Twitter can't find the right word

[littlebillie]

Twitter are struggling to find the right word

What about people who have xx chromosomes but were born without reproductive organs?

Mirena coil here. No periods for years. Am I safe? Won’t someone think of the nonmenstruators?

I remember a book called "Plain Words" from some time back calling for official forms to be made simpler - looks like we are regressing to use twice the number of words, making them much harder to understand and all to satisfy a shouty group who wish to re-invent language and make much of it incomprehensible to most people. Progress - I dont think so.

If 'medical experts' can't accurately name the particular group of people they are studying and/or attempting to reassure then I question their expertise status.

I've just looked again at the headline on Twitter - COVID-19 vaccines are safe for people who experience menstruation or are post menopausal, medical experts say.

If I was a male with not a great deal of medical or linguistic knowledge, but I enough to know I was a person who didn't fall into either of those categories, I think I'd be concerned. It sounds like medical experts aren't sure if people outside those groups are safe.

Shit, confusing messaging.

@R0wantrees

If 'medical experts' can't accurately name the particular group of people they are studying and/or attempting to reassure then I question their expertise status.

Maybe they aren’t medical experts.

This is a very confusing message.

Also, some people who are not menstruating due to contraception would ignore this yet it is an important read for them too. I found some medications had the wonderful side effect of causing break through bleeding even when my contraception was blocking periods.

This is a hash job of a headline. No doubt about it.

I absolutely genuinely don't understand what this is trying to tell me.

Was there a concern that the vaccine was dangerous for

a) women on the basis of their female biology (and therefore whether they are pre-menstrual, regularly or irregularly menstruating, not menstruating for any reason despite being of an age to, or post-menopausal) but they just don't want to use the words "women" or even "female" or

b) specifically women who are or have ever menstruated for some reason or

c) the fertility of women who are hoping to fall pregnant soon or at some time in the future (it sounds like it may be about this, but in which case why mention post-menopausal women at all?)?

It's so unclear as to be next to useless.

Farking hell.

Random789

It's like the writer felt that they HAD to get into this business of displaying their tortured redefinition of womanhood even tho , for the purpose of this particular headline, there was no need to bring in Newspeak.

Bingo.

They were preemptively heading off potential criticism.

Maybe women should see what the Plain English Campaign makes of all this?

www.plainenglish.co.uk

I feel like that article is the kind of literature that will make more sense after a few glasses of wine.

I don't get it either. If it's fear of blood clotting during menstruation, how does that affect you if you're postmenopausal?

To reiterate, what about the millions of women who use hormonal contraception where they have, sorry, experience withdrawal bleeding? That's not actual menstruation.

Are they safe?

"Some people have reported irregular menstrual cycles following their COVID-19 vaccination"

It would highly irregular if a man had a menstrual cycle after vaccination.... I must ask my husband if this happened to him...

I am confused.

What about females who have some other reason than menopause not to menstruate (absence of uterus, contraception, extreme diet)? Is it safe for them?

how do we know if we will at some point become “people who menstruate”? Can DH become one? What about DS?

which are these vaccinated people it is safe to be around? Everyone? Other people who may menstruate? If the latter, how do we know who might at some point menstruate?

Can you identify as a person who menstruates /not menstruates?

So many questions....

@RubbishRobotFromTheDawnOfTime

They can’t say ‘women and transmen’ because that leaves out non binary, gender fluid, agender etc etc etc people who will then get hurt feelings.

And they can’t say ‘women, transmen, non binary and other gendered people’ because that will include a mix of, erm, menstruators and non-menstruators.

What a problem they have created for themselves.

It does rather seem to me, that people who get upset over being called/not being called something are just setting themselves up to be upset by asking to be called something that other people define as not being what they are! (Bit of my own word salad there!)

You know the thing about making messaging simple so your audience understands - that's not it.

@WoolOfBat

I am confused.

What about females who have some other reason than menopause not to menstruate (absence of uterus, contraception, extreme diet)? Is it safe for them?

how do we know if we will at some point become “people who menstruate”? Can DH become one? What about DS?

which are these vaccinated people it is safe to be around? Everyone? Other people who may menstruate? If the latter, how do we know who might at some point menstruate?

Can you identify as a person who menstruates /not menstruates?

So many questions....

Exactly.

I’m in between menstruation at the moment. And I ok?

Why do you experience menstruation but are post-menopausal?

how do we know if we will at some point become “people who menstruate”? Can DH become one? What about DS?

I'd quite like that especially if it came with floods of blood and excruciating cramps and crept up in the middle of the night flooding them and the bed.

Might teach them a thing or too about biology and womanhood.

Toffee, that is such a good point!! Is it safe only for people who menstruate at the time of the jab or also for people who might menstruate at an earlier /later stage???

I am more confused than ever.

I just came here to see if this was posted, and what the explanation could be. I'm not a big twitter user or really up on all the debate about this, and even I noticed just how bizarre this headline was.

I agree, it made it confusing about whether people outside those categories were safe or not, as it sounded so specific. It also made me wonder about people on the pill, given that is a realistic cause for concern at the moment. They don't 'experience menstruation', nor are they post-menopausal, so are they are risk? I don't have many periods any more, but am not post-menopausal, so is that a problem? What about women who aren't regular? Younger girls (ok, probably not likely to be having the vaccine yet, but it sounds like it could be dangerous from this article!)? Men?

How can they specifically pick out those two categories, 'experiencing menstruation' or 'post menopausal', and not realise that it makes it sounds like all the rest of women are excluded from being safe? Or if they are just trying to say 'all women', then, well... just say it!

I've just read a 12 page guide to the menopause published by Aviva (the insurance company). It doesn't mention woman, women or female once - it's all "you" and "people".