And I don’t think there is one woman in the world who hasn’t had to deal with this with a smile. I know If I got a dollar every time this happened to me, I’d at least have 50 dollars. Even when a woman is an expert in her field, suddenly an Intern seems to think they know better than that person just because of what they have between their legs. I am not saying you can’t tell someone when they’re wrong and everyone makes mistakes.
However, it is better to first do your research before taking on an expert and then claiming you’re right because a woman doesn’t any better. These may sound like exaggerations but sadly they are a complete truth. As this person puts it.
I realize that mansplaining is not peak feminism, but as someone who is intelligent, well-read, and a grown person, I know that when men speak to me condescendingly about things that are so mundane – like pillows! – it is because he assumes – knowingly or not – that women are not as smart as men.
Mansplaining is one of those things that women are just expected to tolerate in a patriarchal society, so I knew a lot of women would be able to relate and share their own experiences with it, and it’s not a heavy topic … so I knew women would not hesitate to share their experiences. My goal with my TikTok account is to talk about everyday experiences for women and to think critically about everyday things that we don’t realize are rooted in misogyny. –TikTok
And unsurprisingly, people had a lot to share which you can see for yourself.
Source: Instagram
I was working out at the gym and warming up for squats when a man stepped onto my platform and asked if he could spot me. I politely declined but he did not get the hint, he proceeded to mansplain the mechanics of a squat. He showed me where to put the bar on my back, how my feet should be positioned, and how I should breathe.
I finally had to interject and let him know that
1) I was a personal trainer.
2) I was a competitive powerlifter.
3) I had a national-level powerlifting coach.
I once had a man break down exactly how much pain women feel during childbirth after I told him I had delivered two nine-pound babies, without an epidural. Like, sir, I did not stress test my taint just to have an illiterate argue with me about it.
I once had a grown man tell me that women don’t fart. He genuinely believed this in his soul. I told him that he was wrong and of course, women fart and he told me that biologically women cannot fart. I have no words.
He didn’t know what mansplaining was…so I told him. And then he mansplained mansplaining…to ME.
I once had a man mansplain to me my own name. My name is Niamh, it’s Irish. So I met this guy, he had only ever interacted with me on WhatsApp, and so he said, ‘Oh you must be Ny-am.’ And I said, ‘Oh no, it’s Niamh, it’s pronounced like this, it’s the Irish language.’ And he goes, ‘No, it should be ‘Ny-am.’ And I was like, ‘No, it’s my name. It’s a different language.’ And he was like, ‘But there’s an ‘M’ in it. It should be Ny-am.’
And he just kept going and going as if I needed to get through my tiny woman brain that I was pronouncing my own name wrong for 22 years of my life. He wasn’t an Irish speaker or a native English speaker, he was Greek.
One time my boyfriend’s dad tried to explain to me how the spacing of studs worked in a wall… I’m a CARPENTER!
A customer in the store I work at told me that he had been on a round trip to Europe and I asked him where he went, and he said he went to Copenhagen and so I said, ‘Oh that’s cool, you went to Denmark.’ He said, ‘No, I said I went to Copenhagen.’ I said, ‘Yeah, I heard that, but Copenhagen is in Denmark.’ And he tried to explain to me that Copenhagen and Denmark are both towns in Sweden.
He interrupts me while I’m talking about women’s issues and goes “I’m gonna stop your right there because I’m a feminist so I should know what I’m talking about” and then proceeded to mansplain womanhood to me. Me a woman. And he thought he knew more about being a woman than me A WOMAN.
My ex explained to me what a pillow is used for. He said the pillow is used to support the neck and the head.
My Period. I have a period and every other month it hurts and this dude was “do you even know how periods work?”. I had a period for 15 years, I think I have a good idea.
So, a man took me to get tacos. I’m eating the chips before we get our meal and he’s like, ‘Do you like the salsa?’ and I’m like, ‘Yeah I do, it’s good.’ And he’s like, ‘Do you know that if you like the salsa you can actually also put that on your tacos?’ And I was like… ‘Yeah, I’m aware how salsa works.’
A man explained to me the title of my poetry collection.
Women can’t go around topless because they lactate.
I was playing Mulan at Disney World, and this little girl comes up to me and goes, ‘Hiyah! Hiyah! Hiyah!’ which is very common for little kids to do. Her dad looks at me and says, ‘Oh she’s doing that because, in the movie Mulan, Mulan fights in the war against the bad guys. And I said, ‘You mean me?’
I saw videos from women in the UK, Australia, and Brazil stitch my video. Professional women who have PhDs and are doctors have stitched my video. This has opened my eyes to sexism at its core. Women around the world from different backgrounds and with different jobs have all experienced this and it’s a phenomenon that occurs when men perceive you as a woman. There is also an alarming amount of men who have mansplained periods, PMS, and pregnancy to women and girls and that has been jaw-dropping for me.
Dr. Melissa Mork, an academic expert, stitched my video and shared her experiences losing her parents, her close friends, and her partner, and a man still told her she knows nothing about grief and then explained to her what it was based on losing his dog at the age of 12. Video answers like that struck a nerve because mansplaining experiences boil down to men thinking their feelings are more valid than women’s. -Gravesande
I’m currently pregnant and in the 1st trimester non-stop nausea, morning sickness PS it’s all-day sickness. Went to the pharmacy to see if anything could help medication-wise. The pharmacist decided to mansplain to me “you know nausea & morning sickness are a normal symptom of pregnancy.” As if I didn’t know like literally explained it to me as if it was going to be a lightbulb moment for me.
I just had I a man tell me what teeth are. He told me they stay in the mouth and they help crush up food right after he swallowed his filling and/or whole tooth he wasn’t completely sure which one was which.
This morning my dad tried to explain to me that it was Thursday he would not listen when I said it was Wednesday. When I pulled out my phone and showed he got really mad.
Kirby. This little guy hangs on my backpack we go everywhere together. And on time I was at this restaurant, and this guy that works there came up to me and he’s like “Aw, I like the little Kirby that’s hanging on your backpack!” and I was like “Aw, thanks!.” this guy proceeds to go “You know? I bet you only like him cuz he’s cute. Have you ever played a Kirby game? They’re really fun.”
I cut him off. I was like “Yes! Actually! I’ve played almost every Kirby game! He’s one of my favorite video game characters!”
I was at work and I had to sweep the line. I was sweeping it and this guy that was working there at the time tried to teach me how to sweep.
Why not share your own mansplaining stories with us? Comment down below and let us know.