4 Myths About the Va:gina You Should Stop Believing Today

Sure, as a woman, you have yours, but how much do you really know about the vagina? Most women have been entertaining the wrong ideas regarding their daily bits.

These ideas, at best, might cause you to look at your vagina wrongly, and at worst, can lead to infection and cause you to hurt yourself.

Here are four biggest myths about the vagina.

Myth: Everything “down there” is the vagina.

Reality:  The external part of the female sex organ is actually the vulva. The vagina is actually just the tube inside that runs from the uterus and cervix to the vaginal opening. The vulva, on the other hand, is the all-in-one term for the entire external shebang: clitoris, urethral opening (pee hole), inner and outer labia (lips), vaginal opening, perineum (taint), and anus. The vagina itself is made of both muscle and elastic and runs from the vulva — the external female sex organ — to the cervix (the mouth of the uterus).\

Myth: Your vagina stays the same throughout your life

Reality: Before puberty, little girls’ vaginas are very small because in actuality, nothing is meant to go into their vaginas. Their vaginas aren’t meant to expand and contract like a reproductive-age woman. When they go through puberty and start making estrogen, you have the ability for the vagina to stretch and elongate. Puberty isn’t the only time the vagina shifts gears as a result of hormones. Once you lose the ability to produce estrogen — when you’re peri-menopausal or post-menopausal — there is reduced elasticity and reduced ability [for the vagina] to elongate, which can lead to pain during intercourse for older women.

Myth: Vaginas are dirty!

Reality: “This couldn’t be further from the truth. Vaginas are self-cleaning (like the eyes) — that’s what vaginal discharge, like tears and eye discharge, is for. It keeps women’s bodies clean. The number one misconception regarding the vagina and vaginal health is that the vagina is dirty. While many women think that it needs to be cleaned with soap, deodorized, douched, etc., the use of products to clean the vagina itself [can] actually cause far more harm than good — by destroying the natural, balanced ecology of the vagina and contributing to recurrent yeast and bacterial infections.” One of the main reasons for women to not douche or use scented products is risk of causing an infection or inflammation — for most women, inflammation occurs outside on the vulva and is a contact dermatitis that is basically a skin inflammation. Douching can not only cause bacterial vaginosis, but should you have been exposed to a sexually transmitted disease (STD) like chlamydia, douching will only serve to push the disease bacteria further up into your vagina.

Myth: Vaginas stink.

Reality: Every woman has her own scent and it should never be foul to her or her partner. A woman’s vaginal odor can change throughout her menstrual cycle, and could even be more noticeable after sex; sweating can also lead to some vaginal odor. Ultimately, if your vaginal odor is not accompanied by other symptoms, then it’s probably not abnormal. Plus, keep in mind that while you may feel self-conscious about your vaginal odor, chances are very low that other people (who aren’t having intimate contact with you) can smell it. In fact, most people really like the way their partners’ vaginas and vulvas smell. It’s the kind of smell that is an important part of what makes sex sexy for them.