When men say...?

Question

"She must be just PMSing!..." why is it considered a sexist or offensive stament? Everybody knows about PMS symptoms and at least the man who says that attributes a woman's b.tchiness to that condition rather than her personality flaws... So why is it so unacceptable?

Answer 1

I agree maybe it would be more acceptable to say she "ragging" or "slothing" which is the medical term

Answer 2

It's used as an excuse, and it's implied that she's being irrational or 'crazy' or angry etc. through no fault of her own... I feel that they're trying to say that we're these loony, wild, bitchy people and that everyone should expect it... if a guy acts the same way... do we have some handy, psychological label to slap him with? And are you implying that if someone is 'bitchy' it's a personality flaw? Maybe they have every right to be angry... maybe there's a good reason for their anger. We're all human, we have emotions, they erupt from time to time and I don't think you should just use a blanket statement like PMSing to dismiss other peoples emotions. It belittles them and makes it sound like there's no good reason for them and the individual is just being irrational for no reason except hormones. It takes the blame off you and places it back onto the woman, where it may or may not belong!

Answer 3

Because myself and many woman I know feel it's more of a way to dismiss a woman. Just because I'm irritated or angry about something someone did does not mean I am PMSing and have no real control over my actions, it means they pissed me off.

Secondly, many women like to claim they are PMSing to get away with rude/bitchy behavior. Somehow society got into it's head that PMS occurs when a woman is on her period, in fact the symptoms are supposed to range from the middle point up until they start their period.

So basically to me, not only does it denote the ignorance of the person saying it but it shows that what I say carries no real weight with them. I'd rather be called a b*tch than be accused of being unable to control myself.

Edit: as was mentioned earlier one woman doesn't believe in it. PMS is actually under debate, you will find doctors that believe it's entirely false and you will find doctors that believe it to be very valid. But then doctors used to tell women that debillitating cramps weren't real too.

Answer 4

Because unfortunately this is a stereo typing, and not all women have PMS some just have a bad day like men.
A Women deserves the say respect without the type casting that any one else gets, Wouldn't it be much easier to ask her if she's having a bad day then to just assume that it's that time of the month.
If you ask and she bites your head off then maybe it's best to just stay away.
I mean it just the same when women say that men are all the same, that just as Sexiest, and surely it's not true. But because of the manner in which most men act and speak women have a right to be defensive and feel like they are the object of a sexist statements.
Women have feeling just like men, although their feeling seem to be easier to hurt, but that is mainly because that's the way we raise them, with respect and gentleness, caring.
Not like a little boy that fell of a bike, " oh, get up you'll be fine.
Little Girls get the works, a band aid, a kiss and huge and a piece of candy.
So next time you hear a women bitching, it's probably because a man just said something stupid!

Answer 5

because its insulting that a man looks for a label instead of understanding what the problem really is. PMS comes with pain to the lower abdomen and other parts of the body, not just stress. Its a physical condition and therefore unacceptable to giggle about the subject; just like someone with a physical disability.

Answer 6

By saying that 'she's just PMSing', it could be taken as 'my feelings are insignificant'. If a woman over reacts by a guys' standard, then she's gotta be suffering cause it's not that big a deal! Right? At least this is how I think a lot of guys view it. So why are guys so offended when women say 'it's a guy thing'?

Answer 7

___I suspect that men do have some notion of what PMS is. Women given testosterone have reported that their emotions get uncontrollably intense, and while this may not be exactly the same as PMS, it's somewhat similar to women's descriptions of PMS. Many men's emotions are experientially brutalizing. But since it's a constant condition, those men who want to remain sane develop strategies of self-control. The main difference is that most men never get a vacation from it, and never get to know what it's like to be able to live comfortably in their emotions, without having to restrain them.
___Many women retain a sense of humor about PMS

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PPmaG0oGS_8
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RgrbI97e44Y

Answer 8

You know when men say this? Right after being complete *******.

Rather than realize that they are ******* who should at least pretend to be sort of human once in a while, they dismiss the legitimate anger they inspire as irrational.

That's why.

BTW, I'm one of those who does NOT get PMS. Even my female roomies, themselves PMS-ers, have confirmed this. So it is never true of me, however many men say it is.

I've known men to say this ever time a woman is mad at them, even when they just said it 2 weeks before.

Finally, it's rude to presume to know, and rude to comment on someone's biological cycle. None of your freakin' business.

But mainly it's because the reason they say it is to avoid admitting when they are in the wrong. They aren't habitual sub-human, brainless pigs, oh, no! The problem is that every women near them is PMS-ing every moment of their lives.

Yeah, right.

How about this? From now on, every time any man gets mad at any woman, she should turn to the other women in the room and comment, "He must have a really tiny wee-wee."

Because THAT wouldn't be unacceptable, right?

Edit for an afterthought. BTW, why is it that any time any woman becomes angry, whatever the provocation, she's a biatch, but no one calls men insulting names when THEY get mad, even at no provocation at all?

Answer 9

Because it IS an insult (as it's intended to be), and because it's utterly dismissive. Every time I see a man (or boy) say this, it's always with contempt, or derision. As if women can't be angry for a legitimate reason...like,say, she's actually angry. Maybe she is being a "*****" to get a point across...why is that for men anger is a valid option, he is expressing his disgust or rage over something that genuinely pisses him off, but when a woman does it, she must be experiencing some sort of hormonal flux. Please. Women can, and do get angry just like men. And it doesn't mean we're "on the rag", it means we're angry.

Answer 10

Because although it may or may not be true - men tend to attribute all problems and issues women have to this and it thereby trivializes and discounts a woman's thoughts and feelings. The fact about PMSing is that the bitchiness and emotional state only intensify the need to be heard about issues a woman already has. If the man is a selfish jerk, (just for example), we will usually just put up with it, until our emotions are on high and we spill. That doesn't negate the fact that he is a selfish jerk and by chalking it off to PMS you are saying our feelings are just pyscho!

K

Answer 11

Oh come now Ronnie. You make it sound as though you use it ever so respectfully. You know as well as the rest of us that the term is used with sarcasm and a great deal of disrespect. And you don't truly mean that you think she may be experiencing that hormonal change....its just a convenient and catch all way for you to say "What a *****"