These include the following:
• vagina
• cervix
• uterus
• fallopian tubes
• ovaries
All these organs are supported by a bone and muscle structure called the pelvic girdle. Both men and women have a pelvic girdle. It is more developed and wider in women because it has to support a fetus during pregnancy. This is why girls’ and women’s hips are often wider than the hips of boys or men.
Vagina
The vagina is the structure that connects a woman’s external sex organs to her internal sex and reproductive system. The opening of the vagina is in the middle of the vulva, beneath the opening of the urethra. The vagina is a flexible passage that is four to five inches long. In its relaxed state, the soft, moist walls of this tunnel-like structure touch against each other like the walls of a collapsed balloon. Like a balloon, the vagina has the ability to enlarge a great deal.
The flexible vagina can accommodate the penis during intercourse and the fetus during childbirth—the vagina is also the birth canal. During birth, the fetus passes from the cervix of the uterus through the vaginal canal to the outside of the woman’s body. During menstruation, blood and tissue flow along the same path.
Hymen
A thin membrane of skin may stretch across part of the vaginal opening. It is called the hymen. An opening in the hymen allows menstrual flow to pass out of the body. Most girls are born with a hymen. Some are born without it. The condition of the hymen is not a good indicator of sexual virginity for one or more of three reasons:
• A girl may have been born without a hymen.
• The hymen can easily be ruptured during normal physical activity and sports.
• The hymen can be stretched open by the use of tampons.
G-Spot
There is a small area called the Grafenberg Spot, or G-Spot, inside the vaginas of some women. It is located about an inch or two inside the vaginal opening in the vaginal wall that is closest to the navel. The G-Spot is sexually sensitive and swells slightly during sex play.
*4/155/5*
