I have a strong love and hate relationship with my vulva. Through the years, I have managed to like it aesthetically and accept the fact that my labia are not as short as I would like to or that my skin reacts quite badly to waxing. Nevertheless, my vulva also represents a great psychological and physical pain. I have been with my boyfriend for six years now, he is the first boy with whom I had intimate relations. His love for my vulva made me love it too. The fact that he was the only person that touched my intimate parts creates an incredibly precious relation to me. My vulva, which used to make us even closer, is now the element that tears us apart. I suffer from vaginismus, which makes penetration almost impossible and, when we manage to get to this step, extremely painful. When I think about it, it makes me hate my vulva. I remember watching hardcore porn back then thinking "that is exactly what I want to do" before knowing that even a finger would be painful.

I sometimes hate my vulva for making me feel immature (in bed and in my everyday life of course), for creating a frustration and a distance between me and my boyfriend, for being terrorized by gynecologists and of course, for compromising the plan to have children with the love of my life. But my vulva also represents a fight that I am determined to win thanks to love, self acceptance, relaxation and trust.

Vaginismus being quite taboo in the country I live in, I feel alone. But reading stories from different women joining the Vulva Gallery reminds me that I am not alone. Thank you for empowering us!

G. - 25 years old