Consider the word vagina. It's often used to describe your ever-elusive lady parts as a whole, but it's actually a misnomer: Your vagina's technically inside of your body that's why an ob-gyn has to use a speculum to see it ; what many women are referring to when they say "vagina" is actually the vulva—your external genitalia. Familiarizing yourself with Ready for vagina anatomy ? Time to dive in.

While our experienced, well-trained, compassionate staff is always pleased to help provide you with knowledge and medical expertise; we encourage you to take a few minutes to take a closer look at the inside of your Vagina. Just barely inside the vaginal opening, you may see the vaginal corona, or hymen. Not even all people with vulvas are born with intact or easily identifiable vaginal coronas. During the first few times someone has intercourse or other vaginal entry, pain or bleeding can happen though it more often does not due to the wearing away of the corona. There are some whose vaginal coronas simply are so thick, or have such a small opening, that it is indeed painful to have intercourse or enter the vagina otherwise, and sometimes a medical procedure needs to be done to remedy that. All in all, there are many causes for or sources of sexual pain, and the corona is only one of many. If you can put your finger inside your vagina, towards your belly, not your back, you may or may not feel a spongy length of tissue that is a bit like the roof of your mouth in texture if you have short fingers, you may not be able to.

Back to Sexual health. Vaginas are designed to help us have and enjoy sex, have periods and have babies. But what's normal and what's not?

Performing a vaginal self-exam at home can help you familiarize yourself with your own body, as all vaginas are different. It can also help you identify changes and abnormalities. A gynecologist can check you for symptoms of sexually transmitted diseases STDs and perform a Pap smear test to screen for cervical cancer.