In spite of having been around for really quite a while, vaginas seem to be enjoying something of a moment. We’re excited about two conversation-changing books, The Vagina Bible, by long-time healthy favourite (the very straight-talking US ob-gyn) Dr Jen Gunter, and Period by BBC journalist Emma Barnett – both available to pre-order now, out late summer.Yes, we know that strictly speaking we’re talking vulvas – but we’ve gone for the most widely used terminology here. And grammatically correct or not, that’s vagina. So welcome to our first vagina issue. Even the fact that we’ve been able to use the word vagina, rather than some coy nickname, shows how far women have come in terms of demanding knowledge about, and power over, our own bodies. Because if you can’t name something, you can’t even begin to talk about it.
So in our special section (starting on page 23) we have tried to cover the questions we haven’t seen answered anywhere else, from updates on endometriosis to an empowering take on orgasms. All in our usual expert and balanced way. No vaginal steaming and not a jade egg in sight.