Let's celebrate with a little CLITERACY lesson!
We promise this is not a joke! Sunday 8th August is International Female Orgasm Day, and we 100% support the enthusiastic adoption of this important day in Australia and worldwide!
Established in 2006 by a councilman in Brazil, Female Orgasm Day (Dia do Orgasmo Feminino) is dedicated to embracing and raising awareness of women's sexuality. To say loudly and proudly that it is every woman's right to enjoy sex, and encourage them (and their partners) to gain greater awareness of their wonderful, sexual bodies, and the 'healthy pleasure' that they're designed to deliver!
We'll leave it to you to think about how you'll celebrate the day, but we encourage you to honour it by learning more about the female orgasm. And to do that, we need to start with a little CLITERACY!
What is Cliteracy?
As a clinic that specialises in sexual and reproductive health, we talk about female body parts a lot (all day, every day actually)! And it's not uncommon for our patients to be confused about what part is where and what each part does. But lessons about the difference between the vagina and the vulva are for another day, and far less important to a woman's health and wellbeing than knowing what and where their clitoris is!
It seems that the clitoris is a bit of an enigma, even for those of us who have one, and there's a very good reason for that. We won't go into the ugly male domination conspiracy theories akin to burning intelligent and outspoken women at the stake! But no matter how you look at it, it's been a taboo and misinformed subject pretty much 'forever' and people are still uncomfortable talking about it!
Time to get Cliterate!
In 1998 (yes 1-9-9-8!!) an 'awesome' Australian urologist named Helen O'Connell discovered that the clitoris was way more than we had known. That the 'tiny pea shaped button' (or glans) that we knew and loved, was actually just the tip of an amazing iceberg!
Hiding demurely under the pubic bone, the clitoris actually looks like a little alien, with a body up to four centimetres long, legs (or crura) up to 9cm long and giant eggplant shaped balls (which wrap around the vaginal opening) up to 7cm long, all of which are made up of spongy tissue that becomes erect (just like a penis) and is covered by 8000 sensory nerve endings (double that of the penis)! And even though she's shy, unlike the penis, it appears that her sole purpose is for pleasure!
Freud was a Fraud!
Though there was much damage done way before his time, it was Sigmund Freud who told us that the clitoral (or `external’) orgasm was for juniors and the vaginal (or 'internal') orgasm was what we should be seeking. Well Sigmund was wrong (again)! When it comes to orgasms, the clitoris is the centre of the universe. That's where it ALL happens. Even the somewhat elusive "G-Spot" is simply the clitoris being stimulated from a different angle.
Orgasms are good for your health!
Though intimacy without orgasm does play a role in our overall health and wellbeing, orgasms provide health benefits that are wonderful for both your body and mind.
Helps with pain relief: Not only does an orgasm deliver ecstatic euphoria, it also releases ‘feel-good’ chemicals and hormones including oxytocin and endorphins, which are associated with pain relief.
Leads to better sleep: Orgasms help to facilitate deep relaxation by boosting endorphin levels and flushing cortisol, the body’s stress hormone released by the adrenal glands. Along with being a natural stress relief and anti-inflammatory agent, these endorphins also can deliver better sleep.
Regulate appetite: The hormones released during an orgasm can energise your hypothalamus gland, which helps your body regulate appetite, body temperature and emotions.
Keeps you looking younger: Apart from giving you a youthful smile, having regular orgasms can also help slow down the ageing clock. They keep you looking younger thanks to the increased blood circulation in our brains during climax, which prompts nutrients and oxygen to travel to the brain. Just like a regular workout, orgasms can assist in tissue repair through this boost of nutrients and oxygen.
Improves digestion: The overall lymphatic massage that an orgasm provides helps our body’s natural detoxification process, which also helps improve both your mood and digestion.
Time to close the orgasm gap?
We don't need to quote statistics to highlight that women tend to orgasm less frequently than men. Lack of knowledge, misplaced prudishness, cultural and religious stigma, entrenched taboo and simply 'anatomical issues' means that women are missing out on their share of sexual pleasure. And we believe that exploring and becoming familiar with yours or your partner's clitoris this International Female Orgasm Day, is a very good place to start'!
Taking care of business
There are also many women's health issues that can contribute to missing out on the sexual pleasure that she rightly deserves (and is great for her overall health).
Common issues such as heavy and painful menstruation, vulvo vaginal issues eg. thrush, sexually transmitted infections, menopausal issues such as vaginal atrophy, incontinence and pelvic floor problems, chronic issues such as endometriosis, adenomyosis and pcos... and the list goes on. It can be tough being a woman, but that's what we're here for... we CAN help!
If any of these or other women's health issues are holding you back from enjoying the pleasure that is your birthright, we encourage you to make this International Female Orgasm Day the day you take action toward dealing with the issues that are stealing your quality of life, and saying "YES" to your own pleasure! Don't delay, make an appointment today!
Also see: Clinic 66 Women's Health
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