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[Xantalos]

Pregnancy is no less than one of the pillars of our mammalian superiority, one of the amazing adaptations that let us conquer the Earth.

Except for the bits where it hurts like a literal motherfucker and people die all the time from it. Eggs4lyfe

[Spehss _]

Biology is hard

I've read an article about how the huge hormone production  in women that are pregnant is because she is in constant combat with the fetus, who is continuously trying to wring more and more nutrients from its mother. Also why the placenta is made of some of the toughest cells in the body, so the mother can better resist the probing tendrils of the baby...

Edit: more specific example. The foetus produces a ton of vasodiliation hormones, the better to get more blood for more nutrients. The mother produces a ton of vasoconstriction hormones, to resist the foetus's efforts. The result? A delicate balance where the baby gets just enough nnutrients to develop. A mother who did not produce enough of the hormone would die.

Today I learned that children are literally blood-sucking parasites.

[mastahcheese]

Today I learned that children are literally blood-sucking parasites.

Pregnancies are pretty much a copy-paste of the textbook definition of a parasitic relation.

[Skyrunner]

Source .

The invading placental cells paralyse the vessels so they cannot contract, then pump them full of growth hormones, widening them tenfold to capture more maternal blood. These foetal cells are so invasive that colonies of them often persist in the mother for the rest of her life, having migrated to her liver, brain and other organs. There’s something they rarely tell you about motherhood: it turns women into genetic chimeras.

[WillowLuman]

Pregnancy is no less than one of the pillars of our mammalian superiority, one of the amazing adaptations that let us conquer the Earth.

Except for the bits where it hurts like a literal motherfucker and people die all the time from it. Eggs4lyfe

Problem is, we're not entirely adapted to walking upright. The narrowing of the pelvis makes human birth very dangerous compared to other mammals, but despite that we've had a number of other amazing adaptations that have let us be successful despite it, and so it's never been such an issue that it was selected against.

[mastahcheese]

Source .

The invading placental cells paralyse the vessels so they cannot contract, then pump them full of growth hormones, widening them tenfold to capture more maternal blood. These foetal cells are so invasive that colonies of them often persist in the mother for the rest of her life, having migrated to her liver, brain and other organs. There’s something they rarely tell you about motherhood: it turns women into genetic chimeras.

I did not know this.
It is terrifying.

[Arcvasti]

Pregnancy is no less than one of the pillars of our mammalian superiority, one of the amazing adaptations that let us conquer the Earth.

Except for the bits where it hurts like a literal motherfucker and people die all the time from it. Eggs4lyfe

Problem is, we're not entirely adapted to walking upright. The narrowing of the pelvis makes human birth very dangerous compared to other mammals, but despite that we've had a number of other amazing adaptations that have let us be successful despite it, and so it's never been such an issue that it was selected against.

This plus larger heads then normal for a mammal of our size makes childbirth without modern medical technology horribly dangerous. Meanwhile cats give birth to like twelve kittens and once and walk away fine^{[]Citation needed]}

I am also no longer proud of being a mammal. While being endothermic is nice, pregnancy and childbirth, our main other distinguishing features are a mixed blessing at best. Whatever's wrong with eggs anyways?

[WillowLuman]

I do not think the human condition would be much improved if our unborn offspring could be easily misplaced or stolen. Plus, you've still got the problem of them coming out.

[Lagslayer]

I am also no longer proud of being a mammal. While being endothermic is nice, pregnancy and childbirth, our main other distinguishing features are a mixed blessing at best. Whatever's wrong with eggs anyways?

Eggs are under less direct protection from the mother. They are easier targets for predators, and more vulnerable to environmental factors.

You are what you are, and it's a species that apparently completely fucking owns. Be proud of that, and don't self depreciate so much.

[Bauglir]

We're going strange places.

Important thing is, people are cool. They don't need to prove it.

[Rolan7]

Deleted a bunch of details but...

One month ago I finally worked up the courage to try dating again.  Hoping that it would be different.  And... I did exactly the same fucking thing as always.  Moving two hundred miles and waiting almost two years didn't work.  I don't think it's worth figuring out.  I have friendships, and professional relationships, and based on how relationships go in my family... I probably did him a favor in the long run.  And I'm happy enough.

Also fuck the gender binary in general.  I can't help seeing it as a caste system with shitty criteria.  Probably mostly bad personal experiences though.

[Vector]

.

[WillowLuman]

Gender is an illusion, in the sense of a subjective construct. Truth is, everyone is unique. And I don't mean to be all cliche with that, but people try to sort themselves and each other into categories to make the world easier to understand, and no one can ever fit perfectly into them.

[Bauglir]

It's not just that it's an illusion, it's one that people try to impose on everyone else. I mean, illusions can be great. I'm happy to call myself a man, for instance. But I sure as shit shouldn't have to.

EDIT: And I mean that with regards to the whole system. Letting somebody pick "man" or "woman" at will isn't addressing the problem.

[Cptn Kaladin Anrizlokum]

I usually just don't care about other people's gender. They are just them... I'll call them what they want (He, She, They, Xhe, Etc, etc...), and from there does it actually matter?
*shrugs*

I mean, if you want me to call you a woman and you wear a tuxedo, that's fine by me. Do what you want, but there's no need to put people into boxes they don't want to be in.