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.
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.
In my experience, if they do that, they’re misogynists anyway. It’s kind of a ploy that people only cite in a desperate last ditch attempt to feel superior to women; I didn’t know about it until an insecure misogynist i knew started to go on about it all the time. This is because it’s something that only really arises when you’re close to a womans genitals - i know there’s some fantastical stories suggesting otherwise but bear in mind they might be reddit creative writing.
I mean, what you describe in that quoted section is literally misogynistic profiling, so believe me you want those people to stay away.
I know someone in my own life who does have some (different)) Body Odour problems, some things she could do are get exercise at least every 3 days, clean her room more, eat more healthily, get up earlier and not bedrot. (I’m trying to help them, it’s also a new problem and I don’t want to push it too much.)
But how does this anecdote help you? Well, as long as you’re leaving your own room and home often - ideally spending time breathing outside air - then I think you’ll be able to pick up on any bad smells from your own body or clothes. If not, then relax.
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.
Your gay friends were having a chuckle. Women don’t smell like fish from any appreciable distance unless there’s a serious hygiene issue. And then it’s more like regular BO with a bit of a twang.
I have never met a woman who smells like fish, if you’re worried about body odor get an antibacterial body wash, you’ll be fine
It all comes down to personal higiene.
I’ve been married a couple of times and typically I would always smell when someone was on their period. I regularly smell it at work as well.
My current wife? Not a single smell, ever. No idea what she would smell like of it’s a bad smell.m, she always smells awesome like herself.
Then again, she’s latina and as such really good at that sort of thing.
Just was yourself regularly, not too much, use mild soaps, and figure out what works for your body. Soaps (and even perfumes) work differently on different bodies, so even a perfume may work well on someone but not on you. You gotta trial and error a bit there. Don’t use too much perfumes either.
My wife rarely uses perfumes, she doesn’t need it
I think you’ve already spent more emotional energy on this concept than anyone should.
I highly doubt that anyone is thinking about that at all during normal interactions.
Excuse the pun but something certainly seems fishy about this post. Surely at some point in their life, OP would have been in a room with women and discovered this wasnt true.
They also keep talking about how this is something they’ve heard and read about but then later say they’ve had to leave the room when a lot of women are around because of the smell lingering.
You don’t force your nose up women’s skirts and take lung filling drags? /S
Only if I have consent!
Bruh - I’m tomboy, was raised to out-compete other boys, and am gay as can be.
The only time there’s ever been a fishy smell that’s been noticable above clothing was from someone with an infection, which is usually caused by poor hygiene. Sometimes that smell can linger, especially in a washroom if their bits have been exposed.
The only other thing I can think of is if someone has been menstruating into a pad that’s overdue for a change? Blood and the whole mucus and others that come from a woman can give a pretty horrible scent. But that’s gotta be so rare, and again, usually coincides with poor hygiene practices.
Everyone has a different scent (and taste), but it’s so rare (unless you’re between another’s legs) that you’ll smell it. Those jokes are in poor taste just like small dick jokes are. Men are just as capable of smelling awful down there, too. No one gender is particularly prone to stank more than the other.
So if you have at least okay hygiene practices and you’re not trying to paint the walls with your vagina, you’re fine.
In my experience, there’s definitely a difference between period smells and dirty vagina smells. But like you said, basic hygiene pretty much makes it a non-issue.
Some people with vaginas have very poor hygiene habits, and can develop an unflattering smell down south. That being said, you typically need to be very close to the source of that smell before you would be aware of it.
So there’s this blind man, right?
Honestly this sounds like mental illness in the person perceiving these smells, maybe with a little bit of OCD.
In all seriousness I suggest that you speak with a doctor about this.
Second this. If this post is not a troll one - then thus post screaming for help.
Too many things, imaginary smells, social pressure of jokes and disassociation of “I’m not like the other girls”.
You can be girl or boy or whatever in between, or none of those - but you are no more special than all the humans around you. Not one bit.
Therapy, education and meditation needed.
This sounds like body dysmorphia, to be blunt.
No it doesn’t
Well when you put it that convincingly, assuming women’s vaginal odor is supernaturally pronounced and something everyone you meet is unrealistically preoccupied with and disgusted by – a belief plausibly tied into childhood trauma – doesn’t sound like body dysmorphia at all.
I’ll put up the DSM-V’s criteria here which are similar to the ICD-11’s.
I don’t see anything else better describing this ©*, and it evidently causes significant distress (B), because a) they’re saying it does, and b) this mindset would obviously be highly distressing.
(A) is slightly complicated by the fact that, in this paranoia, she thinks she’s the exception among women. It’s still a deeply negative, unhealthy preoccupation with a body part that she thinks she’s constantly judged by others for but in reality probably never has been; I think any psychologist would recognize this as a minor variation on typical BDD.
* There might be comorbid gender dysphoria, but that doesn’t fully explain this specific paranoia.
Or some form of OCD like tendencies. Definitely not normal
Wow that’s a lot to unpack. Um fellas is my nose broken? I’ve never experienced this. Like I’ve smelled sweaty hot bo pussy but not to the extent OP seems to think it aboundntly permiates and lingers.
I have a few times, but it wasn’t until my face was in her crotch that I noticed.
From the accounts I’ve read and heard, the smell was so strong that people could notice it even after a girl or woman simply bent over in front of them (while clothed) or shifted her weight in her seat (again, while clothed), small movements like that were enough for it to be detected from across the room.
There’s a well-known joke about this, the one where a blind man walks past a fish market and says, “Good morning, ladies.”
This joke is from the song “Colt 45” by afroman, a hilarious and probably sexist classic party rap. It is funny because it is highly exaggerated. If it were true it wouldn’t be a joke.
As Afroman says, “I got a gang of this shit”.
I highly recommend listening to the whole tune, and singing along with your friends.
🎵🎶Colt 45, and two zig zags, baby that’s all we need,
We can go to the park, after dark, smoke that tumbleweed,
As the marijuana burns, we can take our turns, singing them dirty rap songs,
Stop, and hit the bong like Cheech & Chong, it will take you from here to Hong Kong,
So roll, roll, roll my joint, pick out the seeds and steems,
I’m gettin high as hell, rollin through Palm Dale, skatin’ on Dayton rims.
So roll, roll, the '83, Caddilac Coupe DeVille,
If my tapes and my CDs just don’t sell, I guess my caddy will. 🎶🎵I mean I’m sure it can happen but that seems far from normal. You would need a perfect storm of warm humid air, forced air circulation to the area, severe hygiene issues compounding on infection and PH problems.
You can trust my nose I’m a Dog 🐕🦺
I’m old and have never experienced a lady smelling “fishy”. Don’t worry about this. There’s definitely better things to worry about.
Why do you care so much what other people say? Have you ever noticed this smell yourself?
I’ve personally never experienced any smell nor even this talk you say that “people say”.
It sounds like you’re giving too much credence to what mysogynists and incels say on the internet.
The fishy smell comes from a bacterial problem, it’s not normal, just common
You should smell some ripe balls and unwashed, poorly wiped ass. You’d never think about vaginal odor again. The emphasis on ‘fishy’ smell thing always crept out of the most misogynistic people from what I could tell, because it boils women down to their only “useful” feature, rather than concern about their health. “How dare you not keep your snatch in a state that pleases me!” …despite not being asked or invited.
I had an odd smell. My mother also kept telling me off because I “didn’t change my underwear.”
When the pain started when I was a student it turned out I’d had a bad infection for years.
It’s probably unusual to feel that way. How much you should worry about it depends on how much you feel like it gets in the way of your life.
If it makes you feel any better I’ve never smelled anyting like that on a woman with reasonable hygiene standards.
