r/science • u/mvea Professor | Medicine • 18d ago

Neuroscience Research found no evidence to support myth that women’s cognitive abilities change across menstrual cycle. Given physiological changes that occur across menstrual cycle, the changes to the brain are either small enough that they don't influence performance or women compensate for these changes.

https://www.scimex.org/newsfeed/womens-menstrual-cycles-dont-change-the-way-our-brains-perform
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u/[deleted] 17d ago

I can't imagine pain, discomfort, and disturbed sleep having no impact on cognitive function.

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u/Wimbly512 17d ago

Every woman I know experience has been very different. Like we may all complain about the same issues but the combination with which we experienced them differs. They also change throughout life so there isn’t a set response. I always find these studies hard to believe as a result. We learned to compensate. At least in the US, no one wants to hear you complain about your health, so masking is very much used unless it’s a particularly “bad one.”

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u/billsil 17d ago

That makes you moody, not dumb. You may go a bit slower, but you also end up compensating for it.

For the span of 3 years I had insomnia and would get 4-5 hours of sleep a night. I was also dealing with back and GI pain. I sleep 5-6 hours/night now and occasionally crash on weekends. Thankfully no more pain.

Insomnia makes you depressed and/or angry depending on which switch you flip. If you need to get things done, be angry. Maybe bad while driving.

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u/plopliplopipol 17d ago

pretty sure the effects of lack of sleep on cognitive function are huge and well known?

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u/samurairaccoon 17d ago edited 17d ago

Can you imagine a man having a bad day and just dealing with it? You probably can. Try extending that courtesy to women. You ever had a hangover and still been able to function? God help ya if you can't.

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u/HappyHarry-HardOn 17d ago

> Can you imagine a man having a bad day and just dealing with it?

Wait - what?

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u/Orious_Caesar 17d ago

I would imagine a man having a bad day and just dealing with it, would face cognitive difficulties if that bad day involved pain and loss of sleep.

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u/samurairaccoon 17d ago

Well I guess everyone with a chronic condition now also has "cognitive difficulties". Which is an incredibly ambiguous and dubious condition to assign to someone. How do we now treat all these millions of people who have "cognitive difficulties"? Certainly we won't use this as an excuse for mistreatment and segregation, right?

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u/radios_appear 17d ago

I don't understand this sequence of comments you've made.

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u/[deleted] 17d ago edited 17d ago

[removed] — view removed comment

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u/shinyprairie 17d ago

At most jobs I've had (current one included) it doesn't really matter if you're on your period and you still have to come in.

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u/[deleted] 17d ago

In my country they arent allowed to ask why you are sick.

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u/yogalalala 17d ago

Taking the day off isn't really practical if your "bad days" are 5 or more days a month.

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u/A1000eisn1 17d ago

Lucky you have someone paying your bills for you and a flexible schedule. Unfortunately most adults can't just take a day off because they're having a bad day. Most jobs don't give enough sick time to take several days off every month.

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u/cleanjosef 17d ago

This is basically only valid for the USA. Most developed countries are much further with their policies. In Spain you just get a day off each cycle for the first day afaik.

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u/ShelZuuz 17d ago

It’s 3 days, extendable to 5.

Requires a doctors’ note, but can be a recurring one if you always have painful periods.

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u/AimeeSantiago 17d ago

This is absolutely wild to learn about. In the US, it's very looked down to call out sick for your monthly period. If you do, it's understood that you just say "I'm sick" because you shouldn't mention your actual period to your boss. It is mind blowing to know women in Spain can get repeated days off sick just for their periods. Every month?

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u/ShelZuuz 17d ago

Yes, it's paid for by their social security program so individual employers aren't out anything.

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u/A1000eisn1 17d ago

This is basically only valid for the USA.

That's not true. There are plenty of other places that frown on taking days off. And plenty of jobs that don't pay you when you do.

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u/plopliplopipol 17d ago

i know no woman having regular periods days off in france

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u/cleanjosef 17d ago

Frown upon and you get fired are totally different things. That's why you get workers rights. So the opinion of the employer does not matter that much.

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u/anyosae_na 17d ago

Yeah no. I get to call in sick whenever I'm feeling sick, hell, I've called in sick just cause I really needed a break and I was never once questioned. Very much culturally dependent. Even then, I'd much rather have my female colleagues being able to take days off when they need em, means they're far more productive when they're there, and it also means I get to take em when I need them for my own reasons.

When you just deal with abusers of such policies as they come up, you realize most people tend to put in an honest effort when it comes to taking sick days if they don't already feel exploited by their employer.

We don't have to be crabs in a bucket, boss. You get nothing by dragging down others with you.

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u/[deleted] 17d ago

You are a good dude. Unfortunately, many are not so understanding

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u/aVarangian 17d ago

Can you imagine a man having a bad day and just dealing with it?

I fail to understand what you mean here

One can have a "bad day" without it showing; the opposite is just a lack of self-control.

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u/samurairaccoon 17d ago

I think a lot of people are expecting misandry and letting that bias get them hung up.

I'm proposing that hypothetical because of course you can imagine a man doing that. My point is that the previous comment implied they couldn't imagine someone dealing with that and not being affected. But I bet thats not true and they assume any man around them having a bad day is just dealing with it. So extend that same courtesy to women. Assume they have the same ability men do to just deal with bad days, because they do.

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u/Ok_Departure_8243 17d ago

kind of like all the men who deal with chronic pain from the military or blue-collar jobs but still work everyday without complaint. Some of the best father's I know have chronic pain but you would never guess it from the way they play with their kids.

Careful, your misandry is showing.

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u/Tiny_Rat 17d ago

I think you missed their point entirely in your rush to play the victim...

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u/izzittho 17d ago edited 17d ago

Yeah nothing they said was untrue it just entirely misses what the other person was saying or there’d be no reason for the butthurt.

Nobody is saying men don’t just push through the pain and it’s unclear where they’re getting the idea that that’s a point that actually needs defended here when literally not a single person implied they don’t. Besides, tons of women deal with chronic pain too and also just live with it, men aren’t exactly special in that regard. Everyone deserves to not have to suffer in silence like that, nobody is saying anyone should get special treatment or that one group should just suck it up while another should be coddled.

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u/Ok_Departure_8243 17d ago

Um nope. The person I replied to went out of their way to make it about misandry. When you're used to privilege equality feels like oppression, aka when your privilege allows you to get away with being blatantly sexist getting called out for it it feels like descrimination.

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u/Tiny_Rat 17d ago

That person compared the experience of women in pain on their periods to men (and women, though not directly) living with chronic conditions. Just like nobody argues in good faith that men with chronic injuries are less intelligent or able to compensate for their challenges due to their condition, so it makes no sense to expect that women function normally at different points in their menstrual cycle. Nothing about that point is misandrist.

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u/Ok_Departure_8243 17d ago

And I Quote " Can you imagine a man having a bad day and just dealing with it?"

What about that is not a sweeping generalization made to degrade men? The thing about micro aggression is that it's death by 1000 cuts. You know how you can tell it's a micro aggression? When it gets called out there's no apology, versus misunderstanding or miscommunication you apologize and own it.

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u/plopliplopipol 17d ago

the next sentence is litterally "you probably can"

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u/Ok_Departure_8243 16d ago

They edited the comment after being called out, even acknowledge it. Unfortunately since reddit removed their API you can't view comment edit histories anymore

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u/Tiny_Rat 17d ago edited 17d ago

It's meant to draw a parallel between men having a bad day and a woman on her period. The same way that a man having a bad day (due to pain or whatever) just deals with it and keeps functioning regardless, so does a woman on her period. You're seeing misandry because you want to see it, not because it's there.

The full quote, in case you missed it:

Can you imagine a man having a bad day and just dealing with it? You probably can. Try extending that courtesy to women.

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u/izzittho 17d ago

“When you’re used to privilege, equality feels like oppression”

Love that you explained exactly why you’re so butthurt about a completely innocuous, not at all misandrist comment, but then tried to deflect it to them instead.

When misogyny is the norm, calling it out feels like misandry to men who either didn’t notice or saw nothing wrong with the misogyny.

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u/Ok_Departure_8243 17d ago

Please justify how and I Quote " Can you imagine a man having a bad day and just dealing with it?" Is not misandry disguised as sarcasm?

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u/Secret-Sundae-1847 17d ago

No no you see only women have problems.

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u/izzittho 17d ago

No it’s just that women’s “problems” tend to get used against them, to call them whiners and complainers and not fit for certain roles or privileges in a way that doesn’t happen with men.

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u/guiltysnark 17d ago

Well, they have been uniquely known to have problems people are excited to draw attention to and exaggerate for some reason

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u/Normal-Advisor5269 17d ago

I feel bad for any men in your life.

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u/samurairaccoon 17d ago

Y'all really just be assuming misandry. There, I changed it. Lord mercy.

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u/Ok_Departure_8243 17d ago

Your acting like people shouldn't take your words that face value

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u/samurairaccoon 17d ago

What? I added a three word sentence for clarity: "You probably can". Why are y'all like this?

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u/[deleted] 17d ago

Thats what I was thinking. Im in so much pain that I cant function properly without a lot of pain killers. And the lack of empathy I get when I struggle to move around can be frustrating("hurry up!!"), which is interpeted as "oh shes in a moooood" which doesnt cheer me up either.

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u/ATopazAmongMyJewels 17d ago

tbh I've never had pain during my periods or altered sleep.

It's rarely talked about in spaces like Reddit but most women don't really have any significant issues with their periods at all. It can be a bit uncomfortable but the intensity is typically no worse than, for example, having a sore body from working out the previous day.

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u/cinemachick 17d ago

Or, is it that an anonymous forum like Reddit is the only place women feel comfortable talking about their actual symptoms? Masking your pain goes hand in hand with keeping your thoughts to yourself to avoid discrimination 

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u/radios_appear 17d ago

"Everyone that doesn't agree with me is lying"

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u/GlassCup932 16d ago

I don't think this is an "or" situation. Periods with few severe symptoms aren't talked about on reddit as much because they're not remarkable AND reddit also gives folks with bad symptoms a place to talk about them.

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u/Normal-Advisor5269 17d ago

And this unique to women how?

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u/cinemachick 17d ago

The majority of men don't have menstrual symptoms

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u/Due_Anybody4762 17d ago

Well this study doesn't include women with irregular periods and any clinical diagnoses so I don't think it's reliable.

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u/izzittho 17d ago

On the other hand we don’t need men getting to use that to decide we can’t do things. I have little faith that info would be used to help us and not hurt us, would hope to be proven wrong though.

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u/[deleted] 17d ago

Bullies of any gender will invent excuses to be bullies no matter what anyone else does