Dear Egyptian Girls, Tampons Won’t Take Your Virginity!

Growing up, your mother probably warned you to never use tampons until you’re married. It was one of the biggest no no’s! This is because one of the biggest myths about tampons is that it takes your virginity. Which brings us to another, equally important, point; your virginity is not just taken with the breaking of your hymen. You can use tampons regardless of your age as long as you know how to use it and are comfortable with it.

 

Virginity

Virginity is a sacred thing in Egypt. It’s the one thing you guard with your life until marriage. However, what most people don’t actually get is that virginity is not only in the hymen. Using a tampon might stretch the hymen, but this won’t affect your future sex life.

“Talking to some of the local pharmacies around Cairo, we found that the ratio of pads to tampons is almost 70 to 30.”

 

Myths

The first myth, of course, is that you won’t be a virgin after that first tampon, when there’s a lot more to losing your virginity! It takes a lot more pressure to completely get rid of your hymen.

People also believe that you will feel discomfort when you put them in, but this is not true. In fact people say you don’t feel it at all as long as you insert a tampon correctly. If you can still feel it, you’re not using it right.

Another popular myth is that the tampon might get lost somewhere inside you. This is completely wrong and quite impossible. There is no place for it go, and there is a string attached to it that makes it easy to pull out.

Some women thought they couldn’t pee while wearing a tampon, this is completely untrue! If you just make sure the string is out of the way you can pee freely.

 

Tampons Vs Pads

Some women prefer tampons because it gives you physical freedom. You can move around more comfortably and you get to swim! With pads you might feel more comfortable because some women like to have all the fluids exit their bodies, not be absorbed into a tampon. Also, with pads you don’t have the fear of leaking. It all boils down to a personal preference.

Talking to some of the local pharmacies around Cairo, we found that the ratio of pads to tampons is almost 70 to 30. This shows how Egyptian women still aren’t very comfortable with tampons from their obvious aversion to buying them.

However, and quite surprisingly, the age difference between tampon buyers and pads buyers isn’t that different. This suggests that younger, unmarried women also use tampons, just in fewer numbers than those who use pads.

 

Hygiene

Choosing whether you should be using tampons or not lies in what makes you feel more comfortable. Tampons should be changed maximum every eight hours, depending on your flow. It might be hard to insert the first time, but don’t worry this happens to everyone! Find your vaginal opening and gently insert, don’t force it in. The most important thing is don’t forget to take out the old tampon before inserting a new one, to avoid any health complications, and to always make sure that your hands are clean whenever you are handling your tampon.