What % of women don't know basics of female anatomy?

Nurses General Nursing

Published

I had a wonderful daughter of an elderly patient assist with doing a minicath. I missed the first try, making some comment about getting the correct hole, and the confusion at times. The 60 something daughter said "2 holes?". I said something like, you know the pee and the baby hole?

The lady was shocked she had no idea there were two holes down there. I good naturedly covered up my utter surprise at her ignorance regarding this matter.

How many women don't know about this?

You directed your comment to "@smartnurse"

I bolded all the parts that made it sound like you were talking to HER.

Yikes. You realize I'm literally replying back to HER when I said "I REALIZE ITS A CULTURAL THING" nothing's else in that comment even makes sense to be directed at her. You literally bolded every thing that didn't make a lick of sense.

Let me take you back through, just so you can understand what happened here.

I said "hey guys, nurses on Instagram and lady partsl steaming"

She said "yes it's a cultural thing"

I said" yes I know it's a cultural thing but...."

That's it. I'm not accusing her of putting anything into her lady parts. That wouldn't make any sense given the context of the thread. Im continuing my original thought which is directed to NURSES ON INSTAGRAM

Did you even READ my original post to know who it was I was talking about, or did you just skim through?

You directed your comment to "@smartnurse"

I bolded all the parts that made it sound like you were talking to HER.

I'll admit I'm being a bit snippy here because I'm extremely frustrated and I feel like this is super remedial in a forum populated by people who have to read for a living but here is a screenshot of my original post so you can see EXACTLY who I'm talking about within the context of the thread. Of it seems as though I'm talking TO @smartnurse then it's because you somehow missed the original post:

[ATTACH=CONFIG]23648[/ATTACH]

Wow that photo was MUCH larger than I thought it was going to be, But at least nobody can say they missed it this time lol

Specializes in OB-Gyn/Primary Care/Ambulatory Leadership.

You clearly care WAY more about this than I do.

Anyhoo....back to the subject at hand.

Yes, it's sad that people don't know about their own bodies, or are too uncomfortable to teach their kids proper anatomy. My 8-year-old son knows all about ovulation, menses, lady partss, childbirth, contraception, and abortion. The hazards of having a women's health nurse as a mother.

You clearly care WAY more about this than I do.

Yes I do. Very much. I seriously hate being misquoted and when my words are taken out of context. I will admit I'm seriously irritated about this whole thing. I'm just trying to add to the discussion and moments later people are accusing me of accusing someone of doing something. Its extremely frustrating. Especially when its easily fixed by just simple reading and people just refuse to do that.

I'm new to this forum and I'm incredibly floored by how silly and ridiculous 1 comment became for no other reason than skimming. I mean you cared enough to quote me and bold my comment but didn't care enough to read the thread? Dont you have to read for a living? Is this how you do your job? Yes I care.

Several reports have been submitted.

Please just keep on topic. If any member needs to go off-topic for any reason with another member, please take it to private message.

Future off-topic will be removed w/o notice.

With popular culture demonstrating individuals referring to theirher vulva as a lady parts it tells me that far to many are ignorant in this matter. I instructed a girl with children to clean her labia for the clean catch urine and she asked me what was labia. I told her lips. It asked sounds me but this lack of education is pervasive and extends to overall health illiteracy.

Calling the vulva "lady parts" is a pet peeve of mine, too. There is still so much taboo regarding basic female anatomy & physiology. Anatomy diagrams will have a carefully drawn foreskin on the male anatomy and no privy parts on the female anatomy.

It doesn't remotely surprise me anymore when women don't know how their bodies look or work.

My "other job" involves educating women solely about their sexuality. It is astounding how many of them don't know their own anatomy, but through my experience as a nurse and as the product of a puritanical yet public sex education experience, I'm not surprised at all anymore. My high school sex Ed course did not include any external female anatomy- we only covered the uterus, ovaries, and the menstrual cycle. Our innocent little minds couldn't be polluted by knowledge of female parts, especially those whose only function is pleasure. It's why my presentation always includes an anatomy lesson.

I consider myself well educated on the female body, but I didn't know we had the privy parts fully mapped until a few years ago.

Yes, many people (male and female) do not know the names of their body parts. I think I would have said "Opening of the urethra, where urine/pee comes out and the lady partsl opening" in response to that family member.

I agree that there's body illiteracy for both sexes, but I think it's reasonable to say that the vast majority of both men and women can locate and identify a member and scrotum. Far fewer of either sex can do the same with the privy parts and lady parts. Women often aren't even given the correct words to describe their bodies.

Okay wait, there's a cultural practice of drying out the lady parts? Because?

I haven't known a man personally who would want that. I don't get it. I mean I understand the reason wanting some friction but I haven't known a man who does. Opposite actually. How does culture dictate such a thing?

Now *I* feel naive :eek:

Not to be gross,but some cultures like to steam and dry out their lady partsl lubrication for the benefit of men. Some use steam,others use peppers and spices.

It is called smoking the lady parts.

So I had to google, and everything I read had to do with plumping things up, not drying it out.

As a young child, I knew that I would never be able to have babies. You see, I knew that there were supposed to be three holes, the urethra, the lady parts, and the orifice. (My mom was a nurse; so we used medical terms like urinate and defecate. I remember my aunt asking me if I had to "go tinkles". I had no idea what she meant!)

Anyway, when I explored myself, I could only find two holes. Since I knew that I could urinate and defecate, I figured that I wouldn't be able to have babies.

Mom explained it all to me the night before THE MOVIE in 5th grade.

Good mother. Mine made me figure it out.

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