Brighton midwives told to say “front hole”

[tabbycatstripy]

Daily Mail reports that a care guide for transgender patients pregnant or giving birth suggests midwives should use ‘alternative’ anatomical terminology, so, instead of calling a vagina a vagina, they could use “genital opening” or “front hole”.

www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-10727051/Midwives-urged-avoid-using-proper-words-anatomy-avoid-upsetting-trans-patients.html

Aside from the issues of linguistic misunderstanding that might arise when patients are allowed to choose what medical professionals name anatomical parts, isn’t “front hole” simply degrading language? Isn’t it pornified and dehumanising?

It’s clear from the daily mail that this only applies if the person is not comfortable with the ‘normal’ terminology and requests something else.

That being said, I find it difficult to l compute how someone can be comfortable having a baby (which is one of the most stereotypically female things you can do) but not comfortable with the names of the associated body parts

Just to expand on that, “hole” is a reductive way to refer to the vaginal channel. During birth, the vagina is designed to stretch and widen, allowing the passage of a human being into the world. It’s a miraculous, unique capability of the female body. “Front hole” is language taken from a pornified view of the world in which the vagina is something you put things in.

A person who is so sensitive about hearing the word “vagina” and would rather call it their “front hole”, (IMO) needs psychological support, not medical staff colluding in their self-hatred.

‘It’s clear from the daily mail that this only applies if the person is not comfortable with the ‘normal’ terminology and requests something else.’

I know. But aren’t there limits to what you can ask a medical professional to do? Why should they be forced to use degrading terms for the body? What if someone wanted to call the vagina a “penis receptacle”?

Isn’t it better to use accurate terms anyway?

And of course a transman might be pregnant not by choice, and of course they have the right to be pregnant whatever anyone thinks.

But do they have the right to control others’ language in this way?

If you’re a pregnant man I doubt someone referring to your vag is the most triggering thing to happen to it. How do they reconcile the baby coming out of it?

And no I don’t think it’s fair for midwives to have to try and remember each patient’s preferred made up word for their flange in somewhere like Brighton where every other pregnant 20 year old is non binary and you can guarantee one wants foof, one wants fanny and another wants mangina. Bloody ridiculous.

I don’t know. Just from the parentint perspective, I worry about a young person (especially a girl) growing up in a home where their mother insists they are male, won’t hear the words “vagina” or “breast” or (I’d assume) “period” because it’s too traumatising to them. That is not an emotionally sound situation.

You know, against the context of an increasing crisis in maternal healthcare with with scandalous numbers of dead babies and mothers, mothers being blamed for poor outcomes and dangerously few staff. But yeah let’s personalise anatomy to each narcissist. That’s one useful way to expend time, money, effort etc.

I have three holes myself, my vagina is the middle one, pushing a baby out of the front one REALLY doesn’t bear thinking about.!

Then the midwife gets in trouble for saying “I We need to break your waters manually. That will involve putting my hand inside your vagina.”

How are they meant to properly ensure understanding and consent if everyone’s calling the vagina by their own special name?

Putting aside any other issues, it's the MIDDLE hole fgs! A midwife trying to deliver a baby from the front hole wouldn't have qualified.

Xpost MintyMoocow

To be honest, I’d rather use different language when talking to trans patients, than follow the approach used by some other trusts which involves making everything gender neutral. Brighton have a statement on their website saying that they are continuing to use the word ‘woman’ throughout their guidelines. Other hospitals have changed all their policies to make them gender neutral by referring to everyone as a ‘service user’

@MintyMoocow

I have three holes myself, my vagina is the middle one, pushing a baby out of the front one REALLY doesn’t bear thinking about.!

Quite. The fact that the actual front hole is overlooked in this terminology lends weight to the idea that it comes from a 'pornified' view - though it could just be biological ignorance. Either way, it's not something the medical profession should be encouraging.

‘I’d rather use different language when talking to trans patients, than follow the approach used by some other trusts which involves making everything gender neutral.’

But it doesn’t even make sense. Under the trans ideology, ‘vagina’ IS gender-neutral language. Because ‘men can have vaginas’.

What this does is force obfuscatory language into medicine, which is dangerous.

Haha great points about it not being the front hole 😂 the logic just falls apart too quickly on this stuff

Ha ha love the word mangina. How is it that people get slated for calling the vagina a “front bottom” to young girls but front hole would be acceptable for a trans man ? Having a baby is the most feminine thing someone can do . A trans “man” who is having a baby should have to live with the terminology. They cannot have the best of both worlds . They are obviously hedging their bets. The midwives have enough to contend with!

Putting aside any other issues, it's the MIDDLE hole fgs! A midwife trying to deliver a baby from the front hole wouldn't have qualified

This I remember being really clear with my DCs on this one aged (I'm guessing 4 and 6). It is part of my job but I can't stand the fact that girls on the cusp of woman good have no easily understood friendly word (or words) for their genitals. And front hole is not that.

To describe the birth canal as a hole is disgusting.

It's 27 years since I was pregnant, but I'm sure "birth canal" was a term used at a number of appointments/classes I attended. Old fashioned, I guess, but surely better for anyone who is uncomfortable with the correct terms for the female anatomy than the current suggestions.

Does anyone know how many transmen have actually given birth in the UK?

I'm sure the numbers don't warrant this assault on medical terminology.

Deep misogyny at play. A profound jealously of women and our power to bring life into the world.

It is disgusting. It’s all about a utilitarian “meat suit” view of the body, with the body degraded and the “gendered essence” elevated. This, in spite of the fact that there is no gendered essence, and we need to do everything we can to avoid the degradation of the person, because so many people do treat women as if they are “front holes”.

Let’s not indulge it!

But it doesn’t even make sense. Under the trans ideology, ‘vagina’ IS gender-neutral language. Because ‘men can have vaginas’.

Yes, that's the puzzling bit!

@Joystir59

To describe the birth canal as a hole is disgusting.

Completely ^

1. This is where you wonder how someone got pregnant in the first place. You'd have to have had sex and/or stopped taking hormones and so on for the pregnancy to occur. How do you do all that without dealing with your body and what sex it is? If someone is that upset about anatomically correct terms then I wonder about the ethics involved in giving them hormones or assisting with fertility. If you can't face reality of what body parts are called then how the hell are you going to deal with a baby?

1. As PP have said, it's not even right to say "front" as it would be "middle". Fucking hell they may as well be saying "front bottom" for all the thought and maturity that's gone into this.

1. And most importantly, as half of our maternity services are not safe, this is like sticking two fingers up to all the women and babies who deserve safe care. Safe care can't be given if you're working in a climate of fear and having to worry about whether someone is offended you used the right word to talk to them about their labour and delivery.