by Emma Raho
On my daily journeys through the internet I’ve seen a disturbing trend of misinformation and rumours about our lady bits that just won’t die. So I’ve decided to compile a list of the most common rumours and explain why they are complete bollocks.
“Pubic hair on women is disgusting and dirty” – Pubic hair actually has a function, to protect and cushion our vajimjam from friction and the outside world in general. Every girl gets it at puberty. However even paintings from hundreds of years ago portray women with hairless vaginas as pubes were considered too taboo to show. Today’s understanding is the more hairless the better but this is a social norm, not an actual need. Do what you feel comfortable with.
“You need special feminine washes, sprays, douches and wipes to be really clean” – No. You really don’t. It’s marketing, a product that sells from women’s insecurity. Nothing needs to go up your vagina, your body takes care of that. Washing your vulva with warm water and mild soap once or twice a day is all you need to be doing. Anything else is unnecessary.
“If a woman has sex with a lot of men her vagina stretches out and gets loose” – The vagina is made of highly elastic tissue, supported by a series of mostly horizontal muscles in the pelvic floor. It is not a wet paper bag that is ruined the minute it’s touched. The vagina is designed to push a whole baby out and then contract back, do people really imagine a dick, or several dicks would make any difference? The tightness or looseness of a vagina generally depends on how aroused a woman is, it is not based on her sexual history. The whole loose vagina from sex myth was perpetuated to keep women from taking control of their own sexuality and it’s about time people just let this go.
“If you use tampons you’re no longer a virgin” – Losing your virginity is a term used for the first time you have sex. You’re not having sex with the tampon so using one does not count as losing your virginity despite what Karen told you in second form.
“If the hymen is broken you’re no longer a virgin” – You can break your hymen through tampon use, playing sport or even riding a bike. Some girls are born without them. Having a broken or absent hymen is no indication of your sexual history.
“A woman retains DNA from every guy she’s ever slept with” – This surreal myth came from a study that showed male DNA in the brains of women during autopsy. The DNA was not from sexual partners but from either the fetal tissue of any male children the woman may have carried even if the pregnancy had ended in abortion or miscarriage or her male twin that may have been absorbed in the womb.
“Women don’t have orgasms” – How awkward is it when you see someone confidently proclaim this? While there is a small percentage of women that never climax if you’re a guy and none of your partners have ever orgasmed I would suggest sitting down and maybe discussing new things to try to help that happen.
