Vulvas and Vaginal Health

rrrambleon:

    Let’s take a moment here to talk about vulvas and vaginas and more specifically, their health. Yay!

    Washing your vulva with soap is not necessary. Am I promoting poor hygiene? No! I’m not saying don’t wash yourself, I’m saying do wash yourself but without using soaps that upset the natural balance of your vagina. See, think of the vagina as a self-cleaning oven. The “enviroment” is a bit acidic and that cleans it. The labia should just be washed with warm or hot water (depending on what feels comfortable) and using your fingers. You can do it quite easily in the bath (if you do not use bubbles or something in the water), you can fill a cup or something with water and poor it over you while sitting in the shower or if you’ve got one of those snazzy shower-heads attached to a hose, you can use that.

    Douching is not only not necessary but it is also not healthy. Most doctors and gynos agree, that douching is a bad idea. It upsets the natural balance which actually makes you more prone to infections than before. Your vagina should not smell like flowers. It should smell like vagina. If you wash regularly, there is no reason to feel insecure about the odor from your vagina. If, however, it smells extremely strong, foul and different from how you normally are, than that might indicate some type of infection. If this is the case, you should see your doctor or gynecologist but do not douche. Douching does not treat infection and it does not prevent STI’s! If you have an infection, the doctor will tell you how to take care of it. Here is a douching fact sheet.

    A common type of infection is a yeast infection. When I say common, I mean common. It does not mean you are unclean. Some unlucky women even get them after every period. Prevention is pretty easy. Wear cotton underwear. Try not to wear tight pants that lock in moisture, such as yoga pants, too often. If you’re active and work up a sweat a lot, shower after games or work-outs. Right after and dry yourself thoroughly. If you’re prone to yeast infections, in a vitamin or health food store you can find caplets that have the same cultures you can get in yogurt (which you take orally). These help keep the natural balance of good bacteria in your body. Plus, it’s good for digestion, so it’s win-win. Click for more information on yeast infections.

   Let’s talk about hair. What you do with your pubic hair is your choice entirely. Whether you shave it, wax it, trim it, dye it or keep it 100% all natural, there is no right or wrong way to have pubic hair. Also, despite common misconceptions, hair does not mean you are unclean. By washing your pubic region with warm water and your fingers regularly, you are keeping yourself clean. So if anyone says that it’s “unclean”, fuck ‘em, cause they don’t know shit. It’s all about preference. Click here for a “how-to” use a stencil to get a cool pubic design.

   Try not wearing underwear under your pyjamas when you go to sleep at night or wear a night gown without anything under. Let the air get to it, let it breathe, man. Let it breathe. Yup. That’s pretty much all I can think of.

(via uncutting)