Q: What’s wrong with my vagina?
A: It wants you to change your wardrobe.
Black leggings aren’t my unspoken uniform simply because I’m super basic– it’s also because that’s what my vagina wants me to wear. Growing up and even through my early twenties, my body never adjusted to restrictive clothing (read: all “women’s” clothing). Almost all pants rubbed me the wrong way. Literally. It lead to chaffing, pain and even nudged BV or yeast infections into existence. This was frustrating, of course, because I wanted to dictate what I wore and how I presented myself and instead my vagina was making all the calls. This was also the case with underwear. In my early teen years I desperately wanted to get on the new found thong trend but my body would literally reject it. Thongs can (and did) cause discomfort and infection down there. Not all bodies and vaginas react to clothing like this; in fact every time I see a person in skin tight pants I deeply envy them– jealous of their super power. If your wardrobe isn’t giving your vagina any problems, then keep doing you. After the better part of a decade trying to fight it, I gave into what my vagina insisted I wore. All cotton, full ass, breathable clothing. Sexy. Ugh. While I was pretty salty about my lame ass wardrobe, my vagina rejoiced. Not only was it happier and healthier in the day to day, but infections and complications slowed down. Did it solve every vaginal problem I had? No. But it taught me that small, daily changes can change the bigger picture. It also taught me the importance of the dialogue between me and my family jewels. It was telling me to make a change and when I finally complied, my vagina was happy and made my life easier. •
Molly-Margaret Johnson is a Brooklyn based artist. While she is not a doctor, she is excited to share her vaginal experiences with others in hopes to answer questions and end taboos. Follow her instagram for daily updates!