Vulva or Vagina? (See description for more info)

Question

What term did you teach (or will be teaching) your daughter when it comes to her private parts? Vulva (the correct term for the entire external area) or vagina (the canal the connects the uterus to the vulva). It seems odd to me to call it a vulva as I’ve always called it a vagina but I know vulva is taught in school as early as grade 1 and I don’t want to confuse her 🤷‍♀️

Answer

My daughter is almost two and as of now, I keep it as simple as I can. She knows her vagina is in the front, and her butt is in the back. Once she’s older and understands more, I’ll explain the full anatomy and terms.

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My nephews, 2.5 and 7, know boys have penises and scrotums and girls have vulvas. They have both known and understood these terms since they could talk. 
I was confused for longer than I’d like to admit about vulva vs vagina. I feel teaching proper terminology is quite beneficial. 
I will be teaching vulva. I want to be able to explain clearly how to clean properly. You can’t say to wash your vagina with mild soap referring to her private parts. You need to be clear that you can wash your vulva with soap but only water, if anything, in your vagina. I also want her to be able to be clear if one part is hurting her.

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I call it vagina regardless. I’ll say the inside of my vagina or the outside. People have become so uptight over vulva Vs vagina these days. I honestly don’t care. I have to stop and think about which is which. And the word vulva reminds me of Volvo so I just don’t 😂

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I taught both my boys vulva because that’s what it is. The vagina is internal, you can’t see it. It makes no sense to teach children the wrong name for things

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Teach The correct terms. Reminds me of when I was in school to be a Medical Assistant. We had to correct someone else’s diagram test. Someone legit labeled uvula instead of vulva. Also there’s still people out there who think the uvula is the tonsil. 🤦🏽‍♀️

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I taught the correct terms but said that often lots of people just say vagina to mean the whole area.

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Call it what it is. When I help my kids bathe (2 and 4), I remind them to rinse their vulva because that is the part of the female body that they are washing clean. I do tell them and occasionally remind them the vulva is the part on the outside, and the vagina is inside their bodies. As they have wondered why mom bleeds sometimes (thank you for joining me, please leave the bathroom byyyyeeeee). 
It feels awkward talking about at first, but the female body is so natural and sometimes confusing, but also very beautiful. It's important to explain those differences so they are aware of their bodies while also getting familiar with safe boundaries using correct words to describe those parts.

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Nuni

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I use the proper term. If we're talking about external genetalia, the term is vulva.

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I’ve taught my kid both. I hate the word vulva but that’s what it is so that’s what I’ll teach them.