There are tons of myths and misinformation about sex and sexual health, especially in the online world—and sifting through them to find facts might not be easy. One such popular myth is that if a woman has a lot of sex, then their vagina can become loose and wider. However, this is far from the truth.
The Channel 46 caught up with Dr Sanjay Kumavat, Consultant Psychiatrist & Sexologist, Fortis Hospital, Mumbai. He lays out five facts about the elasticity of the female vagina:
1. Having Sex, Or Even Regular Sex Doesn’t Make Your Vagina Loose
A vagina is a muscular canal, and its tissue is elastic. Since it is super flexible, it can accommodate things that enter it, like a penis or similar size soft objects, say a dildo. While the vagina is extremely accommodating in this regard, it is essential to understand that, like other elastic tissues in the human body, the vagina can contract and relax to bounce back to its original size whenever needed.
2. Vaginal Relaxation When You’re Aroused & Having Sex Is Temporary
The functioning manner of the vagina can be compared to that of the mouth. When a person yawns or wraps their lips around a triple-decker burger, their lips snap back to their standard shape and size, right? The same is true for a vagina. When the muscle in the body tenses and relaxes, as muscles do, it can sometimes create an illusion that makes the muscle feel tighter or looser. This can sometimes be supposed during sex because the pelvic floor muscles relax with excitement, making the vagina more accommodating. Once an individual is no longer aroused, the vagina returns to its original state. For this to happen, it does not matter how often or hard the vagina is penetrated or how big the penis/dildo/ toy is — that relaxation isn’t permanent.
3. Breaking Of The Hymen Has Nothing To Do With The Vagina’s Tightness
After the first few times, a woman has had sex, their vaginal opening can sometimes become more open. This might happen because it was previously covered by the hymen, a thin membrane of tissue covering the vaginal opening of all women. However, this is not something that happens only during sex since the hymen could break earlier due to the use of tampons/pads during periods or even when a woman is playing sports.
4. Childbirth & Ageing Reduce The Elasticity Of Your Vagina To A Small Extent
Since we have established that sex does not affect the vagina in terms of its elasticity, some things can affect it, namely ageing and childbirth, although these changes in the tightness are not drastic by any stretch. Vaginal elasticity begins to change in a woman after age 40 when oestrogen levels start to drop during the menopausal phase. Due to low levels of oestrogen, the vaginal tissue tends to get thinner and drier and eventually becomes less stretchy. When it comes to childbirth, the vagina undergoes significant changes after vaginal delivery as a baby has just passed through the birth canal and out of the vagina.
5. Having Very Tight Vaginal Muscles Can Make Sex Very Painful
Also, there is little to no awareness about this but having tight vaginal muscles isn’t something that should be celebrated. That’s because it can make a sexual encounter extremely painful or impossible. Further, extreme tightness could also signify vaginismus, which is treatable.
If you have questions about sexual health and reproduction, it is highly recommended that you reach out to the correct source or specialist so that these myths do not affect your overall sexual health. No two bodies are the same, and sometimes sex with a new partner can feel very different. Besides, the human bodies also change over time due to various factors like age, weight loss or gain, and illness, which is why the vagina might feel loose or tight depending on these specific scenarios.
