Texoma Living Well Magazine November/December 2018 | Page 40

THE SUPERWOMAN COMPLEX
Women need to be proactive in recognizing the early warn-
ing symptoms of exhaustion from trying to “do it all.”
I
By Julie Alvira, MD, MBA
n the 1980s, Carol Gilligan, a psychologist and pro-
fessor at Harvard University, and later at New York
University, did not agree with previous colleagues Freud,
Erickson, and even Kohlberg’s research on women. They
suggested women were morally inferior.
Gilligan argued that women are not inferior; rather, they
just have a different kind of moral development that was
not measured in previous theories. In her book, psychother-
apist Dr. De Azevedo Hanks (2016) pointed out Gilligan’s
theory: “Women tend to define and evaluate themselves
based on their ability to care for others. This ‘ethic of care’
psychologically orients women toward maintenance of
relationships and interpersonal connections.”
38
TEXOMA AREA Living Well Magazine | NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2018
Carol Gilligan’s theory is based on stages, which are
fueled by changes in a woman’s sense of self. Yes, we are
naturally prone to connection. We all know the way we
see and perceive ourselves (self image) is important for
us women, regardless of how others see us. Even our self
talk can impact our empowerment, emotional intelligence,
self esteem, and self confidence in a positive way or, on
the contrary, can denigrate our strengths, point out our
inadequacies, and give power to the impostor syndrome
(when an individual doubts their accomplishments and has
persistent fear of being a fraud).
When we decide to become doctors and go to medical
school there are challenges that are faced by women versus