Sex Therapist: Shaving Pubic Hair Not Good For Women

Aug 31, 2011
Bob Yirka

To Shave, or Not... - Asolario

A New York sex therapist says that the recent trend of women shaving or waxing off their public hair is likely to lead to more stress and body issues.

Stephen Snyder, M.D., a sex and couples therapist, psychiatrist, and author in New York City writes in a recent column in Psychology Today that the current trend by young women to remove their pubic hair might be little more than another burden that women must bear in order to keep up with the so-called status quo.

Why Are Young Women Shaving and Waxing Off Their Pubic Hair?

Unfortunately, according to Snyder, it all comes down to what boys want. He says that when teaching sex-ed to a class of fifteen years olds recently, the number one question the girls had was: 'Did the boys prefer girls to have "no hair" down there?" Sadly he says, the overwhelming response by the boys, was yes. And not only did they say they preferred it, but they found the unshaven female public area to be "revolting." In many ways, the whole scenario is oddly similar to that which came about when women started shaving the hair that grew under their armpits. After boys and men grew used to it, they found women that didn't do it to be odd, and worse, undesirable.

Why Boys Suddenly Seem to Prefer Shaved Pubic Hair

The fact that many women in pornography shave their pubic area so as to give viewers a better look is no secret. The impact that it's had on male viewers on the other hand is a topic that appears to have gone without research thus far. It seems pretty safe to say however, that the advent of shaven ladies in pornography has given rise to the expectations of boys and young men that the women in their real lives follow the same path.

What's more apparent is the newer and easier access that boys and young men now have to such pornography due to the Internet. Where once young boys only ever saw the naked female form in the family, now they have full access to not just nudity, but nude strangers doing everything imaginable. The impact on them seems obvious. After years of viewing such material, they come to believe that shaving is the way things are supposed to be.

The Impact of Pubic Shaving on Women

Snyder says that the new emphasis on women shaving their nether regions speaks to the never ending burden women must endure in the name of expectations. He backs up his thoughts by citing a study that surveyed American women that showed that over 20% of women aged 18 to 24 years old reported being "typically hairless." Which meant that's how they were the majority of the time. Thirty percent reported being so sometimes and the rest said they didn't bother. That adds up to almost 60% of young women reporting shaving or waxing to remove all of their public hair at least occasionally.

Snyder says this can't be good for women, young or old. The constant expectations set by men and even other women can only lead to more stress and more trouble keeping up with what others expect of them.