So the first attitude is as follows. If a woman is single, it means that she urgently needs an unsightly, threadbare citizen of life in dirty boots, bursting into life with a rapid jackhammer. In many old movies, such a hero is seen as a gift, despite all his flaws. He can look downright bad, be abusive, boss around someone else's house, and generally do whatever he wants. But since childhood everyone around us instills: now everything will be fine with the woman, she had time to jump into the last carriage.
The worst thing was that this idea was really popular among the people. But fortunately, I now meet more and more women who would be only perplexed by such a hero. What kind of ridiculous citizen is this and why are you suggesting him to me? I'm doing fine as it is! Plus I have Tinder installed.

Moving on, the second stereotype. 40 years old is the age of a grandmother. While visiting my mother, I was very surprised. Those women who acted like grandmothers when I was 5 years old are still alive, and many are still healthy. But they have hardly changed: they wear the same robes, make the same bunches, and spend their time planting flowers in the yard. So how old were they when they first put on their "grandmother's" uniform? 50? Or even 45?
As a schoolgirl, I once turned on the TV and came across a program where a woman was telling a story about her decision to have a baby at the age of 39. People around her reacted very negatively to this decision, she was called a grandmother, she was persecuted, and the worst thing was that her relatives did not support her. Now those timelines have shifted significantly, and the 39-year-old mom is no one's astonishment. But a 40-year-old person who suddenly decided to act like a grandmother is extremely surprising to others.

Society keeps telling us that the worst thing that can happen in adulthood is for your husband to leave you for a younger woman. For some reason, most articles, television shows, and talking points of the past have played up this very plot. But statistics show an interesting pattern: the number of divorces initiated by mature women who have been married for a long time is much higher in recent times. I think this is because divorce has ceased to be a kind of stigma in the eyes of those around them (although some really want it to be). And if there is no stigma, then the very idea of female patience collapses like a house of cards. And the goal has shifted from "save the marriage at all costs" to "be happy.
People around us do not live quietly, and they try hard to drum into our heads the fact that the age over 40 - a reason to try hard to keep slipping away beauty. After all, they believe that the signs of aging on the face - a verdict. Entire empires have been built on this, in fact, hundreds of thousands of marketers around the world have made money on it. Every year women were scared of aging more and more and finally... pulled it off. Because of too much pressure from the cosmetic corporations, because of too much pressure that accompanied the topic of aging in society, lately it is no longer as relevant as it used to be. A lot of women just took a deep breath, then exhaled and went about their business. After all, 40 is the age when a woman can prioritize on her own. And it's also an age when content is more important than form. Just recently I met a lady of 40, who has saved up money and is going to break away with friends on a tourist trip. And for some reason I am sure that she will be more excited about this trip than Botox or other experiments with her appearance.

Another disgusting stereotype: now it's time to live for others. It was suggested that after 45-50 years, or even after 40, a woman should "start living for others. I directly heard this being said to my acquaintances and loved ones. This was said both directly and very veiledly. It was not spelled out in any official documents, but the message was clear: now you were obliged to serve your husband, children, and grandchildren - that was your true happiness. Now you don't need much; now everything is leftover for you. It is against this attitude protest today, women who do not want to send a voluntary exile in the next 40-50 years. And rightly so.

Do you notice the difference between 40-year-old women 20-30 years ago and today? What has changed?