Overview

What if everything you'd been told would make you a woman was suddenly taken from you? Sixteen-year-old Ally eagerly anticipates the promises of womanhood: periods, sex, love and motherhood. But a shocking medical diagnosis shatters these dreams in an instant, setting heron an unexpected path of grief, bodily trauma and a relentless quest for love and identity. In this bold and much-needed memoir, Ally bares her darkest moments following her diagnosis of Mayer-Rokitansky-Küster-Hauser Syndrome (MRKH). With raw honesty, she reveals the challenges of living as a woman born without a uterus or vagina, confronting societal expectations, censorship and her own sense of self. Ally's journey will inspire, break and uplift you, while posing the important question: What really makes a woman?

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9781916797765

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Reviews

'An important, timely and powerful book about one woman's quest to be ""normal"" and how to release ourselves from the suffocating grip of that word.' - Fran Bushe, author of My Broken Vagina 'A beautiful yet brutally honest account of a woman's journey to accepting herself. Raw, funny, candid - you'll be whisked through the pages with Ally's voice in your head as she navigates the shock of her diagnosis as a teenager, shame as she grapples with it, self-destruction as a coping mechanism but ultimately acceptance and self-discovery.This is a book for all women. It covers so many key topics about our roles in society, relationships, intimacy and so much more. I read it in one go!' - Isla Traquair, award-winning journalist and broadcaster 'A breathtakingly honest, raw and surprisingly funny memoir about what it means for society to question your identity.' - Amy Molloy, journalist and author of Wife, Interrupted 'Everyone has a vagina story, whether we have a vagina or not. The word is shrouded in stigma - hidden and censored just like our stories, untold and buried in shame. The power in this narrative untangles so many layers of society, from poor sex education to defining womanhood and unlearning our pre-defined roles. Ally's story, a storyI share as another womb-less, vagina-less woman, touches so many hearts stuck in this binary world; from sex, gender and bodies, all the things that shouldn't have a rule book. It amplifies the message that we are no less. It teaches us that there's no one way to be a girl, or a woman, or a person - we aren't in a contract with society. It's a vagina story that queefs away the patriarchal definition of ""woman"" but that gives a big labia-hug to trauma, self-esteem and mental health.' - Ellamae Fullalove, creator of Va Va Womb, and sex and body positivity social media influencer

Author Information

Ally Hensley is an author, speaker, stigma shaker and global ambassador for women's health and happiness. Ally has written for leading publications on mental health, infertility and body positivity, and has become a regular media contributor on her experience of being born with MRKH, a medical condition resulting in the absence of a womb and vagina. In 2020, Ally co-produced the first short film about MRKH, alongside a leading digital storytelling brand, featuring women from across the globe who bravely shared experiences with MRKH. This film premiered at the World Congress for Paediatric and Adolescent Gynaecology in 2019, exposing the experiences of seven women across the globe as they told their unique and complex stories of their MRKH diagnosis.As an international spokesperson for MRKH on how to redefine womanhood on her own terms, Ally advocates to raise support and awareness of this life-altering diagnosis. She founded Australia's first MRKH organisation, MRKH Australia, in 2013, co-founded Global MRKH in 2016 and is a board member of the UK's flagship charity, MRKH Connect. Her podcast Stigma Shakers recently launched, and just two seasons in, this stigma-focused show has been featured by the BBC, among many other national publications, and has reached over 150k views. Now, Stigma Shakers is recognised as not just a taboo-tackling platform, but a social movement, in questioning: 'Is the only thing normal in this world difference?'Ally works to reduce the stigma surrounding sexual (mental) health and prompts conversations that matter. She defines herself as a realistic but scrappy dreamer - where fact is essential, and originality is to be absolutely embraced.

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