S.O.S. in the Venus Mount
Shaving the pubis has spred among youths and adults in our country as a new "style", but dermatologists and sexologists warning that this could be dangerous if arbitrarily practiced.

Yahily Hernández Porto

CAMAGÜEY.— Shaving the Mount of Venus is no longer taboo in the daily conversations of Cubans, whether in the homes, work areas or student dorms. This new tendency has stuck with the young, the adolescents and even the adults of both sexes although, undoubtedly, the girls are in the fore for now.

However, it is a contradiction that the most that follow this procedure are unaware of the risks and, claiming convenience, hygiene, erotic reasons or simply following the fashion, fail to hear the S.O.S of the dermatologists.

In this province as in all through the country, there are different opinions on the subject. This is why Sexo Sentido decided to share with the readers the controversy including the criteria of two specialists.

TALKS WITH HIDDEN FACES

“Ever since I started shaving the pubis area I feel a great relief because the heat is unbearable”, exclaims Anilda, a 17 year old girl who considers it “much more hygienic” during menstruation. On the other hand, 14 year old Marcia explained that although she felt fresher she did not continue because “the allergy and itching were irresistible”.

For her part, Teresa, 22 years old, did it through enthusiasm in the school and the request of her boyfriend. “I have been shaving for a year and my sexual relations are excellent” she says, but for Yandra, 27, things didn’t go so well: “I had to pick out the hair stubs with a needle and the pain didn’t let me sleep”.

For Yaniel, 25, things didn’t go so well either: “I have had several experiences with girls who shave and for me it was great until I proposed it to my current partner and the relationship almost broke up …We both felt bothered. She had festered pustules and I couldn’t enjoy the sex because her stubble pinched me. We both decided to give up the practice.

THE PROS AND CONS

Sexo Sentido visited Doctor Ileana Alpizar Rodriguez, first degree specialist in dermatology of the Gynecological and Obstetrics Hospital in Camagüey to ask up to what point was this fad was aggressive for the body.

“Removing the Mount of Venus leaves unprotected one of the most sensitive areas of the body”, she explains. “The hair regulates the temperature of that part of the body and act as a barrier against invasive microorganisms. Shaving could cause some infections due to these germs, inflammations of the follicle (the root of the hair) in addition to allergies, erosions, wounds and cuts that can be visible or minor”.

“To a greater or lesser degree, these traumas damage the pubis but if the people assume an incorrect attitude to shaving, the situation is more complex”.

— Is it of concern that those who shave may not do so properly?

— Yes, regardless to the comfort shaving gives to the pubic area, even for the elimination of pediculosis (lice), there can be serious results, such as contagion of diseases from one person to another by sharing the razor and the spread of lesions to other parts of the body by using the same razor blade.

“Aggression to the pubis can occur before, during and after shaving. For example, using unverified creams for the itching, tweezing out hair stubs with object that are not sterile and doing hair styling or complex cuts such as the small braids, geometric designs, names of people, etcetera that go against the direction of hair growth or pull at these strongly”.

— Can shaving be a portal for sexual transmission of diseases in the pubic region even if safe sex is practiced?

— During the constant rubbing in the sexual act the hairs or stubs of the shave person can cause lacerations to the partner and if seminal fluid or small drops of contaminated blood penetrate, contagion can occur, regardless of protection.

“Also the pubic pores dilate with shaving opening a door to seminal liquid. If, by chance, cuts happened in this region, the risks increase and transmission is imminent”.

IS IT VITAL FOR FULL ENJOYMENT?

More than 70 percent of the young people interviewed by JR said that their partners has asked them to shave so as to achieve more sexual arousal supported by a survey of 50 men of different ages and level of schooling.

For doctor Raúl Hernández Cañete, first degree specialist of Gynecology and Obstetrics and Master in Sexuality of the Children’s and Maternal Hospital of this city, the preference of shaving the pubis cannot be considered deviant nor aggressive in sexual relations since the body language, as a form of communication of the couple, directly influences erotic contact:

“In fact, the image of the body and the conformity felt are not passive factors in a relationship and cane even determine full enjoyment … So, if shaving enriches the sexual relationship, favors eroticism in the couple, is comfortable and both like it, this can be considered a healthy practice”, the specialist explains.

“But, if one of the partners accepts it merely because it’s the fashion, or by demands or desires of the partner, then it will have negative results because it becomes an imposition that reduces the possibility of an adequate erotic performance”, he points out.

In his opinion, to consider shaving as a healthy habit depends largely in what it means to the couple and for the body of the persons who shaves, in addition to its influence in the affective and erotic intimacy and the responsibility assumed because if the most elemental measures of hygiene are not taken it could cause diseases that hinder the full development of a sexual relationship: If shaving the pubic mount is done irresponsibly and indiscriminately causing traumas to the region, it reduces the advantages of an erotic activity and, therefore, disappointments are felt by the couple, not only biologically but psychically that should be attended according to their complexity”.

Advice of the specialists …

 Shaving the vulva and pubis of a patient for surgery is best done in the surgical ward because it has been demonstrated that the colonization of the staphylococcus epidermisis and other bacteria are established hours after close shaving.   The same razor should not be used for different times and parts of the body because it can be oxidized and cause infections or spread them to other regions.   Depilatory waxes should not be reused because they can be contaminated and damage the skin. This method is not advisable of other options are available because the pubic region is very sensitive and it would cause extreme pain.   Always use sterilized tweezers in depilation. If the pubic hair is cut with a scissors, contact with the skin should be avoided and only eliminate the hair.   If electric razors are used they must be clean and the cut soft without applying pressure to the skin or pulling the hairs.   If you decide to decorate the Mount of Venus it must be done with extreme care to prevent lacerations.

http://www.jrebelde.cu/secciones/sexosentido/2005/enero/sos-8enero.html