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Welcome to “Let's talk about it” podcast — brought to you by Laaha.
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Laaha is an open, online platform where women and girls
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can get information about their health, wellbeing, and safety.
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Please remember: All content provided on the platform
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is based on scientific knowledge for educational purposes only.
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It is not intended to be a substitute for professional advice or treatment.
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My name is Maria, and I’m here to talk to you about the beauty
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of our bodies and particularly about the most intimate parts -
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the vulva and vagina.Vulvas and vaginas are pretty amazing.
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There’s often a lot of mystery surrounding what they look like,
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what they do, how they smell, and even how they change over time.
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This activity is going to guide you through looking at your vulva and vagina.
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You'll need
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a quiet, private, comfortable spot, clean hands and a handheld mirror.
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Women and girls in many contexts experience genital cutting,
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which involves the partial or total removal of external female
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genitalia or other injury to the female genital organs.
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If you have experienced this, you might not be able to identify
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some of the parts of the vulva and vagina mentioned in the following steps.
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If you have questions about how this impacts
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the growth and development of your vulva and vagina,
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find a service provider near you by clicking on ‘Need help’.
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Step one.
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Let go of any feelings of shame.
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Your vulva and vagina are as important
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as all of your other body parts.
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Remember: body acceptance
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and building a connection with your vulva and vagina takes time.
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When you're ready, move on to the next step.
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Step two.
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Spread your knees apart and hold the mirror
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in front of your vulva and vagina.
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Step three.
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Can you see your labia majora?
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These are the large lips of your vulva.
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Hair grows on them naturally.
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The labia majora’s job is to protect
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the more sensitive parts inside.
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Step four.
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Now find your labia minora.
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These are the smaller lips.
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Move them gently and take a closer look.
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They might be very dark or very fair,
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one side might be significantly longer than the other.
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This is all totally normal!
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The skin will be more sensitive than your labia majora
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and it will be wrinkly or stretchy.
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Step five
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Gently use your fingers to find where the most sensitive part of your vulva is.
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This is most likely your clitoris.
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Step six.Seeif you can move your labia minoras apart
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and expose your vaginal opening.
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It might look like a hole
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or have a membrane immediately after the opening.
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If you see a thin membrane - that’s your hymen.
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If you don’t, don’t worry!
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Hymens break in many ways during a woman or girl’s life.
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Step seven.
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Pretty amazing, right?
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Doing this activity is educational.
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It is important to know what your body looks like because
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it's yours, but it will also help keep you safe.
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If you ever notice anything different down there (such as redness or bumps),
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you can let your doctor know about any changes.
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If you have more questions or would like to talk to
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someone—you can find contact details of a service provider
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near you by clicking on ‘Need help’ or to search for more articles
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using the search function or the chatbot.
Let's talk about it Podcast: Take a look - the mirror exercise
