How do you like your bush? Neatly trimmed? A triangle or a runway? Completely clean shaven? Or absent entirely? Have you ever thought about it?
So many young women and men feel pressured to remove their body hair. Modern media and the porn industry depict sexuality with hairlessness, but this wasn’t always the case.
Body hair is a symbol of maturity, of our capacity to make new life. Biologically, our body hair collects and releases pheromones, the chemicals that signal sexual readiness and evoke powerful responses in our partners. Our current obsession with the hairless vulva is a reflection of modern media and public opinion more than any real understanding of sexuality. And this isn’t a consideration for women alone. It’s currently come into vogue for men to remove all pubic hair as well. If you enjoy the feel of your body without hair, amazing. The biggest question is one of motivation. Are you grooming your body the way you like, or the way you will expect others to like it?
How do you enjoy your body? How do you like to feel? Is your regimen regarding body hair based upon what you want or what you feel others want of you? Do you shave, wax, or apply depilatories because you like to be free of hair, or do you do it because you feel that this is the way to be sexy, to be accepted by others?
When it comes down to it, personal grooming is a personal choice. It should be something you like. You have every right to groom yourself to fit the way that you like to feel. Anyone else’s opinions are secondary, if they even merit consideration at all.
Just to dispel some of the myths that have arisen around our personal grooming, the clean shaven vulva is neither sexier nor more hygienic than the glorious full bush. Both are beautiful, as is anything in between. The same applies to men. Removing our pubic hair can offer a sleek, smooth finish, but it also removes one of the most tangible signs of masculinity and virility. On a practical level, if we enjoy anal play, a bit of body scaping can clear the path. But practical concerns aside, our body hair is one of the most intimate aspects of our appearance. It is a reflection of our most personal choices, how we would like to maintain the sacred space of our bodies. And there is no one outside of ourselves who can tell us what is right for us.
When it comes right down to it, we are each looking for a person who can see us and love us for who we are. Without masks or games, without expectations or roles. And this extends to even the most personal aspects of how we present ourselves to one another and to the world. What we all want is a person who can see our beauty, regardless of cultural conditioning or societal expectations. And yet, the only way we can know we’ve found such a connection is to do what we love most, on every level, and see how our preferences are received.
So what do you prefer? If you love to shave or wax, amazing. Do what you feel. And yet, if you’re only going through these challenges to appease a man or fit in with some cultural image, have a bit of a think about it. One of the simplest and most eloquent ways for us to take our power back is to determine how we would like to treat and maintain our bodies. And anyone who is worth keeping around in our lives will both respect and love us for exactly what we like. What do you like?
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