If you’re on TikTok, you know how many different “sides” of TikTok there are. Sides on TikTok just mean a group of TikToks that have the same subject. For example, one day you might be on the cleaning side of TikTok and the next you’re on the Twilight Saga side, my favorite side of TikTok if I do say. These sides can range from being comedic to informational.
One day I ended up on the feminine hygiene side of Tiktok. At first, I scrolled past the videos, uninterested, but soon, I started watching them and was astounded by the amount of information I learned.
Here’s some background about me- I grew up with a single father who knew very little about the topic at hand. Though he tried his best, I missed a lot of information that apparently most other girls knew. Despite that, I tried my best to learn about feminine hygiene through books and eavesdropping on others’ conversations. Today, there is still a stigma about talking about feminine hygiene and health, even though it’s a completely normal subject and a subject we should be talking openly about.
I ended up on the feminine hygiene side of TikTok through watching videos with the same sound. The sound title was “Bubble Gum in a dish Yo Pu*sy stank.” It has had over 72.0k uses on TikTok. This sound sparked a massive conversation on what was the proper way to wash down there.
It was difficult to try and find the original video that sparked this conversation. I traced it back to a video, since deleted, on a male speaking on the proper way to wash a vagina. To sum up the video he was saying that if you didn’t use a PH balance feminine hygiene wash, such as the popular Summer’s Eve Wash, your vagina stank. Women immediately proved him wrong. The comment section was filled with women telling him that he was spreading false information. Some women even duetted his video.
Women responded by telling him that using the PH feminine hygiene was actually unhealthy for your vagina and instead suggested using unscented soap or just water. According to a MedicalNewsToday article reviewed by Debra Rose Wilson, Ph.D., it’s suggested that you use warm water and if you want to, you can use a mild unscented soap. It’s also mentioned in the article that the vagina is a self-cleaning organ.
To be completely honest, I had no idea that using PH feminine hygiene wash was bad for your vagina. After learning that, I started to investigate further into the feminine hygiene TikTok and my mind was blown.
There were so many things that I had never learned about. Did you know that you’re supposed to replace your underwear every 6 months? Because I sure didn’t. Embarrassingly, I’ve been wearing the same underwear for years. After learning that, I immediately went to Target and bought new underwear.
Here are just some examples of things I learned through watching feminine hygiene TikTok
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You’re supposed to get new underwear every 6 months
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Using unscented soap is enough to keep your vagina clean
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UTIs are completely normal
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Discharge is normal
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How to wash down there
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Urinate after sex to prevent infectiion
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How to shave properly
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Tips for gynecology appointments
And the list could go on and on. If you want to explore more about feminine hygiene on TikTok, simply just look up “feminine hygiene” and you’ll be bombarded with countless videos. I also just want to send a quick thank you to anybody out there who is making content about feminine hygiene, whether that’s on TikTok or not. It’s such an important subject that gets swept under the rug because society deems it inappropriate, but please keep doing what you’re doing. Trust me, it’s really helping others out there. Plus, we girls have to stay together.
