Sadly, because of lack of proper sex education, many men AND women don't know what's going on with the female genitalia, even if they're looking right at it. Unless you talk to someone who knows or you educate yourself with research, things are just there and stuff is just happening. You might have seen the scene in the show Orange is the New Black where the ladies find out where their pee is coming out from. Do you know where? Well, whether you do or not, this myTake will tell you at least one thing you didn't know. Let's work our way from the outside in.
Ever been or seen someone hit “in the vagina?” While that can happen, it's probably not what happened. Waxing your vagina for your new bikini is a whole other story than what you might think. What most people call the vagina is actually called the vulva.
This is what the vulva looks like closed:Credit: The Period blog
This is what it looks like open:
Credit: The Period blog
See that hole? THAT is the vagina. We'll come back to that later.
Grab a mirror or a girl. Spread those legs!~ See those flaps? The ones on the outside are the labia majora. If you spread those, you'll see the labia minora. Ever heard of innies and outies vaginas? No? Good, because now that we know what a vagina is, that'd be a biological anamoly. Look at the picture of the closed vulva. When the labia minora extend past the labia majora, that is an outie. When it is within, that is an innie. If it's equal, that's just whatever because all of the above are normal and vary just like faces vary. If anyone knows what that means for identical twins, do tell. (Note, for outies, the clitoris may be larger and/or more accessible. That's the only difference. The diagram below might clarify what I mean.)
Okay, look back at the open vulva. Notice there's only one big hole there. You may ask, Where does the pee come out of?
Credit: The Period blog
See that tiny hole called the urethra? Yeah, it's there. Nothing is going into it because it is really small. Okay, catheters can go in, but your fingers, toys, dicks, tampons, and whatever other objects you stick down there (actually, don't put random objects down there) can't go in. Only thing that comes out is pee and the not-so-common female ejaculate.
The vagina is that big hole you see. It opens up wider when the woman is aroused, on her period, during her fertile period, or having a baby. Or when toys or a penis enters.
Planning on popping some cherries? Uh, no. Nothing's popping. See the light pink thing on the vagina labelled the hymen? Supposedly that's the cherry. Depending on the girl, it may have one hole or many holes, but either way it is elastic and doesn't break. If it tears because of strenuous exercise or rough sex then there may be a little blood. But you can tell your Chinese mother not to worry about your virginity when you want to use a tampon (the sex education in Asia seems to be horrible if not nonexistent).
Now let's go inside.
Time for some sexy fun!
Credit: Wikipedia
See the vagina and cervix? The cervix is a muscle the blocks the vaginal from the uterus. The cervix only opens during childbirth so no penises or toys are getting all the way up in there. The vagina is about 3-5 inches long, depending on the person. “But my/his buddy is longer than that!” you may say. Lucky for you, during arousal, the vagina gets longer and expands. So if you're having sex and it hurts, the woman isn't aroused enough and you need to back up a step.
So, why does sex feel good? Not only are the vaginal walls sensitive (you won't feel tingly with a tampon though), but so is the clitoris which has internal parts too. Compare the diagrams below with the one above. Pay attention to the vagina and clitoris. (The yellow areas in the last diagram is the whole clitoris)
Credit: Daily Mail
Credit: Inside Trainer (the first image is top down, if you're confused)
The G-Spot is an especially sensitive place for a woman. That's sensitive in a good way. Here's another digram with good advice.
Credit: No clue. Sorry.
Haha! Looks like fun. Anyway, our next topic is health.
You may have called someone or be a douche, but if you go to the drug store looking for a douche, you won't see a man on the shelf. A douche is used for cleaning the vagina. But guess what! The vagina cleans itself! Cool, right? Vaginal discharge and fluids keep everything in balance. There's debate about douching, but people don't really give their pet cats baths, right? Same idea.
So that's it for our lesson on lady parts. If you have anything to add, please leave a comment.
I want to leave off saying a few things.
1. If we stop calling the vulva a vagina, and call it a vulva, there will be a lot less confused women and men and virgins having their first time (it's horrible when none of the parties know what they're doing). I suggest you start calling it a vulva. Even if you get weird stares, you can tell them “The vagina is a hole. The vulva is the whole thing” and you will look smarter than them.
2. Women have the right to sexual pleasure as much as men do. Don't feel shame or shame others, and discourage peopke who do.
3. If someone says a misconception or asks you to explain something, even a kid or teen, TELL THEM. Schools aren't going to do it for you and they can only gather certain things from experiencing it themselves. And sometimes, you don't want those experiences to be a surprise, messy, or bad. I'm not saying you have to tell your 6 year old niece what the G-spot is, but don't think the world will end if they know more than “boys have penises and girls have vaginas.”
Here are some great links if you want to know more or share.
8 Things You Didn't Know About Your Vagina
How to Find Your Vaginal Opening The related articles can be helpful for many girls
You Can't POP Your Cherry! (HYMEN 101) Also look at her other related videos about the G-spot amongst other things.
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