Vaginal Cleansing and Shame
Written by Naledi Sikhakhane
South Africa has a long history of women practicing vaginal cleansing rituals. At the core of these rituals is the idea that a moist vagina is a dirty, smelly, loose vagina. Studies found motivation for vaginal practices is driven by the desire to maintain health and wellness and enhance pleasure for their sexual partners. The manifestation and importance of these motives vary vastly in different parts of Africa. Most studies focus on the links of vaginal practices to health risks but few look into the psyche behind the practices and what influencing social, cultural and feminine hygiene industry factors are at play.
According to the Reproductive Health and HIV Research Unit, Vaginal practices such as intra-vaginal cleansing, drying and tightening are suspected of placing women at higher risk of acquiring HIV and STIs. Methods go as far as cutting the outer lips of the vagina and inserting a mixture of herbs, douching with salt water, water with herbs or other douching products found in pharmacies.
The World Health Organization's classification of vaginal practices includes:
External washing: Cleaning of the external area around the vagina and genitalia using a product or substance with or without water, normally using your hand. Products used vary from soap and water to traditional and chemical detergent-like substances specifically used to wash the vagina and genital area.
Intravaginal cleansing: Internal cleansing or washing inside the vagina includes wiping the internal genitalia with fingers and other substances (e.g., cotton, cloths, paper,) to remove fluids. It also includes douching, which is the pressurized shooting or pumping of water or solution (including douching gel) into the vagina.
External application: Placing or rubbing various substances or products to the external genitalia—that is the labia, clitoris vulva.
Intravaginal insertion: Pushing or placing something inside the vagina (including powders, creams, herbs, tablets, sticks, stones, leaves, cotton, paper, tampons, tissue, or others) regardless of how long it is left inside.
Oral ingestion: Ingesting (drinking, swallowing) substances perceived to affect the vagina and uterus. This includes the ingestion of substances/medicines to dry or lubricate the vagina.
Vaginal steaming or smoking: [S]itting above a source of heat (fire, coals, hot rocks) on which water, herbs, or oils are placed to create steam or smoke.
Anatomical modification: ‘‘Cutting’’ and ‘‘pulling’’ procedures used for modifying the vagina, or restoration of the hymen; includes female genital mutilation, incision with insertion of substance into the lesion (scarification process, tattoos of the vulva or labia); excludes episiotomies or operations to repair a protruding uterus
The message that the vagina in its natural state is sexually unappealing comes from a cultural, traditional and the availability of a wide array of products to "enhance" the vagina in pharmacies. Yoni pearls, herbs, vaginal cleansers, creams, gels and “womb cleaners.”
Vagina insecurity created a billion-dollar industry – convincing everyone that if women just tried to eat healthily, drink water, exercise and wash their self-cleaning vaginas with just water a lot of men would go hungry.
It's estimated that the Feminine Hygiene Market is expected to grow from $ 22.20 billion in 2021 to $ 32.29 billion by 2028. The demand for products like menstrual cups, tampons and internal cleansers as well as sprays is going to grow at a rapid rate in developed regions like Western Europe and North American regions.
Even though a woman’s genitalia is tucked away, I always got the sense that I should keep it as hidden and “silent” as possible. As early as 7 years old, I remember the teachings about hygiene being solely focused on the vagina.
South Africa is a conservative country through all the tribes and even races so it was never called a vagina, always a “down there, flower, or cake” or this might translate weirdly in English but a “cow” inkomo in IsiZulu. In more than one of the primary schools I went to, there were cleanliness checks that were mostly directed at the girl children. Educators checked if the uniforms were clean, hair well-kept (which in most rural schools meant cutting very short), checked for dermatitis neglecta, skin build-up due to not bathing properly and most importantly clean underwear.
Even though we were young there was an understanding that moist underwear means a dirty vagina, therefore nothing should be coming out of it and if there is then you either didn’t wash or wipe properly. The consequence of not being clean would be being shamed and depending on how strict the teachers that were checking, a lashing (corporal punishment was still alive and kicking in my formative years).
This is just one of the many messages I received and internalized that unless extra precautions were taken, my vagina was inherently dirty. Everybody has heard a fishy vagina joke or several in their lives. As I grew the concern morphed from keeping the vagina clean for hygiene’s sake to having to “cleanse” for sexual appeal.
Fast forward to 2022 I came across a Facebook post with an image of the crotch area of a woman’s underwear, in her caption she said how proud she is that the underwear doesn’t have a sliver of moist or discharge and she has had the underwear on for eight hours, she went on to describe how she keeps her vagina dry, yoni steaming, feminine washing products, drinking water, eating pineapples and drinking cranberry juice. She is one of many self-appointed vaginal cleansing gurus spreading myths and encouraging harmful practices.
In the general women versus men gender war banter online, you will often find men commenting on loose vaginas, referring to women's vaginas as swimming pools and so forth in vernacular languages there is even the term ukubanda, in IsiZulu or hobata in Sesotho which translates to being cold, women’s biggest fear is being considered “cold” in bed. This is not isolated to South Africa, these practices vary all around the world, the Reproductive Health (RH) & HIV Unit says they have been noted in the Southern African region and the United States of America.
I dare say a lot of Black women have had similar experiences to mine in the South African context, taught to value themselves from the vagina outwards. There is a high level of misogyny and internalized misogyny in how the natural functions of women's bodies are viewed. It's shameful to have discharge, it's shameful to get your period, it's shameful to give birth and God forbid your vagina changes due to hormones, age or other natural processes. That is shameful.
Naledi Sikhakhane (she/her) is a journalist and writer who aims to bring about social justice in her work. She covers migration, women, the working class and other groups that need platforms to be heard and seen. Her work is on New Frame & MeetingofMinds UK.