The Panty Challenge

So, I'm sure many of you heard of the #pantychallenge that appeared on social media last month. Personally, I was very disturbed by it. It all started with a woman from Atlanta, Georgia posting a photo of her squeaky clean underwear, claiming that other women were "jealous of my clean knickers". Now, let me just reassure you all that labelling vaginal discharge as "gross", "unhealthy" or "disgusting" is nothing but highly misleading. It is body-shaming at a whole new level. The fact that other women joined in on the wanna-be trend by 'boasting' about their so called 'clean vaginas' makes me rather disappointed and ashamed. Why do some of us women feel the need to put down others? Why do we feel the need to shame someone because they are different? What example are we setting for the young women who will follow us into adulthood?

But besides the body-shaming aspect, what concerns me is the misleading information being handed out about the female genitalia. The #pantychallenge gives the impression that vaginal discharge is something to be embarrassed about. It is suggesting that it is unhealthy, and that if you happen to experience it, then you are unclean. This couldn't be further from the truth! Vaginal discharge typically begins when a female reaches puberty. It is the vaginas way of cleaning itself, protecting against bacteria and infections such as thrush. It is perfectly natural and is in no way anything to be ashamed of. Every woman's body is different, and therefore every woman's discharge is different. The only time you should be worried is if it is discoloured, an extremely different texture to usual, and/or has a strong smell.

I'd like to include an article written on Pink Parcel's blog on the matter, and have included some images below of some tweets by people who have stood up against the #pantychallenge. I would like to encourage you all to be proud of your body. Never let anyone shame you into thinking that you are not normal! You are beautiful, and we women must stand strong against body-shamers and all those who look to tear us down!

For more information on vaginal discharge, please visit http://www.nhs.uk/conditions/vaginal-discharge/Pages/Introduction.aspx

Cami xox


https://www.pinkparcel.co.uk/pantychallenge/