking. Society is causing them to live in fear. Even the wording of the question including the word “awkward” predetermines the idea that it is awkward to have parents that are gay and that is totally unacceptable. It is societies fault that this group of people do not feel included or accepted and it is our responsibility to make homosexuality families feel socially accepted.
Week 8 Mental Health and Substance Abuse in Women Across the Ages
I am very grateful for the time I was born and how far we have come as a society in regards to mental health. It’s almost unbelievable that women were deemed insane whether they were suffering from mental illness or not. Contemporary Australian men and women face huge mental health issues yet there is support available. Women are more likely to experience a mental health disorder than men. This doesn’t surprise me considering the societal pressures put on women. Eating disorders are a very scary and prevalent mental health issue. I went through a period of being extremely strict on myself and lost a lot of weight but was lucky enough to come out of it. Majority of my friends have been through a similar experience whilst some have been more severe than others. I good friend of mine was hospitalised as a result. This still has an impact on her today. I truly think that the statistic of 2% of the population experiencing an eating disorder is under reported. I think eating disorders are much more prevalent than deemed to be and they will continue to be far more prevalent as a result of social media. I believe this health issue requires health expert’s attention.
It is shocking that suicide is the leading cause of death in Australian women aged 18-36 years. Mental health is a health issue I don’t think we have a huge grip on yet and societies view on mental illness is contributing to the issue. People are uncomfortable to talk about mental health; it’s often something private and thought to be shamed upon. A friend of mine on Facebook posted about her family’s experience with her sisters anorexia. Basically she said it had a huge impact on her family and they kept it quiet thinking they were protecting her sister but they have finally realised that it should be talked about. I am seeing more and more of a shift among mental illness awareness. This is the kind of change we need as a society.
Mental health is often associated with other unhealthy behaviours such as smoking and drug use. Women with mental illness are more than twice as likely to smoke cigarettes than the general population. Consequently targeting mental illness will reduce rates of smoking and drug use, therefore I believe mental illness should be a primary focus for health professionals.
This video is of women talking about their experiences with mental health. Many of them mention that being told that they aren't alone was really helpful for them. This just shows the importance of sharing your story and telling people they aren't alone. Link to video: https://www.beyondblue.org.au/who-does-it-affect/women
Week 9 Diary The fashion industry and body image: impact on women’s health
The fashion industry is all over social media and I am a sucker for following models and influencers. As I scroll through Instagram right now I don’t see one image of a realistic looking person or lifestyle. Everything is edited or staged to make it look more perfect than it really is (I have learnt this over the years thanks to some influencers being realistic sometimes). Even though I know these things I still find myself wishing I had their clothes, hair, skin, body and the list goes on.
Here are a couple of examples of the lifestyles displayed on instagram I find myself comparing myself to these “idealistic” figures that are typically unachievable. Unrealistic clothing sizing, eating disorders, poor body image and poor self -esteem are all things I have experienced and can relate to. Cosmetic surgery is something I personally don’t believe in but I know many girls that have had cosmetic surgery. One thing that really bugs me is that Instagram celebrities get their lips and boobs done openly. It’s not the fact that they share their experience with everyone it is the messages they send doing so. For example Shanni Griffith (Instagram model) recently got her boobs done and made a Vlog about it. In the Vlog she tried to make it clear that she isn’t encouraging girls to get their boobs done but she got hers done because they are too small. Realistically she is sending messages to young girls that they should get their boobs done if they are too small whether she says she isn’t or not. I’m lucky enough to be comfortable in my own shoes and be able to recognise the issue but there are many people out their not in my position.
I found this video especially powerful: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=47cbEeSKIZo
Week 10: Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Women
Indigenous women have great responsibilities in regards to their family and their health. Due to studying Indigenous Health I already I knew that their health prior to colonisation was good. They were lean and fit and lived off the land. Assimilation and the stolen generation contributed to the social determinants of health for the Indigenous. These determinants include loss of connection to the land, loss of languages, loss of family, loss of identity, loss of community and racism. Racism is still prevalent today. Ray one of my lecturers told me a story that has really stuck with me. He is Aboriginal with white skin and has relatives that are Aboriginal with dark skin. He told us that when they are trying to rent homes Ray is the one that faces up to the rental properties because his relatives are often denied based on their race. This has really opened my eyes to how awfully the Indigenous are treated still today. The gap in life expectancy is astounding. Indigenous mothers are more likely to have a low birth weight bub. This is due to smoking, alcohol consumption, poor nutrition, socioeconomic disadvantage and poor access during pregnancy. These health factors require some serious attention. Its very confronting and sad to see the language that was used to describe Indigenous people. They were often described based on ‘degree’s of blood. I found the 3 part definition of Aboriginal identity really interesting. I never knew that they must identify as an Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander person. The common stereotypes associated with Aboriginal women are very offensive and shocking. I am very fortunate to have an education and be knowledgeable about Aboriginal women and know how wrong the stereotypes are. They have huge impacts on the health Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women.
Week 13: Case studies
Representatives from DV Connect, True relationships and Children by Choice all came and talked to us today. Anne from Children by choice gave a presentation and answered questions around an unplanned pregnancy and abortion. The organisation is the only independent pro choice, which means they don't have any relationships influencing their organisation. I can't believe that abortion is illegal in Queensland. I also found it unbelievable when Anne told us that the court decides whether a child under age goes ahead with a pregnancy, not their parents or themselves. Children by Choice offers support for people under these circumstances. The support may be financial or explaining their options to them. Anne explained that having a termination is reasonably easy if you have enough money. This made me think about myself in this situation. She said it costs around 500-1000 dollars depending on how far along you are, I definitely don't have this kind of money. The emotional stress of being pregnant, financial pressure and social pressure are huge burdens and Children by Choice offer support and advice to individuals in these situations. I found the organisation very valuable and I would use it myself if I was ever in need. Sophie from DV Connect came and talked to us as well. She made a really good point that men don’t normally experience the same amount of fear as women. Women are in these horrendous situations and don’t know what’s best for their children or themselves. Their lives or their children’s lives may be at risk. Anne brought up how the current structure supports inequality. I had never thought about that before but she is completely right. Why is it that the victim has to give up and leave everything whilst the perpetrator continues normal routine? Again contributing to the gender pay gap where a woman has had to sacrifice her career due to her circumstances. True relationships is an equally important organisation, they focus on respectful education. This organisation is especially important to establish respectful relationships when individuals are young. It is important to establish these relationships early for them to be embedded and become habits. Overall this unit has been a huge learning experience. I am completely understanding of what feminists are all about and have become one myself. I have already found myself speaking out about the topics covered in the lectures and sharing the important things I have learnt.
Week 2 Reflection: Womens Amazing Bodies
It's kind of crazy to think how little some women know about their bodies. I was especially surprised by the fact that women can't identify their organs (myself included). I think that it is important for women to understand their bodies from a physical and mental perspective. For example distinguishing the physical difference between the vulva and the vagina. Many may think it doesn't matter, referring to their vulva as a vagina. I found an article on Huffpost which goes into greater detail about this topic. The article talks about whether it does or doesn't matter whether we say vagina or vulva. I strongly agree with the Huffpost article and I found their arguments very interesting. One argument I found valuable was that knowing the specific and correct terms for body parts actually empowers women to take full ownership of them. This therefore links the physical and mental side of knowing your bits. A women's mentality may be influenced just by being able to distinguish her bits.
Link to Huffpost article:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com.au/entry/lets-clear-up-the-vagina-vs-vulva-debate-once-and-for-all_us_562f99dfe4b06317990f73c8
We also explored the expectations of the physical appearance of women's vulvas and vaginas in the lecture. I strongly believe that if women talked about what their bits looked like and we were shown and taught about them at school there would be far less insecurities in women. Pornography is having a huge impact on expectations in the way girly bits should look. Pornography display 'perfect' looking vaginas and create the expectation for men and women that they should look like that. It was mentioned in the lecture that women as a result of their insecurities, get plastic surgery to look a certain way. The girls in the video all had an idea of what their girly bits should look like. They described that they were so insecure about their bits that it eventually took over their life. I would have surgery too if insecurities were controlling my life. What I'm trying to say is if everyone was open with one another and everyone is aware that everyone is different and you don't have to look a certain way these insecurities would be far less prevalent. It's a hard topic to tackle because their are heaps of businesses that depend on womens insecurities to make a living now days. It should be common knowledge among girls AND boys that vaginas and vulvas come in all different shapes, textures and sizes and they are all normal and healthy.
Week 3 Reflection: Women in Popular Culture, Advertising, and The Media
This weeks lecture reflected on how women are portrayed in popular culture, advertising and the media. Women are often sexually portrayed, which I think demoralises women. Women start to believe that they have to be sexualised to be noticed. A particular young girl comes to mind when talking about women being sexualised. Her name is Thylane, and she was featured in a number of 'high fashion' shoots when she was just 10 years old, where she wore provocative clothing and a full face of makeup. I believe this type of portrayal is harmful to women and young girls as it normalises the sexualisation of women and young girls.Women are much more than a pretty face or a slim body. The sexual portrayal of women creates huge mental health problems for women. This video below shows some great examples of how women are expressed in advertising and the awful messages they tell.
The objectification of women in these kinds of advertisements sends messages to women and girls that their value comes from their looks and sexuality. This causes immense physical and mental health issues. Many women strive to be the "perfect" girl displayed throughout our culture and the media, which creates huge body image issues. Depression, anxiety, eating disorders, low self esteem are a few of the health implications that stem from these advertisements. Women should love their bodies no matter what size they are and not feel pressured to be sexualised or a certain shape to be noticed or feel valued.
Week 4 Reflection: The 'Right' Time to Have a Child
This week really opened my eyes, I never understood how much pressure and judgement women experience in regards to when they choose to have their child. Being only 20 years old I haven't experienced the pressure from people wondering when I am going to have a child. My parents had 4 children all very spread out and have experienced being a young and old parent. They haven't had expectations on us in regards to time frames for when is the 'right' time to have children. Only now after I have reflected, I realised that my eldest sister experienced pressure regarding her age and having children . My eldest sister was single till she was 29 and people were constantly telling her the clock was ticking. It wasn't a pleasant experience for her, every family occasion people would ask if she had found a partner yet and I remember her being quite upset about it. It's really awful to put pressure on someone regarding something they can't change. The experience is different for everyone, some people don't want to have a kid till later in life or not at all and it is entirely up to them. Many factors influence when an individual wants to have a child, these could include work, education or travel. As soon as a women has a baby and she steps out of work she is immediately behind the men that are continuing to grow and move forward in the work place. Women's careers are put on hold, and therefore motherhood is a form of oppression.Abortion is another topic covered in this lecture that I am really interested in. Abortion is common and I feel it should be openly talked about among people. I know if I fell pregnant right now while I am taking contraception I would have an abortion. I am in no way capable of raising a child, nor have I finished my university degree and I am not in a financially stable position. These are factors that are real and have REAL impacts on peoples lives and health and therefore influence an individuals choices to have an abortion. I should not feel ashamed of my choice nor should anyone else. Society has created a stigma around abortion being wrong and shamed upon. People like Tony Abbot are out there telling people that abortion is a cop out. No it is not a cop out, it is a choice based on factors that impact lives. It astounds me that abortion is illegal in Queensland. According to Legal Aid Queensland abortions are generally regarded as lawful if performed to prevent serious danger to the women's physical or mental health. This should be a womens choice to analyse her situation and make a decision whether she is in the right position to bring a child into this world. Yes I believe the prevention of unplanned pregnancies is desirable, however it is unrealistic to expect that all women will never experience an unplanned pregnancy. I love this quote from the photo below "My body, my choice, no debate.", it's a good quote to end on.
Aspen Baker talked about her experience of abortion on Ted Talk, which I found valuable to listen to.
Heres the link:
https://www.ted.com/talks/aspen_baker_a_better_way_to_talk_about_abortion#t-130646
Week 5 Reflection: Gender and Work: How Does it Work?
This week we discussed the different work roles given to men and women. Women and men have traditional work roles, women do the housework and men have a paid job. There is a stigma that stay at home women with children don't work, but really it is just unpaid work. Slide 5 showed common phrases, sentences or questions such as "I work and she stay at home." which imply that women don't work.. when the reality is that being a mum is HARD work, really hard work. This is comedian Bill Burr's take on motherhood.blob:http://www.mamamia.com.au/f322a6da-3a2e-41fd-b0e2-2e8c9a137aaf
Sounds like he has been through motherhood right? NOT. He is comparing men and women and making women sound petty when complaining about motherhood. Yes women understand that working in a mine is tough and many labour jobs are tough but that doesn't make motherhood not tough. This is why there is a stigma that mum's don't really work, they just go out for lunch and relax. Here is it from a two womens perspectives who have actually been through motherhood:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iBAQnyC3M9g
Motherhood is a full time job!! I love those two ladies. They do really great videos about the reality of being a mum.
I have reflected on how my own family is structured. Yes there is still the classic gender roles within my family like my mum cleans, however I do think my family has a balanced workload and doesn't conform to most gender norms. My mum and dad share cooking duties, either my mum or dad will cook and the other will do all the dishes. My dad does the hard labour in the garden and my mum does the other stuff. When assigning jobs to the kids they weren't based on gender norm, we would swop our jobs so everyone would get a turn at everything. I think they have modelled a well balanced structure of jobs. I want to go on to model a similar structure to my family.
I thought I should include this article about Lisa Wilkinson. Lisa Wilkinson has just revealed she is leaving the Today Show. After all her years of experience and her credibility, she is paid about half the amount as her male colleague. Sound fair? I don't think so. Good on her for standing up for herself. She is setting a great example for many women around the world. We are worth just as much as men. The gender pay gap still exists! Heres a link to the article:
http://www.heraldsun.com.au/news/opinion/wendy-tuohy/pay-gap-claims-high-profile-victim-after-lisa-wilkinson-quits-channel-nine/news-story/7242c9af64f3e8daffd60fb6af60a3cc
Week 6 Reflection: The Impact of Domestic Violence on Women Locally and Globally.
Approximately one woman per week in Australia loses her life at the hands of a current or ex-partner. Domestic violence is abusive or intimidating behaviour in a relationship. Abuse can be in the form of verbal abuse, psychological abuse and emotional abuse. A really important point that was discussed in todays lecture was that women can't just leave. A common misconception is that women can just get up and leave and everything will be okay. We watched Leslie's Ted Talk about why domestic violence victims don't leave. Victims can still be in love with their perpetrator and Leslie was one of them. It's very easy for people to judge others situations and say what they would do in that situation. I don't think people truly know what they would do in a situation until they are in it.
https://www.ted.com/talks/jackson_katz_violence_against_women_it_s_a_men_s_issue?language=en
Sophie from DV Connect came and talked to us in week 13. She made a really good point that men don’t normally experience the same amount of fear as women. Women are in these horrendous situations and don’t know what’s best for their children or themselves. Their lives or their children’s lives may be at risk. Anne brought up how the current structure supports inequality. I had never thought about that before but she is completely right. Why is it that the victim has to give up and leave everything whilst the perpetrator continues normal routine? Again contributing to the gender pay gap where a woman has had to sacrifice her career due to her circumstances.
Julie Anne raised the point that domestic violence starts at slogans such as “We speak boy”. It’s this mentality that men are superior to women that impacts women's position is society. The basis of domestic violence begins at behavioural norms such as girls being restricted to wearing skirts at school and women more often than not playing supporting roles in movies. These are behaviours our society believes are normal that create inequality!!
The movie Wonder Women recently came out, which represents women very well. I thoroughly enjoyed it and would recommend it. The movie has a women playing a dominant character who defies the expectations set upon her.
Week 7 Women who Love Other Women: The Social Treatment of Lesbians and the Consequences for Health
This topic is a passionate topic of mine. Lesbian couples experience homophobia, legal discrimination, religious discrimination, medical discrimination and the list goes on. I don’t think people really think through or do the research regarding the deeper consequences of not accepting lesbian couples in society and not allowing them to get married. In the lecture it was talked about how many health insurance policies do not cover unmarried partners, lesbians fear telling doctors about their sexual orientation and they experience negative encounters with medical professionals. Lesbian couple’s health is being negatively impacted due to health professionals!?! NOT OKAY. This is a very concerning topic to me. As I talk to many people around me about the upcoming plebiscite and the many important reasons people should vote yes I am shocked as to how little people know and the assumptions that are made. I can only imagine how little the people voting no really know and understand about the topic. This is why subjects such as this and health, culture and society are so important! Lesbians face a huge amount of health issues including anxiety, depression, high rates of smoking, sexually transmitted diseases, obesity, drug and alcohol abuse. Simply accepting everyone for who they are would have a huge impact on many groups health including lesbian’s health.
A common misconception is that children of lesbian couples are disadvantaged. When in reality research shows that children raised by gay parents do as well as kids raised by straight parents. This video is of same sex couple’s kids and their responses to some questions.
http://iview.abc.net.au/programs/you-cant-ask-that/LE1617H008S00#playing
I really liked the way one of the young boys described a family -“ any family that can care for you, anyone who looks after you and cares about your wellbeing. “ Who’s to judge a family with two mums that care about their kids and looks after them, I mean that’s exactly what my parents do… Another question they were asked included, “how awkward was it telling everyone your parents are gay?”
Some of their responses include:
“It was terrifying..”
“All the worst scenarios go through your head- I’m going to be bullied everyday”
“Didn’t really want to bring people into my world”.
These responses are heart breaking. Society is causing them to live in fear. Even the wording of the question including the word “awkward” predetermines the idea that it is awkward to have parents that are gay and that is totally unacceptable. It is societies fault that this group of people do not feel included or accepted and it is our responsibility to make homosexuality families feel socially accepted.
Week 8 Mental Health and Substance Abuse in Women Across the Ages
I am very grateful for the time I was born and how far we have come as a society in regards to mental health. It’s almost unbelievable that women were deemed insane whether they were suffering from mental illness or not. Contemporary Australian men and women face huge mental health issues yet there is support available. Women are more likely to experience a mental health disorder than men. This doesn’t surprise me considering the societal pressures put on women. Eating disorders are a very scary and prevalent mental health issue. I went through a period of being extremely strict on myself and lost a lot of weight but was lucky enough to come out of it. Majority of my friends have been through a similar experience whilst some have been more severe than others. I good friend of mine was hospitalised as a result. This still has an impact on her today. I truly think that the statistic of 2% of the population experiencing an eating disorder is under reported. I think eating disorders are much more prevalent than deemed to be and they will continue to be far more prevalent as a result of social media. I believe this health issue requires health expert’s attention.
It is shocking that suicide is the leading cause of death in Australian women aged 18-36 years. Mental health is a health issue I don’t think we have a huge grip on yet and societies view on mental illness is contributing to the issue. People are uncomfortable to talk about mental health; it’s often something private and thought to be shamed upon. A friend of mine on Facebook posted about her family’s experience with her sisters anorexia. Basically she said it had a huge impact on her family and they kept it quiet thinking they were protecting her sister but they have finally realised that it should be talked about. I am seeing more and more of a shift among mental illness awareness. This is the kind of change we need as a society.
Mental health is often associated with other unhealthy behaviours such as smoking and drug use. Women with mental illness are more than twice as likely to smoke cigarettes than the general population. Consequently targeting mental illness will reduce rates of smoking and drug use, therefore I believe mental illness should be a primary focus for health professionals.
This video is of women talking about their experiences with mental health. Many of them mention that being told that they aren't alone was really helpful for them. This just shows the importance of sharing your story and telling people they aren't alone.
Link to video:
https://www.beyondblue.org.au/who-does-it-affect/women
Week 9 Diary The fashion industry and body image: impact on women’s health
The fashion industry is all over social media and I am a sucker for following models and influencers. As I scroll through Instagram right now I don’t see one image of a realistic looking person or lifestyle. Everything is edited or staged to make it look more perfect than it really is (I have learnt this over the years thanks to some influencers being realistic sometimes). Even though I know these things I still find myself wishing I had their clothes, hair, skin, body and the list goes on.Here are a couple of examples of the lifestyles displayed on instagram
I find myself comparing myself to these “idealistic” figures that are typically unachievable. Unrealistic clothing sizing, eating disorders, poor body image and poor self -esteem are all things I have experienced and can relate to. Cosmetic surgery is something I personally don’t believe in but I know many girls that have had cosmetic surgery. One thing that really bugs me is that Instagram celebrities get their lips and boobs done openly. It’s not the fact that they share their experience with everyone it is the messages they send doing so. For example Shanni Griffith (Instagram model) recently got her boobs done and made a Vlog about it. In the Vlog she tried to make it clear that she isn’t encouraging girls to get their boobs done but she got hers done because they are too small. Realistically she is sending messages to young girls that they should get their boobs done if they are too small whether she says she isn’t or not. I’m lucky enough to be comfortable in my own shoes and be able to recognise the issue but there are many people out their not in my position.
I found this video especially powerful:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=47cbEeSKIZo
Week 10: Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Women
Indigenous women have great responsibilities in regards to their family and their health. Due to studying Indigenous Health I already I knew that their health prior to colonisation was good. They were lean and fit and lived off the land. Assimilation and the stolen generation contributed to the social determinants of health for the Indigenous. These determinants include loss of connection to the land, loss of languages, loss of family, loss of identity, loss of community and racism. Racism is still prevalent today. Ray one of my lecturers told me a story that has really stuck with me. He is Aboriginal with white skin and has relatives that are Aboriginal with dark skin. He told us that when they are trying to rent homes Ray is the one that faces up to the rental properties because his relatives are often denied based on their race. This has really opened my eyes to how awfully the Indigenous are treated still today. The gap in life expectancy is astounding. Indigenous mothers are more likely to have a low birth weight bub. This is due to smoking, alcohol consumption, poor nutrition, socioeconomic disadvantage and poor access during pregnancy. These health factors require some serious attention. Its very confronting and sad to see the language that was used to describe Indigenous people. They were often described based on ‘degree’s of blood. I found the 3 part definition of Aboriginal identity really interesting. I never knew that they must identify as an Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander person. The common stereotypes associated with Aboriginal women are very offensive and shocking. I am very fortunate to have an education and be knowledgeable about Aboriginal women and know how wrong the stereotypes are. They have huge impacts on the health Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women.
Week 13: Case studies
Representatives from DV Connect, True relationships and Children by Choice all came and talked to us today. Anne from Children by choice gave a presentation and answered questions around an unplanned pregnancy and abortion. The organisation is the only independent pro choice, which means they don't have any relationships influencing their organisation. I can't believe that abortion is illegal in Queensland. I also found it unbelievable when Anne told us that the court decides whether a child under age goes ahead with a pregnancy, not their parents or themselves. Children by Choice offers support for people under these circumstances. The support may be financial or explaining their options to them. Anne explained that having a termination is reasonably easy if you have enough money. This made me think about myself in this situation. She said it costs around 500-1000 dollars depending on how far along you are, I definitely don't have this kind of money. The emotional stress of being pregnant, financial pressure and social pressure are huge burdens and Children by Choice offer support and advice to individuals in these situations. I found the organisation very valuable and I would use it myself if I was ever in need.
Sophie from DV Connect came and talked to us as well. She made a really good point that men don’t normally experience the same amount of fear as women. Women are in these horrendous situations and don’t know what’s best for their children or themselves. Their lives or their children’s lives may be at risk. Anne brought up how the current structure supports inequality. I had never thought about that before but she is completely right. Why is it that the victim has to give up and leave everything whilst the perpetrator continues normal routine? Again contributing to the gender pay gap where a woman has had to sacrifice her career due to her circumstances. True relationships is an equally important organisation, they focus on respectful education. This organisation is especially important to establish respectful relationships when individuals are young. It is important to establish these relationships early for them to be embedded and become habits.
Overall this unit has been a huge learning experience. I am completely understanding of what feminists are all about and have become one myself. I have already found myself speaking out about the topics covered in the lectures and sharing the important things I have learnt.