Strong woman

[Justcallmesarah]

If someone were to call you "a strong woman" how would you take that?

With a pinch of NaCl

How about you, Sarah?

NaCl no clue what that means?! At this stage I've been called it so many times I'm finding it patronising 🤦

Sodium chloride...

I'd take it as a compliment. It means you're independent and not needy - which is fine by me!

I hate it. I was called it by both of my exes who were abusive to me. Also it’s designed to divide women, i.e. you are not like all those other “weak” women. Yuck.

I agree with you Everard. It is patronising and condescending. I also find it passive aggressive... it has only been said to me by men and when I suspect they have disapproved of my having strong opinions which didn’t match their own

Whilst it can be patronising from idiots it can also be a compliment from lovely people who mean well and have watched/helped you be that way when you've had to be.
So, depends who said it and why.

Tbf it's never really something that a man has called me only female friends. Which I'm sure they're meaning in a positive way. I'm just at the point now of saying what the fcuk does that even mean "strong woman"🙄🤷

I also agree with EverardDigby, it splits women into ordinary "weak" women and these supposedly "strong" women.

Next time someone says it I would definitely ask them what they mean or what they're trying to say.

It depends on context, I think

• after pushing out a baby and husband says I’m the strongest woman he knows= compliment
• after walking half an hour in the rain and male work friend says you’re a strong woman= demeaning to all womankind

I'd agree it depends on context. I might laugh, feel insulted or feel complimented depending on who and why.

I would assume I was on The Apprentice and Karren Bradey was putting the boot into the women's team like she always does.

From a woman it generally feels pragmatic, appreciative or complimentary - a positive comment.

From a man it generally feels like a grudging acknowledgment that my behaviour is at odds with feminine stereotype, without totally offending his fragile male ego.

😂😂 some of these have made me giggle.
I dunno it's something that gets said often I think because I am the single Pringle out of my friend group. I've always said I would rather be on my own than in a miserable relationship and I have ended a couple of relationships because of that reason.

Everyone's response is your such a strong woman or something along those lines. I guess I'm just feeling like I give up too easily on my attempts at relationships. but I honestly look at some of my friends and just think my god this can't be normal this can't be a good relationship and this can't be healthy for you guys, but maybe they are the strong ones for making it work🤷🤯

I think being a strong woman is important. Its a tradition in my family that the women are strong so we can keep going through what life chucks at us. I’ve never been called one by a man, though.

"dunno it's something that gets said often I think because I am the single Pringle out of my friend group."

Oh I get this too! I don't say anything but I find it weird. Apparently people it takes a lot of strength to be single 🤷‍♀️ but I partly like it so much because it makes life easier.

Not sure. I'm stubborn, arrogant and selfish. Don't think of myself as strong. I carry a lot of anger around with me. Can't be healthy.

My mum is 83 now and 19 years ago she had breast cancer and a full mastectomy, since then she has broken both her hips but she is still here today.
She is what I call A Strong Woman .

I tend to take it as meaning resilient, that's what people seem to mean most times I hear it with reference to real people. In books or films it seems more variable in meaning.

I'd say, I am quite, but Posie Parker really is!!

I've been told it recently, by friends and by a massage therapist.

I quite like hearing it but I do tend to interpret it as 'wow you've had all these tough experiences and you're still shallow and focused on yourself' . But I think that's my internal critic. I have never heard a man described this way, unless it was Geoff Capes.

I think being a strong woman is important. Its a tradition in my family that the women are strong so we can keep going through what life chucks at us. I’ve never been called one by a man, though.

Same here milan. I come from a long line of awesome women and have always seen it as a compliment. Was first called it by my aunt when I had a 2.5 Yr old, newborn twins and a husband with a serious illness. I suppose it could be patronising from some people.

I've been called a strong woman many times, by both sexes, in all sorts of situations, and it's never been meant as anything other than a compliment.

Do men get called strong men in the same context? I’ve never been called it and it isn’t something I’ve listened out for so that’s a genuine question. My immediate thought is it suggests women generally aren’t strong. And if it isn’t a phrase commonly used about men, then that’s because men are strong and it doesn’t need pointing out. But I could be wrong.
On a personal level I’ve never been called it so I don’t know what I would think!!

In the contexts in which I've been called strong yes a man could've been called strong. I've been through some awful shit for most of my life and come out of it as a relatively nice stable relaxed person. I can tolerate quite high levels of stress without cracking up or taking it out on other people. This is what people have meant by strong.