The hymen is a very misunderstood body part. There are many widespread myths about what it is and how it works. However, your hymen naturally wears down over time. It typically develops openings that allow for penetration long before your first sexual experience.

The hymen : if you've got a vagina, you'll have one. But the problem with this particular body part is that no-one seems to actually know what it is or what it does. Does your hymen break during sex? Do tampons stretch it? Does it disappear altogether? All this and it'd be perfectly possible to go through life never noticing you had a hymen at all. But have one women do, and much of the fixation revolves around whether it's 'broken' or not.

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The role of the family care giver is still mostly assumed by women. This puts an extra financial burden on them in terms of missed work hours and unpaid work. In addition, women are much more likely to stay home or reduce their hours to take care of a relative. This can have severe financial consequences not only for the present but for their social security eligibility later on.