labial reshaping?

[merchimerch]

I've know about the rise in cosmetic vaginal surgery for a while, and every time I see an article on it I feel sad. Here's the most recent:
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/life_and_style/health/features/article4211836.ece

I find this an interesting trend from the society that got SO up in arms about vaginal cutting/excision in non-Western countries (which is, admittedly, a very different thing and serves a very different purpose). But really, why are we so concerned about knives cutting others' vaginas, but we're all to happy to cut into our own for the sake of beauty?

I'm disturbed by this trend.

I'm disturbed by the need for some women to trim their labia minora to porn-star petiteness. I wish there was a way for us to appreciate vaginal diversity as much as I wish our culture was more tolerant of diversity (instead of just giving it *lip service*).

I'm disturbed that waxing is now considered standard and that so many women either sculpt their pubic hair into odd shapes or remove it completely. The option currently seems to be between post-modern pubic hair coiffures or the pre-adolescent none-at-all approach.

Neither are acceptable to me, and now I'm afraid that vaginal cosmetic surgery is going to become some kind of accepted norm as our current treatment of pubic hair has.

It scares me that this surgery is tauted as empowering for women to enjoy better sex, since they will no longer feel ashamed of the appearance of their loose canals and flabby lips. This doesn't fall far from the "your parts are dirty" rhetoric of decades past, with the subtle difference being that now a woman with "offensive" labia can purchase herself acceptable parts.

I like the originality of my girl parts -- I don't want them to look like porn parts. How can we nudge the culture a bit more toward appreciation of women and their sexual parts, rather than homogenization and control?

Comments

[mehitabelmmoss.livejournal.com]

I have never encountered this pressure to wax personally - maybe it is my age or who I generally hang with. But I see it rampant in the younger lesbian community - some of the advice journals here have frequent questions on shaving, waxing, etc. Many have been asked by gfs or are getting ready for their 1st experience with a woman and are worried that their hair will turn someone off.
Luckily most of the advice is to do what you want or to just keep trim enough to keep detangled. But it is amazing to me how many women are going for the pre-pub 'look'.

[merchimerch.livejournal.com]

I think that the idea that it is standard is very much generational. There have always been sub groups that seem to lean toward hair removal and those who tend to prioritize the natural look.

What amazes me is how the norm has shifted, and I feel like it shifted for those just a few years younger than me. And it's not just women's bodies--I was shocked at how obsessed my little brother was about hair removal as a young adolescent - he was always plucking chest hair and I think he even wanted to get rid of his armpit hair (right now I have no idea what his grooming practices are).

[mehitabelmmoss.livejournal.com]

And my son (14 today) is delighting in any sign of extra manly hair!

[merchimerch.livejournal.com]

hurray! (both for birthdays and the celebration of hair growth)