PROSTATE CANCER TREATMENT:THE ANATOMICAL RETROPUBIC APPROACH. ANESTHESIA

You will be anesthetized; this can happen several ways. Most likely, you’ll have either spinal or epidural anesthesia; with both forms, you remain conscious and aware of the procedure, even though you can’t feel it. In spinal anesthesia, you’ll have a shot of local anesthetic injected into the small of your back through the dura, the membrane lining the spinal cord, and into the spinal fluid. Within minutes, you’ll feel numb, relaxed and heavy from your waist to your toes. After surgery, you’ll be asked to lie flat in bed until the numbness goes away and you can move your legs again. This is important; sitting up too soon can cause a severe headache.

Epidural anesthesia is like having an IV tube hooked up to your back, instead of to a vein in your arm. A local anesthetic enters the body through a tiny plastic tube, inserted between the vertebrae of your spine near the small of your back. The epidural anesthetic (often used to provide pain relief in pregnant women during labor) bathes the area outside the membrane lining the spinal cord, temporarily numbing the nerves in your lower body. Unlike spinal anesthesia, which comes in one dose, epidural anesthesia can be given continuously. The area of numbness can be adjusted; so can the degree of pain relief. After surgery, this tube can also be used to administer pain relief for the first few days. One point about epidural anesthesia: It reduces the likelihood of blood clots in the legs, perhaps by boosting blood circulation in the legs during surgery.

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THE PROSTATE CANCER: THE DIAGNOSIS IS OFFICIAL

The diagnosis is official. You have prostate cancer. What do you do now? The stage of your cancer and your age and overall health all have a huge bearing on this important decision.

Prostate cancer grows relatively slowly. It can stay localized, or confined to the prostate, indefinitely—so a man can die with prostate cancer, and not of it. But once it escapes the prostate, cancer’s growth is relentless. It can no longer be cured. And once it has spread to bone, a man’s average life expectancy is about three years.

In studies of watchful waiting in men with small, moderately well-differentiated cancers (Gleason scores from 5 to 7) that appear to be localized to the prostate, this is what happens over time: In ten years, 40 percent of these men will have cancer that has spread to the bone; by fifteen years, 70 percent of these men will have cancer spread to bone.

What does this mean to you? Once again, we go back to your age, general health, and stage of cancer.

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PROSTATE CANCER: COST IS A FACTOR, TOO

In the long term, it’s unclear whether watchful waiting will actually result in a decrease in health care dollars, as some studies have claimed. A 65-year-old man has a 50-percent likelihood of living fifteen years. The Swedish study mentioned above suggests that even under the best circumstances, about half of men with untreated localized disease will live to see their cancer spread beyond the prostate, requiring further treatment for advanced disease. If these men decide to have hormonal treatment, the cost of this over two years, at hundreds of dollars a month, may be more than the expense of a radical prostatectomy (which is about $12 thousand). Also, the symptoms from advanced cancer and the side effects of hormonal treatment and chemotherapy can be much worse than the side effects that can accompany treatment for early disease.

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PROSTATE CANCER: THE SAD STATISTIC

So even in the men who haven’t died of prostate cancer (yet) this statistic,( 13 percent of these men had died from the cancer) almost becomes a technicality. Certainly their lives aren’t the same as those of men without prostate cancer. It’s hard to enjoy old age when prostate cancer’s symptoms begin to affect your quality of life. Incredibly, one of these men who «demonstrated no evidence of disease progression before death» turned out, an autopsy revealed, to have died of prostate cancer. How could this be? Men with end-stage prostate cancer don’t usually drop dead without warning. They suffer, as do their loved ones who watch this happen. They become increasingly frail as the cancer eats away their bones. Life ebbs away over a period of time that seems at once fleeting and yet agonizingly slow. How, then, could someone die of this cancer and be classified as being without symptoms? This astounding statistic suggests that men in the Swedish health care system were not carefully watched and that the progression rates are probably higher than the 50 percent these investigators quoted. (It also sheds unsavory light on another statistic: Some of the most strenuous objections to aggressive treatment for prostate cancer have come from doctors in Sweden, where definitive treatment for this disease is not widespread. And—this comes as news to many—Sweden has the highest death rate from prostate cancer in the world!

In Sweden, half of the men who are diagnosed as having localized prostate cancer die from it, and 69 percent of men who live longer than 10 years also die of the disease.)

These statistics are particularly distressing to think about when you consider this: Today, when localized prostate cancer is diagnosed in men who have a lifespan longer than ten years, the decision not to offer these men potentially curable therapy may be a death sentence. Because in most patients, the disease is going to progress.

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LAPAROSCOPIC PELVIC LYMPHADENECTOMY FOR PROSTATE CANCER SCREENING: PROS AND CONS

Despite its «kinder, gentler» technique, some doctors question the value of laparoscopic pelvic lymphadenectomy. For one thing, minimally invasive or not, it’s still invasive, and it’s not without side effects. These don’t occur often, but they can be significant and may include injury to the bladder or bowel, internal bleeding, damage to blood vessels, gas embolism (when air, pumped into the abdomen, escapes into the bloodstream), or even, rarely, heart failure and death.

Is the procedure ultimately necessary? It has no therapeutic benefit—a doctor can’t cure a man’s prostate cancer by removing cancerous lymph nodes; once the cancer spreads to the lymph nodes, it always spreads to other sites, like bone, as well. Perhaps the most useful benefit of this procedure is that it can rule out surgery for a man who doesn’t need it—but so can careful staging.

Also, finding that the lymph nodes are cancer-free still does not mean a man’s cancer is curable. Say, for example, a man has a large, palpable cancer that invades the muscles in the pelvic side wall (stage T3 or C), a Gleason score of 8, and a PSA level of 30. Sadly, there is no reason for this man to go ahead with a lymph node dissection; his disease is already extensive, and treatment for him should be aimed at relieving symptoms and pain. To put this man through the rigors of a procedure that ultimately won’t help him is neither helpful nor kind.

And finally, when surgical candidates are carefully evaluated, only about 5 percent wind up having positive lymph nodes—so a separate procedure just to determine the state of the lymph nodes is probably unnecessary in most men. Even this number may decrease as doctors begin computing the results of the digital rectal exam, PSA and the Gleason score. Methods for determining the scope of prostate cancer are constantly being refined.

However, the laparoscopic pelvic lymph node dissection can be useful in some instances—in a man who’s scheduled to undergo a radical perineal prostatectomy, for example, instead of a retropubic operation. (With the perineal approach, the lymph nodes aren’t dissected.) Also, sometimes this procedure provides more information than the frozen sections obtained during prostatectomy, and this may be helpful in determining the state of cancer in a man with a high Gleason score (8, 9 or 10).

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ROMANTIC AND SEXUAL FEELINGS: HOW DO YOU KNOW IF IT’S REALLY LOVE?

When they begin going out, many young people fall in love, or at least what they think might be love, so they ask questions like this one.

Emotions can’t be weighed or measured and different people have different ideas of what it means to be in love. So we can’t give you a definite answer to this question. But we can share with you some of our thoughts on the subject.

We think it’s important to recognize the differences between infatuation and true love. Infatuation is an intense, exciting (and sometimes confusing or frightening) fireworks kind of feeling. We may be so wrapped up in our infatuation that it’s hard to think about anything else or even to eat. People sometimes mistake infatuation for love. But, infatuation doesn’t usually last very long; true love does. You may start out being infatuated and have it grow into true love. Or the infatuation may pass and you may discover that you weren’t really ‘right’ for each other after all. In addition, you don’t have to know someone very well in order to be infatuated. But in order to truly love someone, you have to know that person (both their good points and bad points) very well. In addition, infatuation can happen all of a sudden; true love takes more time.

Regardless of whether your relationship starts with an infatuation or develops more slowly and gradually, sooner or later love relationships go through a questioning stage, where one or both of you begin to question whether the relationship is really a good one. During this questioning stage, one or the other of you may decide to end the relationship. In our opinion it’s only after you go through this questioning stage and decide to stay together that you’re really on the road to true love.

If you’re uncertain about whether or not it’s true love, you might want to ask yourself the following questions.

Am I tired or unhappy most of the time?

Does the relationship seem like more of a problem than a joy?

Do I keep hoping that ‘maybe things will get better’?

Do either of us frequently ask, ‘Do you really love me?’

Do we find it impossible to spend a day together without having a fight?

Do I often have to be careful about expressing certain opinions for fear that he or she might get mad at me?

If you answer yes to one or more of these questions, then chances are that you’re not really in love after all and that it’s time to make a change in your relationship.

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HOMOSEXUAL FEELINGS

This is another topic that always comes up when we talk in class about sexual and romantic feelings people have during their growing up years. ‘Homo’ means ‘same’ and, of course, ‘sexual’ refers to sex. Having homosexual feelings means having romantic or sexual thoughts, fantasies, dreams, attractions, crushes or experiences that involve someone who is the same sex as we are. Many boys and girls have homosexual thoughts or feelings or sexual experiences with someone of the same sex while they’re growing up.

If you have homosexual feelings or experiences as you’re growing up, you may realize that this is perfectly natural and normal, and you may not be at all worried about it. Or, you may feel somewhat confused or upset or even frightened about having these kinds of feelings or experiences. Perhaps you’ve heard people making jokes or using insulting slang terms when talking about homosexuality. If so, this may have caused you to wonder if your homosexual feelings or experiences are really OK. Perhaps you have heard someone say that homosexuality is morally wrong, sinful, unnatural, abnormal or a sign of mental illness. If so, this, too, may have made you wonder or worry about your own feelings. If you’ve heard any of these things (or even if you haven’t), we think it will be helpful for you to know the basic facts about homosexuality.

Although almost everyone has homosexual feelings or experiences at some time or another in their lives, we usually consider people to be homosexuals only if as adults their strongest romantic and sexual attractions are towards someone of the same sex or most of their actual sexual experiences involve someone of the same sex.

Both males and females may be homosexuals. Female homosexuals are also called lesbians. Gay is a non-insulting slang term for both male and female homosexuals. There have been homosexuals throughout history, and homosexuals come from all walks of life. People from any social class, ethnic background, religious affiliation, or economic level may be homosexual. Doctors, lawyers, lorry drivers, policemen, artists, business people, ministers, rabbis, priests, politicians, soccer players, married people, single people, parents – you name it – all sorts of people are homosexuals.

The majority of adults in our society are heterosexuals (people whose strongest romantic and sexual attractions are towards the opposite sex and whose actual sexual experiences mostly involve the opposite sex). However, about one in every ten adults is a homosexual. Although an adult is usually considered either a homosexual or a heterosexual, this doesn’t mean that he or she doesn’t sometimes have feelings or experiences in the other direction. Very few people are strictly homosexual or strictly heterosexual. Most of us have a mixture of feelings. For instance, most heterosexuals have at least some homosexual thoughts, feelings, fantasies, dreams, attractions, crushes, or sexual experiences at some time in their lives. In fact, over one-third of the males in this country will have a sexual experience with another male to the point of orgasm during their lives. Although the numbers are somewhat lower for females, many females also have this sort of sexual activity with another female some time during their lives.

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QUESTIONS ABOUT STDS: HOW CAN I PROTECT MYSELF AGAINST AIDS AND OTHER STDS?

There are a number of things you can do to protect yourself or at least cut down on your chances of getting these diseases.

1. Don’t use injecting drugs, not even once. In fact, it’s best to stay away from all illegal drugs and alcohol, too, because they weaken the immune system, making you more susceptible to AIDS. They can also affect your judgement, so that you don’t follow STD prevention guidelines and, in some cases, using other illegal drugs leads to the use of injecting drugs.

2. Wait until you’re married or older to have sex. Experts agree that abstaining from (not having) sex is the best protection for young people.

3. If you do have sex, use a latex condom and spermicide. HIV may be able to pass through natural lambskin condoms, so always use a condom made of latex rubber. In addition, also use a spermicide (foam, jelly, cream, C-film or pessary), as the chemical it contains helps to kill the AIDS virus. It’s important to remember that condoms and spermicides are not 100 per cent effective in preventing AIDS and other STDs, so you must also follow the other guidelines.

4. Limit the number of sex partners that you have. The fewer partners you have, the lower your risk of getting AIDS or other STDs.

5. Look for STD symptoms. Although some STDs don’t produce noticeable symptoms, many do. So, check for STD symptoms (sores, rashes or redness on the sex organs, an unusual discharge from the penis or vagina) before you have sex. You don’t have to take out a magnifying glass and examine the person, but do make it a point to look.

6. Get to know a person well and discuss possible exposure to HIV before having sex. It usually takes six or more years for AIDS symptoms to show up. Most people currently infected with HIV aren’t yet aware of the fact that they’re infected. But they are contagious! So, you must ask about a person’s past sex life and whether the person or his/her past lovers may have been exposed to the virus either sexually or by sharing needles. If the person belongs to one of the groups among which HIV infection is most common, then you should insist on an HIV antibody test before you have sex. For more information on testing contact your Brook Advisory Centre.

7. Be aware of the fact that personal hygiene is very important. Wash your genitals every day and wear clean, cotton underwear. Avoid using deodorants, perfumes and strong or scented soaps on your genitals, as they can irritate and dry the skin, making it more susceptible to infection. Avoid synthetic underwear, tight jeans and other tight clothing, as they can cut down on air flow and keep the genital area damp, making it more susceptible to infection. Women should always wipe from front to back, away from the vagina, when going to the toilet, to avoid transferring germs from the rectum to the vagina.

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QUESTIONS ABOUT CONTRACEPTION AND ABORTION: HOW FAR ALONG CAN A WOMAN BE IN HER PREGNANCY BEFORE IT’S TOO LATE FOR HER TO HAVE AN ABORTION? SUPPOSE YOU DO CHOOSE ABORTION, WHAT HAPPENS THEN?

Legally, abortions can be done up to the point at which the baby would be capable of staying alive outside the mother’s body. This is about 28 weeks. Most abortions are done before the twelfth week. Late abortions occur only in exceptional circumstances, for example, where the baby is discovered late in pregnancy to have a serious abnormality or where the mother is a young teenager who didn’t realize she was pregnant until a few months had passed. Late abortions require more elaborate procedures which entail somewhat more risk, though even late abortion is a very safe procedure. However, doctors agree that the earlier the abortion is done, the better.

Suppose you do choose abortion, what happens then?

Once you’ve decided and the first doctor (your GP or the one at the place where you had the pregnancy test) has agreed to the request for an abortion, you will be referred to a hospital or clinic doctor who will perform the abortion. This second doctor also has to agree that you have legal grounds for abortion.

Whether or not you are able to get an abortion on the National Health Service will depend on the agreement of your doctor and the provision of abortion services in the area where you live. Family planning clinics may be able to help with the arrangements, and Brook Advisory Centres offer help for people seeking abortion through the NHS.

People who cannot obtain an NHS abortion will have to pay, usually at one of the pregnancy charities.

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METHODS OF CONTRACEPTION: COMPARING THE VARIOUS METHODS

A ‘perfect’ method of contraception would be one that was:

• very convenient and easy to use;

• totally safe and didn’t cause any side-effects or medical problems;

• 100 per cent effective (or at least highly effective) at preventing pregnancy.

Unfortunately, no method is perfect. Each method has its particular advantages and disadvantages. Some methods are very convenient to use, but aren’t as safe or effective as others. Other methods are totally safe, but aren’t always as convenient to use or as effective as others. Still other methods are highly effective at preventing pregnancy, but often aren’t as safe as some of the others. In the next few pages we’ll be comparing the different methods in terms of their convenience, their safety and side-effects, and their effectiveness.

Convenience-Methods like sterilization, the IUD and the injectable contraceptive are very convenient. After sterilization, a person needn’t bother about contraception ever again. Once the doctor inserts an IUD, the woman needn’t worry about protection against pregnancy again for three to five years (depending on the type of IUD). A single injection of the injectable contraceptive is good for two to three months.

Other methods are less easy to use. Natural Family Planning (NFP), for instance, requires users to keep temperature charts, to track their menstrual cycles on a calendar and to record daily observations of their cervical mucus. Although some people who use NFP say that it’s really no trouble once you make it part of your daily routine, this method does require more effort than others.

Of course, how convenient a method is often depends on the user. The pill is considered a very convenient, easy-to-use method by most women because all a woman has to do is swallow a pill and remember to take her pills according to schedule. But for women who have trouble remembering to take medications, the pill may be a very difficult method to use. Methods such as the condom, cap, diaphragm and spermicides are also considered convenient by some people, but highly inconvenient by others. For example, some people find it difficult to insert and remove a cap or diaphragm. Some find spermicides messy. Some find these methods difficult to use because they have trouble remembering to keep the devices handy and to use them each and every time they have sex. Some people find them inconvenient because using these methods interrupts their love-making and they feel that having to stop to use the method takes away from the romance of it all. Some find it difficult to use these methods because they are too shy or too embarrassed to tell their partners they need ‘time out’ to put their device in place. However, others incorporate the placing of the device or spermicide into their love-making, don’t feel at all shy about using these methods and don’t have any problems in using them. So, convenience, like beauty, is often in the eye of the beholder.

Convenience is an important consideration because if a person finds a method inconvenient or difficult to use, the chances of he or she using it improperly or neglecting to use it at all are much greater. And, of course, if a method isn’t used properly and consistently, it isn’t going to be effective. If convenience were the only consideration, then people would just pick the most convenient method. But, as we shall see, safety, side effects, and effectiveness are also important considerations.

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CELLULITE AND SHIATSU

Shiatsu is a Japanese word meaning ‘finger pressure’ – healing with hands. It grew from earlier forms of massage, called Anma in Japan (Anmo or Tuina in China). This involved rubbing, stroking, squeezing, tapping, pushing and pulling to influence the muscles and circulatory systems of the body. To the observer it would appear that little is happening, merely a still, relaxed pressure at various points on the body with the hand or thumb.

The role of Shiatsu therapists is to diagnose and then treat according to the principles of Oriental medicine. It is a holistic philosophy, involving an understanding of Yin (where energy is expanding) and Yang (where energy is contracting). For readers, I recommend The Book of Shiatsu by Paul Lundberg.

Although my book is not written from the perspective of traditional Oriental medicine, we agree on many things. For example,

Shiatsu teaches that there are seven main chakras (energy centres) found in the mid-line down the body. Energy is channeled from both ends. Each chakra has a component of each aura and it comprises a centre of consciousness, as follows:

• The crown chakra – concerned with the pineal gland which controls right eyeand upper brain

• The brow chakra – linked to the pituitary gland which controls the left eye, lower brain, nose and nervous system • The throat chakra – concerned with the thyroid gland and governs the lymphatic system, hands, arms, shoulders, mouth, vocal chords, lungs and throats

• The heart chakra – concerned with the thymus gland and controls the heart, breasts, vagus nerve and circulation system

• The solar plexus – concerned with the pancreas and controls the spleen, gallbladder, liver, digestive system and stomach

• The sacral chakra – affects the genital area and controls the lower back, feet,legs and reproductive system

• The base chakra – concerned with tfte adrenal glands. It controls the skeleton,

parasympathic and sympathetic nervous systems, bladder and kidneys

food can be divided into three main types: those that are ‘balanced’, and some that are Yin and some that are Yang.

For another perspective on my chapter on diet consider:

• Yin foods are – milk, alcohol, oil, honey, sugar, fruit juices, stimulants, spices, tropical vegetables and fruit, refined foods and most chemical additives.

• Yang foods are – poultry, eggs, seafood, salt, fish, meat, miso and cheese.

• Balanced foods are – seeds, nuts, cereal, grains, vegetables, beans, sea vegetables and temperate fruits.

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CELLULITE AND ALCOHOLIC DRINKS

Avoid alcohol most of the time. All alcohol is bad for your weight-loss program. All beer, wine and spirits will send your calorie counter through the roof. Cocktails are worse – being mixed with two types of strong liquor, plus flavourings and whatever else tricks up the drink.

Furthermore, not even alcohol is free from preservatives. Most red wine contains preservatives (including 220) which gives some people allergies.

Nevertheless, people enjoy a drink. In fact, a drink can change your level of consciousness, which can sometimes be fun.

But if you’re a bit of a drinker, I’m sorry to say you can’t afford to ‘break out’ any more – not if you’re serious about losing cellulite. They say alcohol makes you lose your inhibitions – and it’s true. Alcohol also helps break your resolutions.

Balance this advice with what we said in chapter three about ‘not being too radical’ and follow this rule when you’re at a party: drink half as many alcoholic drinks as usual. You can count them, but it’s easier to simply drink a glass of pure water ever) second drink.

Some people say that an occasional drink is good for the system, but if you drink every day, that’s bad for your cellulite-loss program. The effects of alcohol stay in your system for about four days.

Watch out though – being a ‘tolerance drug’, once you start cutting your intake of alcohol, it starts to affect you much quicker. We’ve all heard of people who can drink a whole bottle of whisky, or a couple of bottles of wine, and still walk home. That’s only because they’re used to it. They have developed a tolerance, even though their livers never will.

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CELLULITE: SHAPE UP!

I believe that an exercise program that does not include weight training is incomplete. Weights are good for you, both physically and mentally.

Weight training does not result in conspicuous muscles, like a female wrestler. Lifting weights will make you shape up, not take on a male body shape. Weight training is for every adult, including men and women in their 60s and 70s. It is necessary in order for the body to perform tasks it was designed, and needs to do. And it will help shift cellulite. I work out with weights at least three hours a week and I have not got big shoulders because I train in a particular way. If I wanted muscles I would have trained heavier.

I lift weights. I do it to maintain my bone density, and also to keep cellulite under control.

When you do weight bearing exercise you’re also giving yourself good bone density to battle osteoporosis and other degenerative bone diseases that may hit you later in life.

Advice: Have someone design a proper exercise routine before you attempt weights. It’s easy to get it wrong – or worse, to hurt yourself.

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CELLULITE SOLLUTION: SUMMARY

• Think: I’m doing something positive now. How am I going to handle it?

• Think: I’m definitely going to walk. Morning if I can, because my metabolism is going to start working, so whatever I eat for

the rest of the day is going to burn up a lot faster.

• So get up early.

• Go for your walk.

• Come back.

• Get ready and go off to work, (or get the kids ready, or whatever you’ve got to do).

• Start running up stairs at work instead of catching the lift, especially when it’s only a couple of flights.

• Make your legs work a little harder – start toning them because as you start losing cellulite you’ll want nice shapely legs underneath. (You need to do weight-bearing exercises to get that effect.)

• If you’re not a sporty person – walk. A lot of people who are not prepared to play sport will walk.

• And while you’re doing all that, remember that the fastest way to lose cellulite is through interval framing. Keep that at the back of your mind. You might like to consider interval training later on as you get fitter, prouder and more ambitious.

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USEFUL FACTS ABOUT CELLULITE

• The ‘only’ cure

We hear claims by the various marketing departments that herbal medication or liposuction or electrotherapy is the only treatment needed for getting rid of cellulite. That’s not true, even though in some instances those treatments have certainly been helpful.

If you were to use one, and only one, treatment program, exercise and correct diet is without a doubt the most effective.

• Swimming does little to shift cellulite

Swimming is very good for heart and lung exercises, but not specifically for shifting cellulite.

In fact, people with cellulite (and excess fat) can be fantastic swimmers – for example, the people who cross the English Channel. Those swimmers need that fat to insulate their bodies and – of course – being swimmers, they would have fantastic heart and lung condition.

• The Elvis Syndrome

Even though celebrities have more time on their hands to manage the problem, even the Beautiful People get cellulite. In fact, a lot of celebrities have appeared on front covers, sometimes not on very good cellulite days.

Even Demi Moore had cellulite. She had it in her thighs. However, Moore is a great example of someone who handled the problem quickly and efficiently. She went on a strict exercise routine and I take my hat off to her because she looked fantastic after she did that.

Cellulite is one of the most misunderstood beauty problems plaguing modern women, even though throughout time women have always been portrayed with a fuller figure depicting cellulite quite clearly.

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WOMEN’S EXTERNAL SEX STRUCTURES AND ORGANS: CLITORIS AND CLITORAL HOOD. FEMALE CIRCUMCISION

Clitoris and Clitoral Hood

Located toward the top of the vulva, in the soft folds where both labia meet, is a very important organ. It is caned the clitoris. The only purpose of the clitoris is to give girls and women sexual pleasure.

The tip of the clitoris is called the glans. The size of the clitoris varies from woman to woman, but it Ь often about the size of a pea.

The shaft that supports the glans of the clitoris separates into two «legs» that straddle each side of the vagina inside the woman’s body. The shaft and glans of the clitoris are covered by a clitoral hood. The glans of the clitoris is extremely sensitive to the touch. The clitoris contains corpus cavernosa tissue that causes it to swell with blood during sexual activity.

Female circumcision

Female circumcision is performed in some African, Middle Eastern, and Southeast Asian countries—and in the United States among immigrants from these countries who still follow customs of their original cultures. Female circumcision is an operation that removes the clitoral hood, the clitoris, and, often, the labia. Female circumcision is practiced for cultural reasons. It is often done in unsanitary conditions, can lead to severe health problems, and reduces sexual sensitivity. For these reasons, there is a growing international movement to ban the practice. Female circumcision is often called clitoridectomy or FGM (female genital mutilation). There are no health or medical reasons to perform FGM. Although they can still lead a sexual life, women who have been circumcised will not enjoy the same clitoral sensations during sex play.

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SEXUAL ANATOMY OF WOMEN. WOMEN’S EXTERNAL SEX STRUCTURES AND ORGANS

Vulva and Mons Pubis

The external sex organs of girls and women are nearly hidden from view. A girl will see only some of her external structures—an indentation with two folds of tissue on each side. Her external sex and reproductive organs and structures are inside this area, which is called the vulva. A mature or adolescent woman looking in a mirror will also see her vulva, but it will be covered with pubic hair. Above a woman’s vulva is an area of fatty tissue that helps protect the sex and

reproductive organs inside her body. This is called the mons pubis. The best way for women and girls to see the parts of their vulvas is to use a mirror and move and separate the folds of the vulva. The parts inside the vulva are:

• the outer lips (labia majora)

• the inner lips (labia minora)

• the clitoris

• the opening to the vagina

• two Bartholin’s glands

Labia Majora and Labia Minora

The labia majora and labia minora are two
folds of fleshy tissue on the outermost part of the vulva. The labia majora—the outer lips—are on the outermost part of the vulva, closer to the legs. Pubic hair often grows on the labia majora of adolescents and adults. The labia majora contains fatty tissue, so it is thicker than the labia minora. The fatty tissue helps protect the rest of the vulva.

If you hold back the labia majora, you will have a clear view of the labia minora lying inside.

The labia minora surround and protect the rest of the inner vulva. They do not have pubic hair. The inner and outer lips meet at the top and bottom of the vulva. The size and shape of women’s labia may vary greatly.

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OUR SEXUAL JOURNEY AS CHILDREN. EMOTIONAL CHANGES. EDUCATIONAL NEEDS AND RESPONSIBILITIES

Emotional Changes during Childhood

We develop our basic attitudes about sexuality during childhood. As infants, we form attachments with our parents or other caregivers. How they bond with us is very important to the way we shape our future relationships. Whether they are warm, secure, and loving or cold, insecure, and indifferent affects how we develop our emotional lives into adulthood. Many of our earliest experiences with love and attachment directly reflect our bonds with our parents and caregivers.

Our parents are under a lot of social pressure to try to raise us to be sexually responsible individuals. Some parents try to stop any kind of sexual experimentation by children. They may become upset if they notice their child touching his or her genitals and might say things like «That’s not nice» or «Don’t touch yourself down there.» They may give nonverbal negative messages by slapping or pushing a child’s hand away from her or his genitals.

We may become confused if our parents encourage us to be proud of our growing bodies but discourage us from taking satisfaction in our genitals. Such disapproving messages may cause children to develop negative feelings about their bodies and themselves. The message they receive is that sexuality is bad and so are they.

On the other hand, parents can foster positive feelings about sexuality by acknowledging their children’s autoerotic pleasure. They can smile to their infants and coo, «That feels good, doesn’t it?» To older children, they can say, «I know that feels good, but that’s a private pleasure. We do that when we’re alone—in private.» These approving messages can help children develop positive feelings about their bodies and themselves. The message they receive is that sexuality is good and so are they.

Educational Needs and Responsibilities during Childhood

The sexual curiosity of a child may be surprising to us. It is a good idea to act calmly no matter how surprised we may be. We must be prepared to answer questions. If they are old enough to ask, then they
are old enough to receive an answer. When parents don’t know the answer, it helps to be honest and admit it. We can invite our children to help us look up the answer, or we can find it by ourselves.

The bottom line is to give the child an accurate and simple answer as soon as possible. In all our conversations with our children, we should try to use proper terminology for all body parts, including the vagina, penis, anus, and breasts. Using slang terms gives the impression that we think there is something shameful about these parts of the body.

By the time we are six years old, sex play between our friends and ourselves is a common way of being curious and learning about the differences in our bodies. «Playing doctor» is just one way that we learn about the physical differences between boys and girls while we satisfy our curiosity. We are also aware of the many social restrictions on our sexual expression, so we probably try to hide our activities from our parents and other adults.

One of the greatest responsibilities that our parents have during our childhood is to make sure we know what is socially appropriate behavior and what is not. Parents can integrate discussions about sexuality into family life in a balanced, frank, matter-of-fact way that allows them to deal with sexual topics openly, whenever appropriate. They can set reasonable limits on our sexual behavior as children just as they set rules for other behaviors. They can also present sexuality as a healthy and positive part of life as they present information about sexual risks and responsibilities.

A balanced view of sexual pleasure and responsibility will help children learn to develop positive decision-making skills.

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SEXUAL JOURNEY THROUGH LIFE.

We begin our sexual journey through life in childhood. It continues through our adolescence, our young
adulthood, and our senior years. Our journey is shaped by gender, sexual orientation, disability, special needs, or lifestyles such as the religious life or the physical, emotional, and social changes we experience. The meanings of love, friendship, and life partnership may also change for us along the way. Although all of us are on this voyage, none of our adventures will be exactly the same.

Our sexual journey as children

As children, we may not think of ourselves as being on the beginning of a sexual journey, but we are. We may start our trip by just being curious about our bodies asking our parents where we came from, or noticing that
girls and boys are different from one another. Eventually, we notice the physical changes that our bodies are going through. The timing of the changes is different for each of us, but we all go through them.

Traditionally, childhood sexuality was seen incorrectly as either dangerous or nonexistent. Many still become uncomfortable with a child’s normal sexual interest. They may be concerned for various reasons:

• They worry that their children’s sex normal or is bad.

• They are uncertain or worried about how to deal with their children’s sexuality.

• They might be dealing with their own sexual conflicts.

• They fear their own normal curiosity about their children’s sexuality.

Rest assured that sexuality in childhood is normal and is also healthy and natural. Our sexual reflexes are already at work when we are babies. We experience and enjoy physical closeness with our parents through hugging, clinging, and cuddling. We are really too young to be aware of the connections that are being made to our sexuality. But we do learn that physical closeness and expressions of affection feel good.

Physical Changes during Childhood

As we grow, the physical changes in our bodies become quite obvious. We lose our baby fat and develop quite distinctive physical features. We learn to walk, talk, dress ourselves, and feed ourselves. We grow taller and stronger month by month. It happens to each of us at different rates. That’s why everyone in our fourth-grade class pictures seems to be of different heights.

These changes in growth are not the same as the changes that happen later during adolescence. They do, however, affect our sense of ourselves and our sense of our sexuality. Are we bigger than girls should be? Are we smaller than boys should be? The answers we learn can deeply affect our sense of our femininity or masculinity.

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SEXUAL DYSFUNCTIONS. HEALTH CONDITIONS AND OUR SEXUAL FUNCTION

Sexual Dysfunctions

Dysfunction means to not work well. A sexual dysfunction can be either physical or mental. Or it can be both. It means that a sexual process or response is not functioning normally. For example, if a man is not able to get an erection for some time, his penis is not functioning normally. This is commonly called impotence. It can be caused by physical problems—the penile tissue may be damaged, for example. It can also be caused by mental problems such as anxiety, fear, stress, and depression. For example, a man who is very fearful of impregnating a woman may not be able to get an erection. The correct term for impotence is inhibited arousal. In women, inhibited arousal results in a lack of lubrication. Inhibited arousal can also be caused by certain drugs and medications.

There are numerous sexual dysfunctions that affect our sexual abilities. Dysfunction can happen at any point during the first three phases of the sexual response cycle—desire, excitement, or plateau.

Health Conditions and Our Sexual Function

All illnesses and diseases can affect our sexuality. An illness can make us too exhausted to join in or enjoy sexual intimacy. It can also cause physical problems that affect our sexual response cycle and our ability to perform. Disease and illness also affect how we view our bodies. We can develop a poor body image if we feel our bodies are unhealthy, unattractive, or unresponsive.

Our sexuality is also affected by medications that are prescribed to treat illness and disease. Medications can affect us physically and psychologically. They can also affect how we view ourselves sexually and how we perform. Some medications have side effects that can decrease our sexual desire or performance. They may also be used, however, to treat illnesses such as depression that affect our moods and sense of ourselves. They may help us feel better about ourselves and positively affect our sex lives.

It is important for people who take medications to talk with their health care professionals about the effects any medication may have on their sex lives. Very often health care professionals fail to consider their patients’ sex lives. If they do not begin the conversation, make sure that you do.

In the table on the previous page, a few health conditions are listed with the effects these conditions may have on sexual health. If you need more information about these or other health concerns, contact a health care professional or visit your local library.

Our sexuality and our sexual bodies go through many changes during our lives. In the next chapter, we will look at some of those changes as they occur over the life span.

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AFTER CANCER: PREVENTING NEW CANCERS. GENE PROBE

What Is a Gene Probe?

A gene probe is a new and exciting laboratory tool that identifies an abnormality in the genes of the tumor cells or the normal cells. These abnormalities are related to the development of certain
types of cancer. In research settings, the gene probe is being used to

• help make specific cancer diagnoses

• help better assess the prognosis

How Will Gene Probes Help Cancer Patients?

When gene probes become available in nonresearch settings, they will have an enormous impact on

• how various cancers are diagnosed and staged

• how the best therapy is chosen for each individual

• what treatment options are available

Knowing which cancers are likely to be cured with relatively little treatment and which are likely to act very aggressively alb ear the doctors to fit the treatment to the cancer better. Patients whose gene probe predicts that they will do well with little treatment will be spared overtreatment. Patients whose gene probe predicts that the only chance is with very aggressive treatment will perhaps be
spared recurrence or a poor outcome from treatment that was not aggressive enough.

Gene probes may allow more sensitive follow-up of cancer, making possible earlier detection of recurrence and, therefore, earlier treatment. Most important, it is hoped that gene probes will provide the path to safe, effective, curative therapy by permitting replacement of defective genes that cause cancer.

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AFTER CANCER: ANTIOXIDANTS. DIET

What about the Role of Fruits and Vegetables in Protecting against Future Cancer?

Epidemiologic studies have shown that people whose culture is characterized by a diet rich in fruits and vegetables have a lower risk for certain types of cancer than those whose diet is lacking in these foods. In addition, when people who normally eat few fruits and vegetables add fruits and vegetables to their diet, they appear to lower their risk of developing certain cancers. The relationship between eating fruits and vegetables and reducing risk is not an association; these foods actually do cause changes in the Ь that protect against cancer.

We do not know whether the benefit is due to the antioxidants in the fruits and vegetables or to some other substances, not present in synthetic supplemental antioxidant pills.

In the United States the National Institute of Health (NIH. conducting many studies in humans to look at the role dietary and
supplemental antioxidants play in protecting against future cancers. However, no well-controlled human studies have yet given a definitive answer to the question about the benefit of supplemental antioxidants.

What Should I Do about Antioxidants in My Diet until the Results of Current Studies Are Available?

The National Health and Medical Research Council recommends that adults eat at least 300g of fruit and 375g of vegetables a day. (This equates to approximately 2 pieces of fruit and 5 half-cup serves of vegetables a day.)

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AFTER CANCER: PREVENTING RECURRENT AND NEW CANCERS

What Can I Do to Prevent a Recurrence?

There are steps you can take to help prevent recurrence. Specific recommendations for you depend on the type of
cancer you had and your medical condition. Areas of potential intervention include

• diet modification

• exercise

• avoidance of exposure to cancer-causing environmental substances

• hormonal therapy

• medicines to prevent recurrence

• aggressive surveillance, such as routine Pap smears, colonoscopies, or mammograms to detect precancerous changes (change that are not yet cancer but have a high likelihood of becoming cancer)

• removal of precancerous lesions detected by aggressive surveillance

What Is Adjuvant Therapy?

Some types of cancer can be treated with additional therapy after you are in remission, in the hope of «mopping up» any leftover undetectable cancer cells. This additional therapy, called adjuvant therapy, is given with the expectation that it will decrease your chance of recurrence. It is at present available for a number of cancers that are notorious for recurrence.

For example, people with certain types of early breast cancer can be put into remission with surgery and radiation, but are advised to receive adjuvant chemotherapy (a few months of chemotherapy) to kill any cancer cells left anywhere in the body. When adjuvant therapy is an option, it should be considered seriously.

What Is Chemoprophylaxis?

Chemoprophylaxis is the use of medication to prevent а recurrence of cancer, prevent a second cancer that is different from a person’s past cancer, or prevent a first cancer in someone who has never had cancer. This is a new and very exciting area of cancer research. Trials are under way to explore medicines believed to offer protection. For example, large-scale studies are in progress to determine whether the use of tamoxifen can help prevent recur-rent breast cancer or a new breast cancer in the opposite breast, or j whether the use of anti-inflammatory medication can help prevent colon cancer.

There exists no medicine that will prevent all cancers, and it is unlikely that any will ever be found. However, we have every reason to expect to see the development of medicines that will help prevent certain types of cancer, especially in people at a known increased risk.

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AFTER CANCER: DO I WAIT FOR MY FOLLOW-UP TO ASK QUESTIONS OR REPORT NEW PROBLEMS?

Routine exams are scheduled with the presumption that you have no new symptoms or problems, in the hope of picking up problems before you develop any symptoms. You should not wait for a routine follow-up if you have a new problem. A woman underwent a mastectomy for breast cancer six years ago. She faithfully went for her biannual cancer follow-ups, seeing them as her safety net to keep her healthy. At her recent checkup, she reported a small lump in her remaining breast that she had noticed two months earlier. She had not called the doctor, because she knew that it could be taken care of at her routine checkup. Her misunderstanding of her role in her follow-ups caused a two-month delay in the diagnosis and treatment of her new cancer. Your doctor cannot call you every week to check on you; he or she depends on you to report promptly any changes.

Your doctor can tell you the plan for your follow-up schedule. For example, you may be scheduled for checkups with your doctor every three months and scans every six months for the first year, then for checkups every six months and scans every twelve months for the next two years, and then for annual checkups and scans. This rough schedule will be adapted to your individual needs. If you have ongoing medical problems, or if you develop new ones, you will need to be seen more often than is usual for a post treatment patient.

Your doctor can tailor your follow-up to your circumstances only if you keep him or her informed of your progress, problems, and questions. When you develop new problems between checkups, notify your doctor or nurse so that the timing of your next visit can be moved up if necessary.

You play a key role in optimizing the timing and efficiency of your follow-up by keeping your doctor well informed of your condition.

Get a list of signs and symptoms about which your oncologist wants to be notified right away. If you develop something not on your list and if you are uncertain about whether you should call, call your doctor’s office and ask whether you should

•wait for your scheduled appointment to discuss the question or problem

• talk to the doctor on the telephone

•come in earlier than your scheduled appointment to see the doctor

When in doubt about calling your doctor, call. It is better to sound a false alarm than to have a treatable problem get out of control о cause unnecessary discomfort or anxiety. You owe it to yourself and your family not to take chances.

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AFTER CANCER: WHAT IS MY PROGNOSIS AFTER TREATMENT?

Your prognosis is the statistical prediction of how you will do. Your overall prognosis is your long-term chance of survival.

Many types of cancer have a good short-term prognosis but a poor long-term prognosis. For example, your cancer may be incurable with current forms of therapy, but is so slow growing that you are expected to survive for many years. Or your type of cancer may be expected to respond well to initial treatments, but has a high rate of recurrence and loses this responsiveness.

Prognosis may be described in general statements such as «Your prognosis is very good» or «Your prognosis is poor.» Oftentimes, when you want to hear something more specific, you will be given a percentage, such as «Your prognosis for a five-year survival is 60 percent.»

To say that you have a 60 percent chance of staying in remission for at least five years means that for every 100 persons with your type of cancer who received your type of treatment and achieved remission, 60 will stay in remission for at least five years and 40 will develop recurrent cancer. In five years each individual patient will either be in 100 percent remission or have a recurrence.

To say that you have a 60 percent chance of surviving for at least five years means that for every 100 persons in your situation, 60 will be alive in five years. Some of those 60 will be disease-free, some will have had recurrent disease and be back in remission, and some will be living with active cancer.

Your prognosis after treatment may be different from that when you were first diagnosed. This is because your doctors have two important pieces of information that were unavailable before you were treated: they know whether your cancer responds to treatment, and they know how healthy you are after treatment.

For illustration, let us say that when you were originally diagnosed, you were told that you had a 50 percent chance of surviving at least five years. If you did well with treatment, you may now be told that you have a 95 percent chance of surviving at least five years. This improvement in your chance of survival has occurred because the original figure of 50 percent included those people who would not respond to the therapy as well as those who would die of complications before achieving remission. At the time of your diagnosis, doctors knew your chance of responding, but could not know how your cancer would in fact respond. The figure of 95 percent given to you after your treatment is derived from information showing that, of the people who did as well as you did, 95 percent were alive five years later.

One thing to keep in mind is that your prognosis keeps changing as your situation changes. The prognosis given to you when you were first diagnosed is not as relevant or meaningful as the prognosis based on your current situation.

Factors that help determine your prognosis include

• your type of cancer

• the stage of your cancer at the time you were diagnosed

• your cancer’s response to treatments

• your level of physical fitness

• the presence or absence of other medical conditions

• available indicators specific for your type of cancer, such as tumor markers and hormone receptors

• many factors that we cannot measure, such as your «will to live»

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SEX DIFFERENCES – ADOLESCENCE

With adolescence changes appear in the behaviour and the temperament of boys and girls. These changes are not due to innate sexual differences, or to hormones, but more to the way in which girls have been reared. Girls have been conditioned, by parents, by peers, by society, and through the media, to believe that they should be attractive, co-operative, sympathetic, and loving, while boys are taught to be competitive, ambitious, energetic, practical, and powerful. By adolescence, girls have been taught, and accept, that boys are better achievers (which is not true). They accept that boys will get the more interesting jobs and will rise to higher levels in their jobs (which is true).

In stories and on television most good things happen to the male characters, and they are usually the result of the man’s own initiative or action. When a good thing happens to a female character (and this occurs much less frequently) it is usually because of someone else’s initiative, or grows out of a situation in which the woman finds herself.

Many adolescent boys fear failure, but many, perhaps most, adolescent girls fear both failure and success. They fear success because it puts them into direct competition with men and may diminish their attractiveness to men. By accepting these views many girls diminish their potential; they believe that they have less ability than boys and will never achieve as much. They accept that women are ‘inferior’ to men. They accept the inevitability of patriarchy – that men will always dominate society, and that women will always be submissive.

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SEXUALITY IN ADOLESCENCE

One of the matters which concerns many people, who are now parents and nudging into middle age, is the more open sexual behaviour of contemporary adolescents. It is likely that the change is less, in reality, than in most people’s fantasies; but it is true that today sexuality is more open and more discussed and that attitudes to it are more honest.

Sexuality includes sexual arousal, sexual behaviour, and sexual relationships, and each of these needs consideration.

For many people, the touch of body contact is the most sexually exciting of all the senses. Most people experience increased sexual excitement if they have the opportunity to kiss or hug a person by whom they have been sexually aroused. This excitement is increased if the erotic parts of the body are touched. In our culture, the breasts, the genitals, and the buttocks are strongly erotic for most people. Some people are sexually excited from having their feet massaged, their backs rubbed, or their hair stroked. It depends on the scenario each person has created.

By late adolescence the person’s sexual arousal scenario is largely complete, and it is less likely to be re-written as the person grows older. For most people the culmination of sexual arousal is orgasm, by either masturbation, or erotic stimulation by a partner, or sexual intercourse.

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PHYSICAL CHANGES: TESTOSTERONE

A boy’s testicles increase in size because of the effects of the gonadotrophins. These brain hormones induce special cells, called Leydig cells, within the testis, to produce the male sex hormone, testosterone. Testosterone, together with the gonadotrophins, leads to the production of sperms in the ‘nests’ in the testes. Testosterone enters the boy’s bloodstream in increasing quantities and begins the masculinization of his body. The blood carries the testosterone to his brain where it ‘stimulates’ his sexual interest, so that it becomes more intense. Once so stimulated, testosterone has no further effect on his sexual desire or activity, provided the amount secreted by his testicles remains within a wide ‘normal’ range. It is for this reason that injections of testosterone are of no value in improving a man’s sexual performance or in treating most cases of impotence.

The first obvious sign that a boy has reached puberty is that his penis grows in length and in circumference, so that it is bigger in both dimensions. At first the growth is slow, but by the age of 13 or 14, a boy’s penis grows more rapidly and pubic hair begins to appear.

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THREE DIFFERENCES BETWEEN THE SEXES 3

At present, women are disadvantaged in opportunities for jobs. They obtain less interesting jobs, get less pay, and achieve lower levels of promotion. This is not due to lack of ability or of desire, but to the patriarchal structure of society. In a male-dominated society, women have to expend more effort, more time, and more skill to achieve a position a less qualified man achieves more easily. This biases the competition strongly in favour of a man: it ceases to be true competition. The lack of success of women in high-status jobs may also be affected by the way girls are reared. Females take orders from authority more easily and comply with them more readily, they are less likely to protest and are slower to become angry, so they are easier to exploit by men and more ready to take less interesting, lower-status jobs.

The subordinate position of women to men, which is initiated by the way the two sexes are reared, tends to be self-perpetuating. Women, brought up in this way, believe that they are inferior to men in both intelligence and ability. Even when the work of men and women is of identical quality, women tend to denigrate that of their own sex and to rate a man’s work more highly. In an experiment conducted in America, a group of women university students were given six scientific papers to rate. The name of the author of each paper was manipulated by the investigator so that half of the women thought the author was a man and the other half thought the author was a woman. The women were asked to judge the quality of each paper for style, for professional competence, for conviction, and for over-all impact on the reader. Invariably, whatever the subject of the paper, if the name of the author was male, it was rated higher than if the women thought it had been written by a woman.

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HOW DOES A SMALL CHILD LEARN THAT IT IS A BOY OR A GIRL?

How does a small child learn that it is a boy or a girl, and feel that it is of a particular sex? In other words, how does it develop its gender-identity? Linked to this is the question of how and when a small child begins to behave to others to demonstrate to them that it is male or female. In other words, how and when does it develop its gender-role?

If you observe small babies, you will find that they show no awareness of belonging to either sex, at least until they are more than 9 months old. During these months most people are unable to tell what the sex of a baby is except by the way it is dressed or, for accuracy, by looking at the baby’s genitals and seeing if it has or has not got a penis.

Because parents know their baby’s sex from the time of its birth, it is inevitable that they start forming a gender-role in the infant from its very first days, by their behaviour to it.

Child psychologists believe that children develop their attitudes and learn to behave in specific ways only by contact with other humans. They also believe that most of this learning occurs by ‘role-taking’, that is we learn the attitudes of others by putting ourselves in their shoes, and by imitating what they do so we may obtain their approval.

Obviously, when the baby is very small it can only learn about its gender-identity from the way it is treated by its parents.

From about 9 months of age the baby becomes more mobile and begins to receive a much wider variety of information from its observations. These observations suggest to it its sex, and fix ‘memory traces’ on its brain. But the exact way in which a boy can say with conviction, ‘I am a boy’ (in other words establish his gender-identity), is unclear.

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