The Reality Index: If Men Got Pregnant

I had to riff on "The First Pregnant Man" article, because, well, I just couldn't help myself.

Here's what veterans from the front lines had to say in my study in response to the question: If men got pregnant instead of women, how do you imagine things would be different?

"The morning after pill would have been invented by the Ancient Greeks..."

"I think our species would become extinct! I don't think men, in their current state, could handle all that comes with being pregnant!"

"Morning sickness would become a disability!"

"We'd have government paid maternity leave (more like Europe), breast feeding would not be a taboo thing since men like to brag about size. I bet men would be showing their goods to the world all the time."

"There would be tons of research to find ways to make pregnancy painless, shorter, responsive to the needs of men. I think there would be a lot of surrogate fatherhood (paying someone else to do it), as men generally have more money than women."

"There would be no pain. Poor babies would have to go to bed for nine months. I think the father should be hooked up to a machine and every time the mother had a labor pain, he would have one also. Or fill them full of laxatives and let them have cramps."

"I think they would have designed an incubator to do things more efficiently. Which would be too bad, because pregnancy may not be entirely efficient, but it is powerful, beautiful and transforming."

And to the question:

If men gave birth instead of women, how do you think things would be different?

"Better insurance. More screaming."

"I think doctors wouldn't be saying 'it will not matter a year from now how your labor went.' They would accept and believe that how you birth DOES matter."

"Men would have more to say about what happened while they gave birth. They would tell the doctors and nurses in no uncertain terms how things were going to be done."

"It would be the end of the human race."

"There would be better maternity leave policies, more flexible work options, and tampax and contraception would be government subsidized."

"No pain. Praise instead of insults. Information. Choices."

"Birth would be valued and celebrated, and the pain of the event would have long been eliminated."

"The power of creating life and the ability to give birth would not be hidden and undermined in societies. It would be completely revered and celebrated."

"I think they would actually do a good job. I think it would become a sport. They would make it competitive and use it as a badge of honor. We would have much more favorable laws, too, regarding maternal health care."

"It's a pretty powerful experience to bring life into the world. I think men would value life more if they experienced it in their womb."

(Women ranged in age from 24-66.)

Comments

[michellelamar]

This. Is. Awesome.

[simsteel]

people ,people ,people, the real question is why shouldn't we men have it all. I demand the right to bear arms, and children. I want a menstrual cycle too . And lets not forget lactating, that would be nice too .(have you seen the price of milk lately). Yes we men have suffered to long without yeast infections, and pms . When will modern science find away to correct God's plan so we can share in the bounty that is womanhood. all in all thank god for my Y chromosone.

[akhmed]

Honestly, does anyone really think men are treated so much better for their intimate problems? Ask a man what he sucks up to and doesn't ask too many questions about during a prostate exam and you'll find that it doesn't matter who gets pregnant, it's that doctors are imperious jerks. If men were pregnant, it would then be both sexes complaining.

[oey]

If feminism and sexism are such things of the past, why are we attacking these women for speaking their minds about something they lived through, and how they think it might be different with men?
The article quotes women from a 40 year age span. If women from their 20s through their 60s feel similarly, why are we judging them rather than respecting them?

[jvarga]

Imagine if a man posted a blog entry here filled with various little sexist quips from his buddies. How well would that go over? Would you be there saying "hey sexism is cool and funny leave, them alone."?

Imagine if a white person posted a blog entry here with "imagine if blacks [fill in the blank]". How well would that go over? Would you be there saying "hey racism is cool and funny, leave them alone."?

Its like a previous commenter said "man bad, woman good. we get it."

[BardEric]

Funny article!!!, i wanted to comment more, but THIS LIME GREEN TEXT IN THE COMMENT SECTION IS AWFULL!! Can hardly read it..PLEASE DONT USE this green font again for comments!!!

[Turningfool]

A good part of the reason that younger women (not to mention men) find that feminism does not speak to them is this endless recycling of riffs from the 70's. Often (as here) these are presented as if the author is quite satisfied with her cleverness and originality. As for that, the present governor of California made a movie about it 20 years ago.

[singermuse]

If men had the power to procreate without women, then the way women have been and would be treated would devolve exponentially. Femicide would be an atrocious fact. There would eventually be no more women. Interesting how scientists even want to speculate men getting pregnant and giving birth without needing women anymore. Eventually this would cause extinction of the species because unless the men became more "feminine" and evolved enough to eliminate the more aggressive tendencies, without the ameliorative presence of women, men would eventually kill each other completely off even if they could procreate.

[LeftRight]

There's only one problem with this question. If men got pregnant, we'd be women, so everything would still be F-ed up, just the opposite direction. Of course, men would then have been equally as evolved as women are to be able to give birth, because right now, NO man could handle it!! God knows I sure wouldn't be able to!

[deant]

Sexism: when it's against men, it's okay.

[jessica23667]

Oh its funny, relax. And there is some truth to the comments.
1. Men may be stronger physically but women have more endurance and higher pain tolerence.
2. The maternity leave in this country is shameful. Would it be that way if men had babies?
3. Do you think all those pharmacists who refuse to fill prescriptions for birth control would do that if they ever got pregnant?

[miriald]

Yeah, well, you have to expect a little anger after thousands of years of being called the inferior sex.

[jvarga]

Because, sure enough, the planet is full of thousand year old men who deserve it.

[LeftRight]

except that men are STILL that way.

Disclosure: I am a man, who tries my best to not be sexist, but I do still find myself ACTING sexist when I'm not on my toes about it!

[hoopesaz]

Yes, you're right. Probably all of that is true, which is exactly why men don't get pregnant. Men and women, while equal, are very different. Not only are they physically different, but there are vast mental differences too. Women have many skills, particularly as it relates to children, that men for the most part dont have. Which is NOT in any way to be an excuse for men not being good fathers. But it is to emphasize the need for a mother to be actively involved in the family. Women's skills go far beyond just enduring pregnancy and by no means do they end at the front door to the home. Women are amazing creatures.

[OmegaJamie]

Your comment reminds me of what Robinson Crusoe said in Daniel DeFoe's novel: "There are white gifts and there are Native gifts." Of course, one set of gifts is always superior to the other in such lists.

[ebbtide]

There are many men who suport the right of a woman to decide what to do with her own body. Many

Abortion is not that much of an issue any longert in this race.

I am appalled at Emily's choice to support Hillary Clinton. Hillary Clinton is bringing down feminist organisations all on her own, by forcing them to advocate a nominee, a woman nominee, just because she is a woman, who damn lies, right and left and in between. A;lso she is an emarrassment or should be to the other feminist cabals, like NOW.

The feminist structure has been demoished, yea, even ridiculed for their support of this woman. A liar through and through, Not a woman we many woman want as a president. And to top it off, she lied about Obama's position on the rights of women. Outright lied.

Well you go, you women fem,inists, who support a dirty liar, who dodged sniper bullets, where there were none, in Bosnia. Times have changed amd also, men have changed and I am, old enough to bear witness to that change. Get off the bash men meme for now. Get off it. It is not relevant at this point in time.

What is relevant is the candidate, Hillary Clinton and her husband Bill's lies.

Abortion is not an issue right now.

[grendl]

Well, its a good thing men can't get pregnant. Why bother with the hypothetical.

Oh, thats right, men bad, women good. We got it the first trillion times.

[anon004]

Yes, (stating the obvious) men can't really understand the experience of childbrith, but, then, as a woman, I don't really know how it feels to father a child, either. (And I certainly don't know what it feels like to try to help the women I care about, only to be kicked in the nuts by other women perpetuating stupid stereotypes.) So, what was the point of this post? To create even more conflict and strife between the sexes? Give it up and move on, and appreciate the truly wonderful men in your life.

[metalpipe]

Parents, grandparents, friends, and in fact all lifes little inputs have an affect on a child's developement. At one point the child needs mom, the next it's dad on duty. This whole thing about women being second class citizens is so hard for me to understand or see as a reality. Women have clearly made themselves into equal participants in this mess we call civilization. The Taliban being the obviuos lagards. Honestly, if the women in the middle east all threw off their veils at once, what would happen? A little confusion, then the embarrasing knowlege (by men) that they had been fretting over nothing. Having women in power and earning an income is awesome. We (men) still have to work, but we get to have our toys and pay the bills and have one on one time with our kids while the wife is at work. Life couldn't be much better.