renaming the hymen...

[ObsidianBlackbirdMcNight]

the vaginal corona

Interesting. I bled cos my first BF tore into me like I was his birthday present (suffering undiagnosed psychosis at the time, didn't believe I was a virgin) and it was horrendous. I'm convinced it was also unnecessary. In some parts of the world there is a massive cult of virginity based on physiologically incorrect beliefs. Do you think this might help?

renaming will NOT- in my view- change the myths surrounding the hymen because these myths in many cultures are so established in the minds and beliefs of their peoples it would take down to earth education and years of it alongside much rehabilitation if any real change is to be made on the ground rather than in the sky!
It is the representation of viginity and the fact this is the age old way of establishing it that needs to be tackled not the terminology surrounding the body part although i trust the intentions are good.

thank you for that link - I read the pdf of the booklet and I realised I 'knew' things that aren't actually true. V interesting.

Yes, thanks for the link. I didn't know the stuff that was in that booklet either.

Really interesting. It's so funny how the taboos surrounding women's genitals are so pervasive that we don't necessarily even know about the physiology of our own bodies.

gosh, how incredibly interesting (and how very swedish! )

Lots of stuff there I did not know, and it's amazing how much stuff I thought I did know, from reputable sources, turns out to be rubbish.

Who knew that virginity "tests" were actually such a load of crap? And yet they are so widely quoted in historical texts and newspaper reports without any mention of the fact that they are unreliable.

thanks for that link, what a brilliant organisation.
I thought I was pretty clued up, but seems there's always something to learn...
(thinks: must go and cross ref with my copy of Our Bodies Ourselves)

I was just thinking about Lucrezia Borgia and Effi Ruskin and their virginity tests.

Wow that's really interesting, thanks for posting. It is sad how misconceptions can cause such trauma, hopefully more information could help.

very interesting - the hymen has always been a mystery to me. i thought it was because i used tampons from the age of about 11 but i now think that the reason i was able to do that is that i didn't have much of a hymen in the first place (and i started with 'mini' tampons which are very small).

HerBeatitude - I was thinking of Effie Ruskin as well.

And wasn't Beatrice Cenci forced to have a virginity test too?

yes that booklet is very good - dispelled a few myths for me

I was told that because I did horseriding from a young age it would have 'ruptured'

very interesting - thanks!

This has been a v good reminder that I really must clear my internet history before taking laptop in to be fixed. Thinking about all the weird and wonderful places MN has taken me since the last rebuild...

Oh PerArdua you spoilsport!

Why bother to clear - who knows - the technicians might learn something enlightening!

But I can't remember when I googled Dragonbutter!

didn't poor ol' Diana have to be checked, also?

Guess they made allowance for the horse-riding? [wince]

remember the hips?
poor girl

Thanks for the link, that's really interesting!

Feel sorry for the half of women who dont bleed in countries where it is culturally important though. What a load of rubbish to built such an important (to them) taboo on such an unreliable source.