When was the last time you had a look? 🕵️
Down there…
No, not under the stairs, I mean your undercarriage- your vulva and vagina? When was the last time you looked?
Never?
You’re not alone. There’s so many of us who have never looked. And if you’ve never looked, chances are you don’t know what normal, as in normal for you, looks like. It’s important we get comfortable looking at our bodies and the more comfortable we are, the more likely we are to advocate clearly on our behalf. Knowing our bodies intimately means we can keep ourselves healthy too. Just as self- examining our breasts matters, our vaginas need us as well!
Hence the title of this blog- The Vagina Dialogues- yes I kind of borrowed from a play written about monologues. But what I mean is that when we are in the doctor’s office and we feel a little uncomfortable talking about our vaginal health, that’s when we need to be able to converse without embarrassment. Frankly, most doctors view our vaginas with the same lens as our elbows- it’s just another body part to them- so there’s no need to be embarrassed at all.
Feeling Vulnerable About Our Vaginas
I understand that being in stirrups (why are they always covered in oven mitts ?) can make you feel vulnerable.
I get it, I do.
But it’s important to be brave for your healthcare needs. Things don’t go away if we ignore them; more often they become bigger worries in our own heads. Thankfully, more often than not, nothing is wrong with us, or if there is a concern, our doctors can offer us guidance. It’s far better to ask the question than to leave, never knowing, or worse, letting Dr Google freak us out at 4am! Again, knowing what’s normal for us is empowering- otherwise we let others speak for us. And what they’re saying ain’t pretty…
Predatory Marketing On Our Intimate Insecurities
Not knowing about our vaginal health can leave us vulnerable to all kinds of predatory messaging in the women’s health space. In fact, health has NOTHING to do with it.
Take for example douching. Or steaming. Or jade eggs…. Oh yes, all of these things have no place in or near your vagina. But why are they there in the first place?
Probably because we read an article about our smell. Or that we need to feel ‘fresh’.
Douches, or ‘feminine wash’ products, are being aggressively advertised to women who ‘want to feel fresh’- the implication being that we and our vaginas are dirty. While it may be annoying to us ‘mature’ ladies, worryingly our younger girls are taking this information literally. This is just backward thinking. Our vaginas are carefully balanced, self cleaning ovens. They don’t need spritzing with perfumes. In fact, those vaginal washes are damaging to our natural PH balance and you may end up with a nasty reaction to the detergents! Leave it alone, ladies! Except for when you want to give it a little pleasure! 💜
So where do we start, Laura? Mirror, mirror on the wall…
Whip out the old mirror and have a look at your wonderful vulvas, the labia minora and majora, and of course the clitoris and vagina! (Clean hands!) It’s a full-on fun house down there!
The vagina is an incredible part of our bodies, delivering babies and pleasure. Sure, sometimes she needs a little help- a kind of seasonal MOT like we’d give our cars, but mostly she purrs along nicely 😸. She’s our internal engine of love and if we treat her well, she’ll look after us too. Becoming more outspoken about vaginal health allows us to address common issues such as dryness and discomfort. As many of you know, I’ve spoken out about the need to have OTC (over the counter- no prescription needed) vaginal oestrogen cream- Vagifem- which plays an important part of our healthcare. Our skin on our vulvas and vaginas deserves looking after, and because we KNOW our bodies, we know when it needs a little help.
So, in honour of Vagina Appreciation Day - April 23rd - go have a look. After all, it’s right next to your vulva… 😉
Viva La Vulva (& Vagina) Ladies!
Laura x
