Читать книгу Sex For Dummies - Pierre Lehu A., Dr. Ruth K. Westheimer - Страница 62

What makes women different from men is that much of our sexual apparatus is on the inside — most notably, the vagina. The vagina itself is a hollow, muscular tube that extends from the external opening at the vestibule all the way to the cervix, which is the entrance to the uterus. (The cervix and uterus have their own sections in this chapter.)

An adult woman’s vagina is about 3 to 4 inches long and extremely flexible. During intercourse, the vagina stretches to accommodate the penis. When a woman gives birth, the vagina stretches even more, becoming part of the birth canal through which the baby passes on its way into the world. When a vagina has nothing in it, it collapses like an empty balloon.

The vagina doesn’t go straight back, but usually angles upward. (Some women have a tipped vagina, which angles downward, but this condition is rare.) Some women, not aware of the angle, have a difficult time inserting a tampon because they think it should be pushed straight back rather than at an angle that matches the vagina’s.