I’ve been a tomboy from a young age. My friends have always been guys, and I developed a dislike for being around other girls around age 10-11 because the people who bullied me were all girls.

When I was a teenager, I kept hearing that girls and women supposedly have a strong “fishy” smell. I know it’s a meme, but I’d seen and read enough firsthand stories that it stuck with me. I even came across accounts from gay men who said that every woman they knew smelled that way, and that it influenced their attraction to men.

In my case, I seem to be an exception. There’s no fishy smell on myself, just normal skin or sweat when I’m active, or at night when I’m due to shower. But that actually made me even more uncomfortable around groups of girls and women, because I really hate the smell of fish or seafood in general, and if there’s a lot of women in a room, that smell lingers even after they’ve left.

Sometimes I feel embarrassed, because people see me, see that I’m female, and I worry they automatically assume I’ve got a rotting crab factory somewhere.

  • Polkira@piefed.caEnglish
    7·
    4 hours ago

    I’m going to respond seriously in case this is a serious post:

    Typically the “fishy” smell comes from Bacterial Vaginosis, which is an imbalance of bacteria that can be caused by several factors. It’s not common in healthy vaginas and if yours smells like fish then I recommend seeing a doctor and having it treated. Most women do not have a foul odour down there, especially not one that you can smell through clothes while keeping normal social distances.

    You can’t believe everything you’ve read on the internet. Also, it sounds like the men you’re getting your information from are either prepetuating this myth unintentionally, or are very immature and think they’re funny (they’re not). I recommend going out and actually interacting with women, there are plenty of women out there who are also not girly that have similar interests to you. They won’t smell any different than a man would.

    The best way to overcome your preconceived notions about others is by genuinely interacting with those people. I’m sorry you were bullied, but just as jerks exist in all genders, so do kind and awesome people.

    Edit: I forgot to actually answer your question, no this is not a normal thing to worry or think about. It might be time to seek professional help.