Is menopause (and peri-menopause) a subject that men understand?
I left my second ex in 2018. It was the day before my 50th birthday when our daughter was 1 year and one month old. Second ex was 43 at the time.
Fast forward to now. I'm 57. She's 51. We've been seperated 8 years. Neither of us have relationships going currently.
What got me thinking was I heard her discussing menopause, peri-menopause, etc. with one of her female friends recently during packup following a fundraising community bbq event (I'm a scout leader - she's part of the group committee - our daughter is currently a Cub scout with the group) but the subject of menopause was *never* any part of any of our discussions when our relationship was imploding 8 yrs ago.
I've never been in a romantic connection with a woman long enough since leaving my second ex to have any way to talk about any sex topics with women, talk about how it impacts men in their lives, and try to figure out what it means for me as a single man who puts the prospect of finding romantic connections at basically zero but not fully shutting the door (though I fully now reckon I should and forget it).
So what do men think of the topic? Is it something you can discuss with others (specificially women maybe your romantic partner, girlfriend, close family member, or just friends)? What do men understand about it?
I don't understand really anything about it apart from being a physiological change associated with a woman's fertility declining as egg number approaches zero. Women - is that what it is in a nutshell?
I'm way too frightened to ask my second ex about it. She works as a sexual health nurse so is fully embedded in the medical model of thinking and because I'm a man my thoughts and concerns on all sex and sexual health related issues (even stuff for men) are meaningless according to her. I don't have any female friends, and could never ask or talk to women at my work about it.
I don't know how it affects men, or if there any sort of similar thing that happens to men. I mean it's called 'menopause' but is about women. ;-)
Fast forward to now. I'm 57. She's 51. We've been seperated 8 years. Neither of us have relationships going currently.
What got me thinking was I heard her discussing menopause, peri-menopause, etc. with one of her female friends recently during packup following a fundraising community bbq event (I'm a scout leader - she's part of the group committee - our daughter is currently a Cub scout with the group) but the subject of menopause was *never* any part of any of our discussions when our relationship was imploding 8 yrs ago.
I've never been in a romantic connection with a woman long enough since leaving my second ex to have any way to talk about any sex topics with women, talk about how it impacts men in their lives, and try to figure out what it means for me as a single man who puts the prospect of finding romantic connections at basically zero but not fully shutting the door (though I fully now reckon I should and forget it).
So what do men think of the topic? Is it something you can discuss with others (specificially women maybe your romantic partner, girlfriend, close family member, or just friends)? What do men understand about it?
I don't understand really anything about it apart from being a physiological change associated with a woman's fertility declining as egg number approaches zero. Women - is that what it is in a nutshell?
I'm way too frightened to ask my second ex about it. She works as a sexual health nurse so is fully embedded in the medical model of thinking and because I'm a man my thoughts and concerns on all sex and sexual health related issues (even stuff for men) are meaningless according to her. I don't have any female friends, and could never ask or talk to women at my work about it.
I don't know how it affects men, or if there any sort of similar thing that happens to men. I mean it's called 'menopause' but is about women. ;-)
