Sunday, September 30, 2007

NEVER Douche!!

Because I am surprised by the amount of people who do not seem to know this ....

Women should NEVER douche!!

The idea that a woman's vagina is dirty/gross/smelly in its natural state is extremely hurtful to women. There is nothing wrong with asking a woman to bathe before sex but douching is harmful to a woman's vagina. It can cause/put women at risk for all kinds of problems including but not limited to yeast infections, pelvic inflammatory disease, infertility, ectopic pregnancy, and cancer. When bathing, a woman or her helpful partner should only clean the outside of her genitals.

Only two parts of the body have natural cleaning mechanisms and those are the eyes and the vagina. When a woman douches she washes away those natural cleaning mechanisms. Let the body do what it is designed to do!

However, if you do notice a change in your/your lover's smell or discharge make sure that you/she sees a doctor.

Tell a woman you care about not to douche. It is harmful to her body. This needs to be spread around because too many women still think it is ok (many poor and uneducated) and many men require it of their lovers because they think that it is healthy to clean the vagina. It is not.

Also, douching after sex can actually increase the likelihood of getting pregnant because it can push sperm up into the uterus and fallopian tubes. Use protection! This does not mean that one should use douching as a means to help get pregnant. It can also cause infertility.

What this blog is

This blog is a place for people to ask me questions about sex, sexuality, and gender. This is also for my own thoughts about such things. I invite everyone to ask me questions by emailing me at garnetjoyce@gmail.com.

Why am I qualified to be answering your questions?

I have been fascinated with sex, sexuality, and gender since I was a young girl. I have been reading and researching the subject for the past 15 years or so. I have a thirst for sexual knowledge. I do not know everything, but I do know a lot and I have resources for finding out more. My goal is to be a sex educator.

Currently I am a Carnal Consultant (sex toy reviewer) over on Early to Bed's blog, I am a student double majoring in gender and women's studies and psychology, I'm a volunteer for Planned Parenthood, and I'm in the beginning stages of writing a book.

So email me your questions and let the fun begin!