Things That Bang

Being a woman is not easy and the twist lies in the fact that growing up we tend not to realize how complex and mysterious our bodies are. From the first time we stare at our expanding chests to the terror of dying due to bleeding (menstruation) we continue to be surprised well into adulthood.

The words - Why didn't anyone tell me about this? happens to most of us and it has less to do with 'Sex Education' and more with empowering us with the knowledge of what can and does happen to our bodies whether we are sexually active or not.

Urinary Tract Infections are the bane of our lives. If we happen to wear tight jeans regularly, drink less water, sit on dirty toilet seats or have sex with little lubrication, the chances of getting itchy, suffering burning sensations and worse still losing control of the bladder are quite high.

Worse still is Fungal Infection and no its not green like yeast on a bread but more like cottage cheese that smells like fish. If you are horrified reading this imagine the state of the woman who suffers it. It just ain't pleasant being a woman.

The charms of pregnancy simply don't culminate into contractions and lo behold the little bundle of joy. The shoving in of the fingers to check the dilation is for many far more painful than giving birth itself. And guess what? Most women, at least, Indian women are happily unaware of this fact till they are painfully fingered.

OB-GYN visits aren't just for infections or to monitor and deliver babies but also for Pap Smears.

Pap Smears are where we are cranked open and the vaginal walls are scrapped for cells. And if everything isn't normal we may find ourselves watching our inner muscles all magnified 'live' with the doctor giving detailed explanation as to what is what, what it does, where it is and what may be wrong.

And just when we think we know it all there are more surprises in store. Like the one I got today in one of the 'internal examinations' when I was told that my bladder had come down. Why? I was made to push very hard while delivering. Thinking back I remembered- Oh yeah, the doctor made me push my nine pound baby girl out. The pushing had been a monstrous effort.

I looked at my Gynecologist and said the same old line - I didn't know , she smiled at me and said - There is still more that you don't know.