At the weekend I visited a hair salon, and the beautiful hairdresser assigned to me had clearly no clue how to clean up after the ‘intimate dinners and snacks’ with her husband.
If you know, you know. Never before has my nose been assaulted by a smell so foul and unmistakable; I was tempted to give her a lecture about intimacy hygiene, there and then.
But Saturdays are notoriously busy in that salon; there was no way I could bring it up without offending. Also, it is a topic I feel only a fellow woman can address with a degree of decorum; so, kindly allow me.
It is easy to differentiate body odour as a result of not using deodorant and body odour as a result of not taking care of your business properly after making love, or after a menstrual period. So, do you have a healthy sex life?
If you are not meticulous about hygiene – especially in the 35-plus age group (when hormones start having a mind of their own) – you will be fodder for office and marketplace gossip.
Make baths/showers your friend, because all the sweat, after-sex secretions, natural bodily discharges and urine droplets can make quite an explosive body odour cocktail that can gradually send your spouse running for the hills. From the Internet and social media, it is interesting to see how many men think that women urinate from their vaginas, just because men have one opening for both reproduction and urination.
The vagina is solely for all childbirth processes, from menstruation to sexual intercourse and pushing out babies; the urethra is a different opening in close proximity to the vagina and anus, which is why hygiene for a woman is very serious business and does not tolerate sloppiness.
If you need to shower thrice, girlfriend, by all means do so. When you visit the toilet, use the bidet where safely available, or use a shower/ basin/jerrycan to rinse after your bathroom business, and be sure to pat dry.
And while at it, keep your pubic area free of hair, which can trap sweat, blood, discharge, and bacteria to a point where you also don’t understand why you smell unpleasantly, yet you shower regularly.
It is said, that revered body zone has a set of sweat glands that become more active as one grows older. Make sure it is clear and dry. And then comes the underwear. Why don’t you normalize using pantyliners or sanitary pads, even when you are not on your monthly period, just to trap any of that unpleasant discharge that comes after intercourse?
By the way, even if you are not sexually active, unperfumed pantyliners and pads neutralize odours better than panties, especially those fancy, non-cotton ones. The lacy, satin or polyester variety may look sexy on you, but girl, can they stink when ‘tired’!
Even after a thorough wash, one stain is enough for them (and you) to stink up the room. Don’t forget to replace your panties as often as possible, and if you don’t buy the daily padding idea, at least have extra panties in your handbag to change when need arises, until any unpleasant discharge stops.
Otherwise, you risk alighting from the taxi or bus, only to leave the other passengers – usually men – loudly grumbling about how badly you stank. I have overheard boda boda riders complain about some female clients, especially now that we all sit astride for safety.
That is not body-shaming; it is talking about a solvable problem; so, take charge. Not to get it twisted; a vagina has its natural, NOT unpleasant smell – it is not built to be odourless.
But when the PH balance is off due to external factors or infections, that odour transforms into something horrible. So, let’s take better care of our beautiful bodies.
caronakazibwe@gmail.com
Your pieces are pertinent and always on point. Keep keeping on gal. Blessings
I enjoy your pieces. They are pertinent and always on point. Keep going gal. Blessings