She sees "puce" and he sees brown!

This week, I’m supporting blokes for when she sees “puce” and you see brown. She sees “steel slate” and you see gray. We are in the middle of Audacious August with my attempt at stepping into the boots of the great Australian male in relationship with his sheila! Feel free to peruse my blog for the recent weeks articles on the myriad of challenges faced by men as noted in relationship counselling or you’ve emailed and commented on social media.

This topic represents a metaphor for male female relationships in that we really do see through different lenses in many instances. Realising this masculine versus feminine approach could be one major step forward to your more intimate relationship.

Thanks to Jason who commented on social media about his frustration on being questioned by his woman about interior decorating colour options. He noted, “We only see in primary colours”, and he’s quite right! Men do see multiple distinct colours only and females see multiple shades. It’s hard-wired.

As you could imagine, women become quite despondent and rejected when we receive little input to our dilemma of the mango tango curtains versus the coral ones. Thanks to Dr Caroline Leaf in her book, He Said She Said, who provides greater insight around the cause of this in the biology around our vision!

“The X-chromosome provides the cone-shaped cells that handle colour. Women have two X-chromosomes and men have one, so women have more cells that allow them to see subtle changes in shades of colour. Females also have more P-cells—special cells in the retina that help the brain interpret texture and colour. These P-cells allow women to be more detail-oriented than men. Males, on the other hand, have more M-cells, other specialized cells in the retina that help the brain analyze motion, action and direction. M-cells help men see how things move and work.”

This would explain why I’ve managed to reverse into my husband’s car in our driveway let’s just say more than once in broad daylight. It also makes sense why he couldn’t care less about what shade of red he went when he found out. Surely the fact that men see better than women in bright light and women see more details in short distances in the dark has something to do with it?

​So fellas, email me your burning questions for support during Audacious August. Bewildered ladies, feel free to forward any contemplations you find unsettling for this series too! You can remain anonymous!
 
Joanne Wilson is a neuropsychotherapist, relationship specialist, radio co-host, workshop facilitator, guest speaker and weekly columnist for the Sunshine Coast Daily.

Contact Jo at www.theconfidantecounselling.com or via email. Listen in to her podcast discussing these articles and more, "Is This Love?"

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