Tarryn Maree speaks to African Alliance about trying both the sponge and the ring-based inner condom, after finding out they were freely available at a clinic in Cape Town.
This article is part of an African Alliance series celebrating 25 years of the inner condom in South Africa and the people who helped to establish the world’s biggest state-funded inner condom project.
Tarryn Maree, 38 years old, was born and raised in Cape Town, South Africa. She’s a project manager, working for a large retail company, specifically in shop development in shop fitting. While she has a three year old daughter and has been in a long-term relationship for five years, she’s used the inner condom in the past. In her spare time, she reads, relaxes, and does fun things with her daughter.
“My experience with using the inner condom, from what I recall, was not that great. The last time I used an inner condom was about 7 years ago. I think I had gone to a female clinic, where they had them [the inner condom] readily available and free for anyone to take them,” Maree tells African Alliance.
She thought since she had not tried it before that she might as well give it a go. Her first impression was that the inner condom looked just like the male condom, but bigger. The one she used was the updated version, where the silicon ring inside is twisted into a figure eight and then inserted.
“I’ve used the one with the silicon ring and the sponge, they were both similar in inserting them. You do see a bit of the condom on the outside of the vagina, I think I found that a bit awkward, but also I tried them when I was much younger,” she says. “I was not as comfortable in my sexuality.”
The feel of it was like any other condom, she muses. The ones she tried were the government-issued condoms – they look and feel thicker when taking it out the packaging, but the feeling is much the same as a ‘normal’ condom. Overall, she prefers the inner condom with the sponge and thinks that men also prefer the feeling of the sponge.
“Lots of people will say they don’t like using condoms. The female condom is no different.”
Maree says it’s a good way as a woman to have control over your sexual safety. And it’s a nice thing to try, and all women should at least try once, she adds.
There’s important things to note about the inner condom, Maree explains, firstly that it puts power in a woman’s life, where a woman can prepare herself for sex, because you can insert it eight hours before you might have sex – not right before the act.
“It’s a great way for women to protect themselves, possibly when they are in a situation with a partner who doesn’t want to use a male condom, or they are no condoms available or even in a situation where they may be sexually assaulted so at least there’s protection against HIV, Gonorrhea and Herpes and the likes,” she says.
Maree thinks it should be even more available as an option in clinics and toilets – she also thinks there are women who would use it to protect themselves – and in that regard, she thinks it’s a brilliant tool.
She also hopes that it will become more visible in private shops, with as much variance in flavor and style as the external condom, and maybe even an update in packaging design to make it more appealing.
“Our safety is so important in this world we live in,” Maree says. “I would love to see inner condoms become a more common thing.”
It used to be taboo for women to talk about sex, she says. That realm was left to men.
That is no longer the case, so women shouldn’t stand back when it comes to their sexual health.
She explains: “In this day and age, women should take any opportunity to make sexual health tools such as the inner condom work for them.”
Are you a woman who’s used an inner condom? What do you think should chance to improve the experience? Get in touch with us on X and Instagram. We’re at @Afri_Alliance on both platforms.