10. We don’t get complimented on our looks
“20 years passed before I was told by a woman other than my mother that I was handsome. If you think a guy is handsome TELL him. Chances are he hasn’t heard it in a long time. Obviously some women aren’t very often told that they’re beautiful, and some men are told that they’re handsome all the time but it seems to me there’s still a large discrepancy there.”
11. Nothing’s wrong; we’re just quiet
“Sometimes guys are quiet. Nothing is wrong. I just don’t have any words worth saying.”
12. We suffer from gender stereotypes, too
“Gender stereotypes exist for us. I’m a stay at home dad. I’ve been called terrible things all because I don’t work like a man should. This happens even though I also collect VA disability because of injuries sustained while in the USMC. I’ve been told I’m not a good role model for my son. Called a degenerate, even though I’m a college graduate. I’ve even been told im not a real man. It’s really really depressing.”
13. We’re always under pressure to be successful
“The requirement to be established. Have an established job, have a house, to be independent. It may just be because of my age but most of the girls I know prefer older guys because they are more likely to have aspects of their lives set up. I have no idea what my future is going to hold, but I keep that as quiet as I can.”
14. It’s hard to tell whether we’re attractive to women
“It might just be me but I can never tell whether or not I am at least a semi-attractive person. It’s like I can look at a few women and know which one I think looks the best but if I look at a few guys (save for exceptionally ugly ones), it’s really hard to tell who looks the best. To me they are just dudes and so am I. Hard to know if I’m attractive to women or not and my mind automatically assumes no.”
15. We have to provide physically, financially, emotionally, and mentally for our families
“The expectations that we carry all the time. We have to provide physically, financially, emotionally, and mentally for our families. We have to bust ass at work where we provide physically, financially, emotionally and mentally for our bosses and customers. We have to buck up if we are down because it can’t effect our work or the whole thing crumbles. We can’t really call in sick without being ridiculed with having a ‘man cold”. We are expected to be everyone’s rock and support system when there isn’t much for us in terms of coping for that kind of dependancy. I get stressed and bogged down but I can’t let it show to much because no one really cares. My wife tries but she has her own heap of problems that I’m trying to help her figure out and be their to support her because that’s my job as husband. There are a few people that I would bury a body for and those few people I can actually trust with me breaking down and them helping put me back together. This is why guy’s relationships are so strong. We have seen each other at our weakest points and our strongest and usually get through rough patches by working it out with them. Sure our SO’s are consulted as well but men and women think things differently. Every once in a while I get so tightly wound with everything that I just let out a good cry and get back to it. My wife wonders why I take 30 mins or so in the washroom, it’s just quiet time. I don’t get bothered, I just get alone time to be with myself and my thoughts. I’m just rambling at this point but yeah, stresses we deal with.”
