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Feminism: Sex and gender discussions

Some interesting facts about the vagina...

213 replies

ResistanceIsNecessary · 26/06/2018 12:56

Inspired by this thread on twitter which had some good vagina info. It's amazing how many people know so little about the female anatomy so here are some more interesting facts!

  • The walls are very elastic to allow it to stretch and then shrink back again after vaginal childbirth delivery. It does not require manual dilation to keep it open or maintain its shape, unless as a result of side effects from other medical procedures (such as some female-occurring cancer treatments).
  • It is self-cleaning and has a naturally acidic environment until the time around ovulation, when the PH changes to make it more accommodating for sperm, to promote fertilisation. It does not require daily artificial cleaning products or lubricant to keep it healthy.
  • The walls of the vagina (the vaginal vault) are made up of two layers of muscle tissue, which allow for expansion and contraction - which can often be felt as 'ridges', which lessen with age or post- vaginal delivery childbirth. The walls contain no glands.

Feel free to add your own facts Smile

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0ccamsRazor · 26/06/2018 15:45

best to go to the loo

0ccamsRazor · 26/06/2018 15:42

The cervix moves up and down in the vagina, you can tell when you are fertile by feeling its position.

There are little ridges between the first knuckle and second knuckle if you pop a finger in and hook the finger towards the belly button. Those ridges if the correct pressure and movement for the individual woman is used give a very powerful vaginal orgasm, similar to a male prostate orgasm. When exploring at first the feeling is similar to wanting to pre, so always he's to go to the loo first. Once you get used to the feeling, the feeling of wanting to urinate diminishes.

Grin
KittyKlaws · 26/06/2018 15:35

@LangCleg that looks like an iris! Or an orchid!

That's why people came up with the theory Georgia O'Keefe was painting vulvas - look up her paintings if you aren't already familiar and while you're at it look up Judy Chicago's The Dinner Party installation - a wonderful feminist work of art (and still not straying too far from the topic at hand).

FormerlyPickingOakum · 26/06/2018 15:34

Apparently, vaginal lubrication is the best lubricant in existence.

An engineer once told me that in complete seriousness.

DryHeave · 26/06/2018 15:34

Hear hear! The vagina is an absolutely epic organ, and not merely (or some cases ever) a recepticle for a penis.

I recently watched an interview on YouTube in which someone who had undergone sex change surgery giggled to the male interviewer “yes, it’s fully functioning” in reference to their neovagina. I don’t think I’d ever heard anything as phallocentric before.

Rufustheyawningreindeer · 26/06/2018 15:34

Thats funny

Ive just watched that scene in Orange is the New black when some of the women are educated as to the makeup of a vagina

KittyKlaws · 26/06/2018 15:33

Keeping your pubic hair actually protects the vagina and vulva from infections. It also protects against friction.

Datun · 26/06/2018 15:33

Oh yes, the caped crusader that is the clitoris.

Apparently double the amount of nerve endings than a penis has.

Unlike the vagina, which has rather few, if any.

A detail of which many men seem entirely unaware.

Cascade220 · 26/06/2018 15:32

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

RedFin · 26/06/2018 15:30

I thought the origin of "cunt" was from an ancient form of the word/idea of "wedge" , similar etymology to cuneiform script (which is a system of wedges impressed into clay)

LangCleg · 26/06/2018 15:26

that looks like an iris! Or an orchid!

Beautiful, right? And no other function than a woman's pleasure. No. Other. Function.

And, surprisingly enough (not), one of the least studied.

BettyDuMonde · 26/06/2018 15:25

*hides in corner and hopes that no one invites me to view their cervix a la Annie Sprinkle. I’m from the Home Counties Grin

picklemepopcorn · 26/06/2018 15:25

All women have a clitoris. Completely irrefutable. Always thought it was just a lucky extra!

gingergenius · 26/06/2018 15:23

@LangCleg that looks like an iris! Or an orchid!

ResistanceIsNecessary · 26/06/2018 15:18

The walls go a darker bluish colour during pregnancy as the blood vessels dilate.

Truly the human body is really amazingly intricate when you think about it!

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BeyondFemaleElitist · 26/06/2018 15:13

Arran - and that is across races too. Making #notallvaginasarepink a tad confusing... Confused

LangCleg · 26/06/2018 15:13

I know we're talking about vaginas but can I just derail slightly for this beautiful image of the clitoris? Look at it! Gorgeous!

Some interesting facts about the vagina...
arranfan · 26/06/2018 15:09

The walls are pink! I'm genuinely surprised how often it's expected that it's a dark and dank place (and that's without addressing the v. dentata angle).

LangCleg · 26/06/2018 15:04

Vaginas are self-cleaning. It's not only unnecessary to use douche-type products, it's also worse to use them than just leave it to its magical, wonderful self.

Picassospaintbrush · 26/06/2018 15:03

Anyone old enough to remember the days when we bought our own speculums and looked at our cervixes with mirrors?

I remember reading about this in Spare Rib back in the 70s. One writer had told her doc she was doing this, the doctor was very cross and said "you shouldn't be putting anything that's not sterile in your vagina".

Cue much hilarity about how to sterilise a penis, was boiling better than a hot oven etc!

Funny how I still remember that.

ResistanceIsNecessary · 26/06/2018 15:01

When studying the Wife of Bath's tale at Uni, our tutorial group was told that "cunt" was Chaucerian and originates from the word "quaint".

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LangCleg · 26/06/2018 15:01

Anyone old enough to remember the days when we bought our own speculums and looked at our cervixes with mirrors?

Me! Me! Me!

spontaneousgiventime · 26/06/2018 14:59

What I want to say about the vagina would get me a strike. Grin

NoiceSmort · 26/06/2018 14:57

There isn't a name for the lubricating stuff it produces. Which is really, really weird.

That is so weird. I was going to say unbelievably weird, but I have no trouble believing it unfortunately.

BeyondFemaleElitist · 26/06/2018 14:53

www.matthewhunt.com/cunt/