Anyone else hate the expectation to shave down there?

Exactly.

And I'm pretty sure a lot of these people would be all over any other thread saying "Her body, her choice" if the subject was different.

Yet when it comes to her body hair, her choices appear to mean she wants to look like a pre pubescent child because there couldn't possibly be any other reason 🙄

Shameful.

I had laser hair removal - the whole lot is gone.

I love it (not just being hairless but the convenience of not having to ‘tidy up’ or deal with ingrown hairs, shaving rashes etc.)

I find the attitudes of women far more oppressive than the views of men after reading this thread.

I'm in my 50s and I've never had a man express a preference. I've worn many styles over the years but prefer completely bare now. I find the 'pre pubescent' worries pretty daft tbh, there's absolutely no way that my post kids body resembles a child, any more than shaving your legs would.

I've never felt any pressure to keep my pubes a particular way. Mumsnet is the only place that seems to care, and who refuses to believe that my choice is my choice. Funny old world.

why does anyone care what anyone else thinks about this subject? No one else's opinion matters at all.

I expect some of them still are. I also expect that the vast majority of people who became sexually active in the 70s regularly had/have oral sex.

@Disturbia81

I definitely don't think it was rare but from talking to some of my mums generation (yes they all talk openly about sex including my mum 🙈) said oral wasn't something they did, just penetrative sex. They weren't prudes, they talked about sex as a great thing but were grossed out at the idea of their mouths down there or vice versa. So not rare but maybe not as commonplace as now.

It's not generational for goodness sake. There are still people now who don't like to give or receive oral.

It was happening long before your mother's generation.

That’s really interesting, I’d never thought of that.

I stay on an estate that has a lot of nail bars and wax bars, the neighbouring posher one only has a hairdressers.

Sorry I guess I'm mixing generations, my mum and her friends were coming of age 50 years ago but were still regularly having sex 20/30 years ago.

I was a teen in the early 90's and shaving your pubes off definitely wasn't a thing with any of the girls at 15/16 at least. I do remember my first BF at 17 saying he didn't like it as it was child like though. He was definitely up for oral sex!

I've shaved it all off once or twice and regretted it! Never again, now a bit of a trim every now and then and swim shorts.

You think women with financial respurces have more pubic hair than those who don’t?

The very groomed look eg microbladed, lip filled, hair extensions, long nail extensions, is very working-class coded so I'm think extreme hair removal would be likewise.

What on earth would make you think a man is a paedophile because he prefers a WOMAN, with boobs and hips and a body thats clearly a womans, to shave?

If you feel the only thing that makes a child a child is no hair, then you have more issues than a man who prefers a woman to shave.

I don’t know much about class, Vinni. You think women with financial respurces have more pubic hair than those who don’t? Richer women have gun dogs and a terrier in their pants?

I'm not trying to do anything.

You've stated you shaved your pubic hair at the same time as stating you think it has links to pedophilia.

That's on you and no-one else.

https://www.healthline.com/health/purpose-of-pubic-hair#hair-growth

Pubic hair actually serves a lot of purposes.

I definitely don't think it was rare but from talking to some of my mums generation (yes they all talk openly about sex including my mum 🙈) said oral wasn't something they did, just penetrative sex. They weren't prudes, they talked about sex as a great thing but were grossed out at the idea of their mouths down there or vice versa. So not rare but maybe not as commonplace as now.

How old is your mum? I mean, I'm 50ish so came of age in the 90s and no-one I know was grossed out by oral, it was completely normal.

Only shaved once, never again! The itching during regrowth was horribly itchy. Spent most of my holiday standing in the sea for relief.

Is someone actually voicing this expectation, or do you just somehow get it from the environment?

Yes and according to Philip Larkin it was invented in 1963.

I definitely don't think it was rare but from talking to some of my mums generation (yes they all talk openly about sex including my mum 🙈) said oral wasn't something they did, just penetrative sex. They weren't prudes, they talked about sex as a great thing but were grossed out at the idea of their mouths down there or vice versa. So not rare but maybe not as commonplace as now.

A lesbian website used to do a thing every year where they would discuss "what's new in sex", you've just reminded me of it. I don't think it was meant to be funny but it always made us laugh.

I don't know who said this originally as too many comments to go through but are they saying they think oral sex performed on women is a recent invention!

Isn't there a saying about every generation thinking they invented sex?

I don't shave there anymore. Haven't for years really. Sometimes I tidy it up a bit if I'm planning on swimming to reduce how much is visible. DH did admit to preferring the shaved look when we were both young but he hasn't mentioned it in years and is very much of the view my body my choice.