I have been fortunate enough to have limited experiences with unsupportive women. However, I do feel that this does exist as I have had a few run-ins where either women or myself were catty to one another for some reason or another. I think it’s hard for some women to see other women succeed, especially when they feel that they are equally as deserving (if not more) of that same success or perceived happiness.
What do you think is the main reason why many women have been unable to form genuine and long-term relationships with one another?
I call it the “Mean Girl” syndrome and I believe it’s caused by immaturity and insecurity. In general, I feel that insecure people (not just women) are intimidated by other people who may have things that they lack. In some cases, it’s hard for women to establish and maintain genuine relationships because of these negative personal issues they may be dealing with. I also think the media has played into this woman vs. woman war. Think about it, there are about 10 – 15 well-known reality shows that star and cater to our demographic (young women ages 18-40).
How many of these are positive reinforcements of women empowerment? While some shows have glimpses of women supporting each other, the overall message is that women are against each other, and not able to maintain stable and positive friendships with other women. What you consume is what you eventually project. If all you see every day is women fighting women, women ending friendships and being catty and petty, it’s only a matter of time before you start to take on that mindset whether you realize it or not.
Do you think that you have trouble with being supportive/being non-judgmental most of the time to other women?
To be honest, I don’t think I have an issue with being supportive of anyone, especially women. I’m completely about Girl Power, I LOVE seeing women uplifting and inspiring other women. There is so much for all of us to learn from one another so it’s saddening when we do the opposite. Now, on the flip side, I feel like I am quick to give a side eye and I know I am judgmental even though I try not to be. It’s unfair, but it is something that I understand is a human trait.
What would be your advice to other women to help address this issue?
I think that understanding ourselves and exploring our own insecurities are the first steps to addressing this issue. No one is perfect, and the more we realize this within ourselves, I feel we can be less judgmental. It also helps us to accept one another for who we are. This will in turn help us to nurture positive friendships and we can truly be supportive.
Response from Ms. Anonymous: a 30 something year old female, who agrees this is a problem!
What do you think is the main reason why many women have been unable to form genuine and long-term relationships with one another?
Do you think that you have trouble with being supportive/being non-judgmental most of the time to other women?
Your input is important!! As promised, I will always include REAL stories to help make these perspectives as authentic as possible. I appreciate your feedback! Leave some ideas below for furue interviews that you would like to see on this blog.
Long distance relationships are tough. When I first got into my relationship 13 years ago it was long distance. He was in college away and I was home. We knew it would be long distance to start and it actually Made us stronger being away. When we would see one another we rarely argued since we were so happy to be spending time together. We usually saw each other once a month for the first year of our relationship. We have had moments where our relationship was long distance again but for shorter periods between 2-4 months. Neither of us were tempted to cheat during our long distance period and I think that is largely due to missing one another and having great times when we could be together. I will say that long distance is very hard but feasible and sometimes can make your relationship stronger. As they say absence makes the heart grow fonder! It can also harm the relationship because you get used to always having great moments that when you see one another daily the smaller arguments get frustrating because you think back to when you didn’t argue because all your time was spent doing fun things. It also sets expectations that when you are long distance when you do spend time together you tend to have sex more during that short visit that normally wouldn’t occur if spending time daily with one another. All in all it can work ir both parties want it to.
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Thanks! I’ll add this to the interviews 🙂
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