Everything About Your Vulva Explained

Mar 31, 2026

Dr. Sherry Ross, OB-GYN and women’s sexual health expert and author, gives a shame-free crash course on vulva and vaginal care. She talks skin-like care for the vulva, what normal variation looks like, realistic facts about squirting, perimenopause signs and treatments, dilators for pain or tightness, and causes of recurring infections.

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ADVICE

Care For Your Vulva Like Your Face

Treat your vulva like the skin on your face and use dedicated cleansers and moisturizers.
Use pH-safe, non-drying products because face products (retinol, strong cleansers) can irritate vulvar skin and cause dryness and painful sex.

INSIGHT

Visual Library Fixes Porn Distortion

Visual exposure to diverse vulvas reduces shame and corrects porn-distorted expectations.
Dr. Sherry Ross created a Visual Vaginal Library to show real variation so women stop thinking their labia are abnormal.

ADVICE

Squirting Is Possible But Usually Subtle

Don't expect porn-style geyser squirting; many women can

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Most women can name every product in their skincare routine but can't tell you the last time they actually paid attention to their vulva. Not because you don't care — because nobody ever taught you to. And that silence is costing women their pleasure, their comfort, and sometimes their health.

In this episode, I sit down with OB-GYN and women's sexual health expert Dr. Sherry Ross — author of the V-ology book series and someone I consider one of the most important voices in women's intimate health — for the most practical, shame-free conversation about vulva and vaginal health I've ever had on this show.

In this episode, you'll learn:

• Why your vulva needs the same care and attention as your face — and what most of us are getting completely wrong about cleaning, moisturizing, and maintaining vaginal health at every age

• The truth about painful sex, perimenopause, and recurring infections — what's actually causing them, why doctors keep dismissing the symptoms, and the solutions most women have never been told about

• Whether every woman can learn to squirt, what your labia is supposed to look like, and why the clitoris — the road to success — might be the most important thing you're not paying enough attention to

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Chapters:

0:00 - Intro

1:26 - Meet Dr. Sherry Ross: OBGYN & Author of the Shiology Book Series

4:35 - Treat Your Vagina Like the Skin on Your Face

6:32 - The Visual Vaginal Library & Why Porn Is Distorting Body Image

8:08 - Can Every Woman Squirt? Dr. Sherry Weighs In

10:09 - Listener Q&A: Perimenopause Symptoms, Hormones & What to Ask Your Doctor

13:36 - Wearable Dilators: What They Are & Who Actually Needs Them

15:27 - The Real Causes of Painful Sex (Beyond Just Dryness)

18:00 - Recurring UTIs & Yeast Infections: Why They Keep Happening

19:05 - Five Quickie Questions with Dr. Sherry Ross

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