Doctors, nurses and some other health professionals such as physiotherapists are in the unique position of having licence to examine the most intimate parts of the body; indeed, they are expected and required to do so. The vulnerable moment of examination may provide an opportunity for the patient to get in touch with feelings. Sometimes she has been aware of the feelings but has not been able to share them before. Sometimes she may be surprised by feelings she did not even know that she had. In this context the word ‘she’ is appropriate, as the finding was first noticed with women and thought to be particularly potent because of the hidden nature of the female genitalia (Tunnadine, 1992). One woman, at the moment that the labia were parted by the doctor, said, ‘There is an inner and outer part of me … the curtains have to be parted … I cannot find my female self.’ Revelations can also take place during the examination of other parts of the body, especially the breasts. However, the finding is not confined to women; important moments of emotional contact are also experienced during the examination of the man, and particularly his genitals (Barrett, 1992).
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