This archive report was first published on 30 November 2019.
On a typical day at the Sexology Clinic, a number of people come in for an examination of their genitals, often worried that they are abnormal.
Some think their penises are too small, while others believe theirs are too big. Ladies, too, may dislike the appearance of their private parts and want them altered to look more beautiful.
For Laura, a 27-year-old journalist, the fear of being abnormal 'down there' had been a constant companion since her boarding school days.
She had never mustered the courage to discuss her situation with her mother, who was the only female in the family.
"You are the first person I have opened up to," Laura explained, tearfully. "I have thought of committing suicide because this is a difficult situation to be in."
"I was in a boarding school for my secondary education, and for those four years I woke up at 3am to shower," she said. "I avoided situations where my peers would look at my genitals." After years of hiding her intersex condition, Laura finally found the courage to visit the Sexology Clinic, where she was diagnosed with a condition where her genitals, reproductive organs, hormone systems, or genetic makeup did not conform to what is generally classified as male or female. Intersex is a state where one's genitals, reproductive organs, hormone systems, or genetic makeup do not conform to what we generally classify as male or female. Medical tests should be done to determine if there are any other differences in an affected person. After a series of tests, Laura's results showed that other than her external genitals, everything else conformed to the female sexual formation. She had been socialised as a girl and developed physical features of a woman at puberty. Historically, doctors and parents have colluded to assign sex to newborn intersex babies, followed by surgeries to make the genitals look like those of a male or female. However, it has now been agreed in medical circles that intersex surgeries in infancy and trying to hide one's identity from them is unethical. It is encouraged that intersex people are allowed to grow as they are into adulthood without interference unless the differences they have in their genitalia or reproductive systems pose a medical danger. After a series of counselling sessions, Laura opted for the surgery and visited the clinic last week, two years after their first meeting. She was carrying a baby.
