Understanding Our Bodies
Why do we need to understand our bodies?
It's a large misconception that we shouldn't know about how our bodies work and what's important about them. There are lots of things to check on as we get older and go through puberty, so it's important that we discuss the genitalia you have as well as others. One day, not only may you encounter another person's genitals, but you would want to know how to respect them and get consent for actions involving any genitalia of yourself and others. Regardless of actions we may one day take, we should keep expanding our knowledge of our bodies as a vital piece of our safety during youth and learning process.We make it a priority to discuss these private parts of the human condition with care and respect, because of the lack of respect often given to both typical female and male genitalia. Also important to keep in mind that there are no people who should touch your private parts or genitalia without your consent or need for emergency medical care.
Knowing Important body parts to keep healthy as you grow:
Penis
The Penis is refered to is several different ways: Phalic, Dick, Penis, Cock, etc.
The penis is responsible for releasing sperm when having sex, or to complete reproduction. Erections can occur at any age growing up but typically does not happen regularly until after 10-12 years old. The penis typically grows pubic hair, once a person has reached puberty.
When caring for this body part it's important to wash often with soap to avoid rubbing rashes. If you have a penis and are having sex with it, it is important to look out for any bumps, rashes, or unknown itchiness or tingling. The best protection for people with this genitalia is condoms, and regular self cleaning.
Vagina
Vaginas also have many names: Pussy, Cunt, Vulva, etc.
The vagina, during reproduction, is responsible for intercepting sperm in the effort of the egg joining with sperm. The egg comes from the ovary that sits against the falopian tubes, when the time line of ovulation meets up with the presence of sperm the chance of pregnancy from heterosexual intercourse is more likely.
To keep a vagina healthy, AFAB individuals have a self cleaning organ, so washing the outside of the organ with body wash in the shower (and peeing after sex) allows the full cleansing of these areas.
InterSex Genitalia
While we don't think about it this way, the sexual binary doesn't fully exist. There are several people who know or never will know that they are Intersex. Some genitalia can be a mix of the two standard forms of genitalia, while some can present traditionally with different sex organs internally. Regardless, sex organs are sex organs. We are still meant to take care of them with regular washing in the shower, checking of private areas for any signs of rash or STIs (if having sexual contact). Because intersex genitalia can vary, it's important to rememeber the ways that we can over estimate the frequency of traditional sex oragans. All people have different bodily features, this doesn't change when we discuss sex organs.
Breasts
Breasts are present on male, intersex, and female bodies, but female bodies are the most likely to experience breast cancers or tumors. So as you experience puberty and grow older, it's vital to check your breast tissue often and get checked out by a General Practitioner when possible. It's important to keep this part of our body clean and supported. Finding the right bra can be tough: I Support the Girls is a great foundation that works to help connect AFAB individuals with their most needed support.
Arm Pits
When it comes to Arm Pits and body odor, it can be difficult to approach this conversation with adults or the guardians around you. It's important to just be honest and up front when you first start to notice.
Making sure you choose the right kind of deodorizing products is also important. Many products are made with aluminum, and have irritating factors that can even cause chemical burns. Do some research on what products you think will be best and most accessible to you.
Butt
Other words for Butt: Ass, Asshole, Back-door, etc.
The importance of keeping this area clean is important regardless of sexual activity with this orifice. Many types of sexual relationships include using the Butthole for sexual intercourse. When doings these kinds of activities it's important for you to keep detailed awareness of these body parts before and after the intercourse.
It's vital that the health of all of these areas of your body is in regular check by your trusted doctors.
Feet
Why is foot health important?
Foot health is important especially as you enter puberty and adulthood. Being in new places, common areas, common showers/ bathrooms, as you get older; allows for newer health issues to arise. If you have itchiness or discolored skin, its important to see a doctor. Commonly transmitted skin rashes like Athlete's Foot, or Ring Worm, can be transmitted in these common areas, and it's important to clean your body often. Especially cleaning open wounds on the legs and feet when you are in new areas.
Hands
Why is hand health important? Well in acts of inspecting our bodies, or having sexual touch with our/other bodies, we are typically using our bare hands. So you should always make sure to wash your hands prior to sexual interaction, or touching of private parts. Do make sure that you wash your hands afterwards as well!
It's unlikely, but some STD's and STI's can be transmitted by hands if they are used in sexual intercourse. Such as: fingering, hand job, etc.
Mouth
Why does mouth hygiene matter?
Well believe it or not there are many acts that include this body part. We eat, we drink, we may smoke, some may experience vomiting. Regardless keeping our mouths clean and checking in on our oral health is important. We of course can brush our teeth and use floss, but mouthwash can also be used to clean the mouth between eating & etc.
If you are using your mouth to perform or participate in sexual actiions, then it's important to check for signs of STIs and STDs and get tested if youstart to see symptoms. Oral sex can still transmit diseases and infections, so if a body part of yours has come in contact with another person's mouth, it would be wise to keep an eye out for any differences.
Childhood
When you are young, your body is most interested in growing itself by height and weight. Typically we see growing pains, allergies, and regular injuries, as the most important health concerns. As long as the child is bathing often, eating regular healthy meals, and having a positive mental health education from parents; many children are being fully supported in the areas of health.
Puberty
Puberty is a weird time in a young person's life. They are learning new things about their bodies whether from friends, curiousity, or educational conversations. There is so much to know is such little time in the perspective of young people. Exploring sexuality, gender identity, political ideals, drugs and risky behavior, are all typical behaviors of people entering or going through stages of puberty. All of these behaviors can be scary to parents, but giving your child the best information to make their decisions with is the primary objective.
Adulthood
Adulthood is a whole new time of change for young adults going into their own lives. Sometimes adulthood is a change in the body, but it is also a change in the mind. So while you some of us may be younger adults, we are still experiencing full on adulthood. This can be due to physical health declining at a younger age, or a difficult transition into self-relianace and independence, after exiting a family situation. Regardless of how old you may be, adulthood can bring on an immense about of seemingly hopeless emotions. We have begun to learn and try new things. This can be a triumphment time, as long as we remember our mistakes are normal. The consequences are still real, but you can only do what you know, until you know better.
Disability/ Differences/ Chronic Illness
Its important for us to discuss all the ways that understand our bodies can benefit us; many of us as children didn't understand our pains and aches when we first experienced them. If you are experiencing more pain than usual or having different perception, it can be hard to determine that for yourself at a young age. For this reason many learning differences and disabilities, chronic illnesses, and other medical issues go on noticed for a long period of your youth. Some Chronic Illnesses and Disabilities force people to grow up a lot earlier than they expected to, and have difficult conversations about health and benefits of possible treatments. Just because someone may not appear to have a disability or difference, doesn't mean they don't have one. If you are an abled bodied individuals it can be hard to take this kind of respect or understanding into context, because you haven't experienced it. That is okay, but it doesn't mean it is okay to disregard the people impacted by Ableism around you. Many social systems have several forms of ableism build into them, we saw this as the pandemic made many businesses and their employees learn how to work from home and adapt to different environments in the hope of preserving life.
It's also key to rememeber that the differences that any individual may experience may change the ways in which they choose to experience sexual pleasure, comfort, etc. So it's important to keep really good communication when engaging in any sexual acts, but even more when you are navigating a body or feature that you may not understand yet.
As we grow up there are a lot of ways that people imprint on another, and on the larger scale there are social systems (societial norms) that imprint on us as well. Some of these social systems are effective by having us make assumptions about our life's purpose. To have a gender or sexual identity is completely up to you, and don't really carry any weight that you don't want them too. There is fluidity in any identity because all of us learn over time about who we are.
All of these terms and understandings come from our prior knowledge of Sexism and its place as a Social System. Sexism has primarily been used in our history to prioritize the white wealthy male ideals which caused women to be abused and seen as property until the more recent century. This is not to ignore the tole sexism has taken on the male community. Femininity and Masculinity are uniquely used against people to make it seem as though your sex at birth has any implication in the way your life must go, or what roles you must take. When it comes to the ways these ideals can effect us mentally, we have to try really hard to evaluate the ways it has impacted us so far.
Toxic Masculinity is a term typically used to describe the obscene expectations for male identifying members to provide for their family, to be mentally tough and emotionally absent, and to be overtly sexually knowledgeable.
Hyper-Femininity, is a term typically used to describe the ways that women have been expected to be perfect at being caretaker, birthing and raising of children, time management, being pretty and/or having the perfect body, being the best sex object, etc. There are several pressures put on women in the current society, especially when it comes to work/life balance.
Also many AFAB individuals are expected to act as though they don't menstruate in all professional or public settings. Even in some private areas or around conservative family members, women are expected to completely ignore the presence of their menstrual cycles and it's implications on daily tasks.