Editor’s note: In the original post it was reported that Lissa Rankin’s tour was sponsored by BACCHUS. Rankin’s tour is actually sponsored by Monistat which is an over the counter medication, not a prescription drug. We regret the error.
Lissa Rankin used to tell her patients to just look in the mirror — between their legs.
Rankin, an obstetrician and gynecologist, will come to Cal Poly today to let women know that it is OK to love their bodies. Rankin will also discuss her upcoming book, “What’s Up Down There? Questions You’d Only Ask Your Gynecologist If She Was Your Best Friend.”
The presentation will open conversation about women and their bodies, Rankin said.
“It’ s honestly more about our communal experience as women and how we can — and must — talk about all of the stuff that we’ve been told not to talk about: vaginas, sex, self-pleasure, periods,” Rankin said.
Rankin’s presentation gives an opportunity for women, and even men, to learn more about women’s sexual side and how it is OK to talk about the topic. For most girls, their first experience in discovering their body can either be good or bad, Rankin said.
“Mine happened when I was 5, climbing trees with the boys while wearing a dress,” Rankin said. “Someone’s mother yelled, ‘Lissa Rankin, get out of that tree. You should be ashamed of yourself. The boys are going to see your panties.'”
That experience changed how Rankin thought of herself, she said.
“Before that moment, it never had occurred to me that my body was different, let alone something I needed to shamefully hide,” Rankin said.
Rankin wrote her book for the sole purpose of letting girls know that they should not be embarrassed of their bodies, she said.
“I want to help women not be ashamed of their girly parts by having an open conversation,” Rankin said. “The focus of my talk is on bringing the vagina out of the closet, not just so we can laugh and bond, but so we can heal the traumas many of us have experienced there.”
Rojean York Dominguez, director of health education and Peers Understanding Listening Speaking Educating (PULSE) said the last book about female sexuality was written back in the ’60s.
“She’s coming from a humanistic and humorous perspective, where as the other one is more like a user’s manual,” York Dominguez said. “That’s why she talks about ‘Get to know your girly parts’ because it’s kind of in a lot of cultures’ taboo, as well as our society in general.”
Theatre arts freshman Kathleen O’Brien said she is not completely comfortable with the topic.
“I never really have a serious conversation with anyone about it unless I’m super close to them and even then it’s still kind of a joke,” O’Brien said.
At any rate, Rankin will present the topic in a humorous fashion when she comes to campus as a part of her book tour, sponsored by Monistat (an over the counter medication for vaginal yeast infections). The presentation will include a book reading and a question and answer session.
The event is not only for women. Men are also invited to come and learn about the female side of sex, Rankin said.
“I don’t know a lot of guys who don’ t want to talk about that, but this conversation is focused on women learning about what makes us the uniquely female, whole, rockin’ feminine goddesses that we are,” she said.
Rankin will discuss her book at the Christopher Cohan Performing Arts Center from 8 to 9:30 p.m.
This article was written by Alyson Facha.