Anatomy of Woman's Sex Organ: The vulva, vagina and G-spot

Women's sexual organs are, apart from the breasts, not very visible, and are mostly located
inside the body. Somehow, there also seems to be less clarity about what the different parts are
and how they work compared to men. This is especially true for the G-spot and female erectile
tissues, the very existence of which is questioned by some people.

Let's start with the visible bits, which are called the vulva (or pudendum) in women. First is the
mons pubis, or mound of Venus. In adult women this is the area above the genitals which is
covered in pubic hair. Underneath the skin are layers of fatty tissue which absorb and cushion
some of the pressure during intercourse.

Further down lie two sets of skin folds, which surround the vaginal opening. The outside set of
skin folds, or labia majora (a single one is known as a labium majus), are covered with pubic hair
on the outside and are made up of a large bulk of fatty tissue. They contain oil and sweat glands,
which help to keep the area moist on the inside. The labia majora are derived from the same fetal
tissue as the male scrotum.

The next set of skin folds, which protect the vaginal opening, are the labia minora (singular:
labium minus). These smaller labia do not have hair or contain fatty tissue, and they have only a
few sweat glands. What they do contain is erectile tissue and oil glands. During sexual arousal
the labia minora will fill with blood and change size and color. They are derived from the tissues
which go on to build the spongy penile urethra in male babies.

The clitoris is located at the junction of the labia minora.

It's a small, two or three cm long cylindrical body which is doubled over on itself. Like the glans of
the penis in men it is made up of erectile tissue and full of nerve endings. The clitoris enlarges
during sex and is the focus of much of the sexual stimulation registered by a woman's brain. A
layer of skin called the "hood" or "prepuce", which is formed from the joining of the labia minora,
covers the clitoris, though it can be pushed back to reveal the shiny surface of the clitoral glans.
The clitoris can be extremely sensitive to touch, especially friction, which can result in pain rather
than pleasure if a woman is not sexually aroused. Touch becomes more pleasurable when the
tissues are aroused and filled with blood, a fact which is true of much of the female genitals. As
with other parts of the female body, the genitals are really individual in their shape, size and look.
There is no standard way your genitals need to look - whatever they look like, they are OK as
they are, and like millions of other women.

The area between the labia minora is called the vestibule. It contains the vaginal opening, the
external opening of the urethra (the outlet through which you pee), and the openings for the
paraurethral and greater vestibular glands, plus a few other smaller glands as well. The opening
of the urethra lies above the vaginal opening and below the clitoris. You may not be able to see
this small opening, but you might be able to feel it when you touch it: the sensations connected
with it are similar to those associated with peeing. And even if you don't find it, looking for it can
be a pretty pleasurable endeavor! (Use of a mirror and a bright light are recommended here, and
perhaps the assistance of a sympathetic partner as well, if you have one.)

The vaginal opening leads into the muscular cavity of the vagina. The paired paraurethral glands,
which open externally next to the outlet of the urethra, are derived from the same tissue as the
male prostate. The glands themselves are embedded in the wall of the urethra. They provide
mucus as lubrication during intercourse. Other glands, greater and lesser vestibular glands, open
up just inside the labia minora and also provide mucus for lubrication.
The Vagina

Now we are starting our journey into the female body. The word vagina literally means sheath,
which is a pretty good description of this organ. The vagina is a long, fairly thin tube of muscles
and fibrous tissue, lined on the inside by mucous membranes. It accommodates the penis during
intercourse and receives the ejaculated sperm. Additionally, it's the passage through which babies
are born (except for those which are born by Caesarean section) and it acts as a conduit for the
discharge of the monthly menstrual fluids from the uterus.

The size of the vagina is very flexible: so much so that it can accommodate almost any size and
shape of penis. It is about 10 cm long and forms a kind of H-shaped cavity inside, though during
sexual intercourse it expands and molds itself around the penis. The vagina is actually quite an
active organ, since it's made up of an outer layer of circular muscles and an inner layer of
longitudinal muscles. However, only the first third of the vagina has plenty of nerve endings,
which leaves the inner two thirds fairly insensitive. This is yet another reason why "big penis"
does not equal "big thrill" for most women.

Most of the muscles making up the vagina are smooth muscles, which means they are not under
conscious control (similar to the muscles in your digestive system). However, a woman can
contract the muscles around the vagina found in her pelvic floor: these are the pubococcygeus, or
for short, PC muscles. These muscles can be trained and strengthened (see "Kegel exercises"),
which increases the strength of a woman's orgasms and improves the likelihood of her ejaculating
during sex (more on that under "female ejaculation").

The inside of the vagina is lined by a mucous membrane which secretes a sugar called glycogen.
This provides energy for the normal, healthy bacteria of the vagina, which ferment the sugar and
produce lactic acid as a by-product. This lactic acid results in the interior of the vagina being
slightly acidic, which protects it from microbes, and also, rather oddly, sperm. (Semen therefore
has to contain substances which neutralize the acidic environment of the vagina.) It is important
that this natural balance of healthy bacteria is maintained inside the vagina, otherwise a woman
may experience frequent infections such as Candida (also known as thrush).
As we mentioned before, the vagina opens externally into the vestibular area. During childhood a
thin membrane called the hymen protects the entrance to the vagina. However, this membrane is
perforated to allow menstrual fluids to flow through. An intact hymen has long been seen as a
sign of virginity, but it actually has a tendency to rupture before a woman's first intercourse during
exercise or sporting activities. However, even if it's still only partially in place it can make the first
time of intercourse uncomfortable and produce a little bleeding for a young woman. Thankfully, as
the obsession of the western civilization with women's virginity has lessened, so has the
importance of the hymen and the prevalence of the myths about the painfulness of having it
broken by the penis during first intercourse. (Click on the images below to enlarge them. They
show the remains of the hymen tissue around the vaginal opening.)

At the back end of the vagina lies the cervix, the narrow opening of the uterus into the vagina,
situated in the front wall of the vagina. The vagina does not lead straight into the cervix; rather,
the uterus sits next to the vagina at a right angle to the front and upwards from it. This
arrangement leaves a little pouch at the end of the vagina called the fornix. The fornix is much
less sensitive than the cervix. It absorbs the main thrusts during intercourse and forms a reservoir
for the pool of sperm which is left behind in the vagina after a man has ejaculated. The location of
the cervix means it is conveniently bathed in the pool of ejaculate if the woman is lying on her
back after or during intercourse.

The G-spot

The G-spot must be the most contentious and hotly debated part of women's sexual anatomy.
Some say it is the most important part of the female sex organs, others say there is no scientific
evidence for its existence. It's named after the German gynecologist Ernst Grafenberg, who found
it while looking into new methods of contraception (that's where the G in G-spot comes from). For
the sake of this work, we shall assume it exists.
So, the G-spot is a particularly sensitive area in the front wall of the vagina, often situated quite
close to the vaginal opening, but always in the first third of the vagina. However, it's not a single
spot, but a small area, which is more sensitive than other parts of the vaginal wall. Deborah
Sundahl, author of the book Female Ejaculation And The G-Spot, sees the G-spot as the area of
the vaginal wall which touches most closely on a vast network of erectile tissue around the vagina
made up in part of a gland which is equivalent to the prostate gland in men (therefore she calls it
the female prostate).

I think this makes a lot of sense. However I also believe many women and men doubt the
existence of the G-spot because they have exaggerated ideas about how it should work. If you
think of the G-spot as a convenient button which you can push at any time to be rewarded by
instantaneous, gigantic orgasms, you're only going to be disappointed! As with other erectile
sexual tissue in women's genitals, the area of the G-spot needs time and stimulation to become
filled with blood; it then becomes receptive to stronger stimuli and produces stronger, more
pleasurable sensations. The G-spot area enlarges and protrudes more obviously into the vagina,
the more aroused and sexually excited the tissues are. Therefore, if you want to look for your G-
spot, give it time: you need to play with it for a while until your body responds with arousal.
Another challenge is that many women are very cut off from the sensations in their genitals,
which can then end up feeling numb or uncomfortable. You may need to massage your G-spot
area gently over time to nurture it back into its full capacity for sexual sensitivity. There's more on
this kind of sexual healing for women under "love your genitals".

```````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````
`````