Symbol of entry into sexual life, the loss of virginity results in the rupture of the hymen in women. In the collective imagination, it is always accompanied by bleeding. But, are these really systematic? The point with Dr. Odile Bagot, gynecologist.
In common parlance, a woman is said to lose her virginity when she had her first penetrative sex. In the medical field, this concept is used when the hymen, the thin membrane which covers part of the entrance to the vagina, is torn. The only way to know if the hymen is broken is through a gynecological examination. “But the hymen being flexible and stretchableit may have been penetrated without being torn“nuances Dr. Odile Bagot.
Is it normal to bleed after first intercourse?
At the time of the first sexual intercourse, rupture of the hymen can cause bleeding. It is therefore perfectly normal to bleed after the first intercourse. But the bleeding is not systematic, so there is no need to worry if there is no bleeding. In fact, some young women have such a loose hymen that it can pull apart enough to allow penetration without causing bleeding. “It is normal to bleed on first intercourse and there are often small traces of blood in the pants in the week that follows. It very rarely happens that the hymen is too thick, which makes penetration complicated and very painful. Warning, the impossibility of penetration in the first intercourse is generally due to vaginismus and not to an anatomical anomaly of the hymen !”, explains the gynecologist.
Do you always bleed when the hymen tears?
There are no studies on the subject but it is estimated thatabout half the time it is possible to lose your virginity without bleeding. The hymen is relatively elastic, it is not a closed membrane but a kind of disc which is perforated with a hole. When you put a little finger through a virgin woman’s hymen, or a tampon, it doesn’t tear. “In re-education for vaginismus, I pass a candle 3 centimeters in diameter without tearing the hymen. It stretches it, it’s like an elastic band. Very rarely there is a little bleeding“, specifies the specialist.
Does everyone bleed on first intercourse?
Contrary to popular belief, bleeding during first intercourse are not systematic. Some women have a hymen that is flexible enough to stretch without tearing. This is the reason whye virginity should not be associated with bleeding.
Why do we bleed after first intercourse?
Bleeding after first intercourse is normal and benign. These bleedings are due to hymen rupture which then has four small tears. The remains of the hymens then form a kind of “lace” called the hymenal wattles.
Can you lose your virginity with a tampon?
Losing your virginity means having your first sexual intercourse. In other wordsit is impossible to lose your virginity with a tampon, neither doing the splits, nor having any other trauma to the vulva. In contrast, in tampon can slightly widen the hymen.
Most of the time, the bleeding stops spontaneously. “If it’s not the case, you have to go to the hospital and do stitches to suture the arteriole. In the meantime, if the bleeding is strong, you can take a large cotton ball and press on the level of the vagina, as when you are bleeding from the nose“, advises Dr. Odile Bagot.
Thanks to Dr Odile Bagot, gynecologist, author of Vagin & Cie, we tell you everything! (Ed. Mango) and My gynecological survival guide (Ed. Marabout)