Many Women Rarely Admit That They’ve Never Really Enjoyed 8 Things
Dean Drobot | Shutterstock Women have a tendency to be agreeable to a fault, and that means they are more willing to hide how they truly feel for the sake of appearances. That can leave them stuck pretending to like things they don't really enjoy.
All that's to say, it's rare for women to admit when they are actually pretending to like stuff that everyone else thinks they should love. It just becomes a habit. Get a bunch of women together to talk about the topic, and they'll probably lay it all out on the line, though.
Things women will rarely admit that they really don't like:
1. Wearing high heels
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According to an APMA study, wearing high heels is the biggest culprit of foot pain in women, and yet, so many women still feel pressure to continue wearing them. You know how things go with fashion. There's this stereotype about women and their shoe obsession. Let's be real, though; they’re not made with women’s health in mind. While we're on the topic, give us pockets!!!!
But back to shoes. It’s not surprising that many women really dislike wearing heels. They’re not practical or comfortable, and most of the time, they leave pain and aches that last long after you take them off.
2. Wearing makeup
Makeup can affect how women are perceived in social settings, from attractiveness to trust, so while we like to believe it’s an entirely personal choice, some women feel pressured to get ready every day, even when they don’t care to.
It can feel empowering to do your makeup and like how you look, but sometimes that same feeling is how women convince themselves to get ready every day when they’ve never really enjoyed makeup.
3. Feigning friendliness
So many women feel pressure to be kind and forgiving all the time because they’ve been socialized into a people-pleasing mentality from the start. Whether it was their parents or society in general, women are pressured to be agreeable and nice.
Even when they do have strong opinions, standing up for themselves can feel impossible. While most people don’t enjoy feigning friendliness, women feel pressure to do it almost constantly.
4. Being the therapist friend or partner
Many women tend to take on tons of emotional labor in their relationships with male partners, but some even end up being a therapist friend in their platonic relationships. While these kinds of roles can make people feel important and valued, sometimes it’s completely draining to put in this kind of effort without getting the same emotional support in return.
Especially when this emotional support is expected in spaces where it’s not necessarily normal, like in a peer-to-peer relationship at work, simply because of gendered stereotypes, it’s something not every woman innately enjoys.
5. Hosting
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Media often paints the ideal woman as a master host, with all the energy and housework expertise to entertain guests with ease, but many women today can’t stand it. Especially when it feels like a full-time job with no support.
However, they’re expected to do it well without complaining. But who really wants to prep, host, clean, and feel like a prisoner in their own living space?
6. First dates
In general, dating and finding a partner are things that women are pressured to prioritize from a very young age. Most women, whether they realize it or not, feel pressured to follow traditional timelines and to find their soulmate before they have a chance to find themselves.
Whether they realize it now or later, so many women don’t really enjoy the process of dating as much as the media or society tells them they should. First dates can feel like a chore. Single women tend to be happier and healthier than their married counterparts. They may still date and seek relationships, but many still feel underlying frustration or dislike about it.
7. Holidays
Especially for mothers and wives, who regularly take on more emotional labor in their households, holidays can be draining and stressful. They have to plan everything, manage everyone’s calendars, and often host events. So while everyone else sees holidays as a time to unwind and take a vacation from responsibilities, many women are simply stitching together their other full-time jobs.
While they might put on a happy face to make everyone else feel loved and special during this time, especially with kids and family members, the season seriously stresses their well-being.
8. Dressing in flattering clothing
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Most of the time, the definition of flattering is created directly by the beauty standards that actively harm women. The thin, white, small, and attractive image that toxic beauty standards cultivate only makes one very specific demographic of women feel empowered, and it’s a small group.
So, dressing to fit an ideal when you don't live in that body is not comfortable at all. Still, women squeeze themselves into shapewear that makes them miserable all while shelling out big bucks to do it.
Zayda Slabbekoorn is a senior editorial strategist with a bachelor’s degree in social relations & policy and gender studies who focuses on psychology, relationships, self-help, and human interest stories.
