Vag Check! Debunking The Myth Behind “Loose Vagina”

Disclaimer: This guide about the meaning of a loose vagina and its actual causes is meant to be a source of valuable information for the reader. However, it is not a substitute for direct expert assistance. Seek help from a medical professional if you’re looking for personalized advice.

Hearing a term such as loose vagina can feel inglorious. Whether or not you know what it means, just hearing can make you uncomfortable. Especially if you’re a vulva owner, you’re already aware that it’s a shameful term. It’s not new for them to be sex shamed and the like. And man, we think that needs to be changed!

But aside from addressing how disrespectful this term is, we’ve also taken an informative approach by debunking its initial meaning with real facts.

Keep reading this guide to know exactly how a loose vagina can become one that’s not linked to one’s sexual activity.

Medical View on a Loose Vagina

Having a “loose” vagina may mean that there are changes related to its elasticity.

Vaginas are an elastic body part for vulva owners. Healthline highlights how they’re able to get into the right shape for certain situations and things. For one, they adjust when there are things coming inside of you, such as a tampon, sex toy, and another body part (e.g., fingers or penis). Then it can also adjust around anything coming out of you, like a baby during childbirth. Like think about it, labor has a purpose, even if it can be painful, and dilation is also crucial.

Given those situations, it makes your vagina stretch. But not to worry, they go back to their former and even original shape over time. Even as you get older and experience more with your body, it regains its elasticity.

Societal View of Loose Vagina

Aside from the medical view from the previous section, the term is used as an insult.

Society tends to look at a woman’s body in such a negative way over the years. Like no surprise there. And the concept of a loose vagina doesn’t get a free pass. The automatic impression of a vulva owner having such a vagina is that they have a lot of sex, and they do it with numerous people. 

Moreover, the more sex they have, the more loose their vagina becomes over time. There’s also that underlying idea that nobody would desire a woman or a vulva owner who sleeps around. Unfortunately, being shamed for nonsensical reasons like this one is always the case when it comes to women engaging in sex. It directly contributes to sex negativity, raising more stigma about the topic of sex for women. 

Also as a result of such shame, a lot of people would look down on those specific vulva owners, judging them and trying to feel and look superior to them.

Now, let’s get the facts straight. A loose vagina occurs mainly due to natural causes, which we’ll get more in-depth about later on. Other than that, such negative views toward having a loose vagina can result in harmful emotions such as insecurity, distress, guilt, and anxiety. It can even make someone feel ostracized from their surroundings when the judgment becomes severe.

To cap things off, having a loose vagina is a misconception rooted in centuries-old sexism. It shouldn’t matter who does the deed and how often they do it. It’s also no one’s business to pry and investigate someone’s sex life!

Actual Causes of a Loose Vagina

Rather than listening to and believing such myths and misconceptions, let’s actually unravel the real causes of a loose vagina in this section.

1 Age

It’s only common and natural for your body to change over the years, including your vagina. Medical News Today shares that during menopause, your estrogen levels drop. That means “your vaginal lining becomes drier and less elastic” over time. 

Post-menopause, it can become narrower and cause sexual discomfort due to the lack of lubrication.

2 Childbirth

Pregnancy itself brings a series of physical, mental, and emotional changes. Even postpartum, your body will experience such shifts. This is to be expected when bringing new life to the world!

In terms of childbirth, we’re focusing on a natural, vaginal delivery.

Your body stretches out to create an opening that’s wide enough to accommodate the baby. Specifically, your vaginal muscles (aka the birth canal) adjust and make a safe passage. Post-birth, your vagina will feel different and a bit weaker after all that strenuous activity. It’s also possible not to return to its original shape at all. Well, it’s either that or it takes quite a while for it to become its tight state.

It’s quite a case-by-case situation. If you’ve had more than 1 birth, it can weaken your vaginal muscles bit by bit after each one. Delivering a relatively bigger baby or experiencing a difficult delivery can also affect your vagina. Age has an impact too — under 30, women may have a quicker recovery in contrast to those over 30.

3 Sex

Your vaginal muscles relax when they become aroused, getting ready for what’s to come. Usually, they’re tight. Thus, pre-sex activities, aka. foreplay to set the mood plays a key role in warming up your body before the deed. Either that or you can encounter discomfort, pain, and even injuries around the area if you’re not prepared enough.

4 Genetics

It’s possible that based on your family medical history, some genes contribute to having a loose vagina. Like how a chronic condition like hypertension can be passed down, the same may apply for such a vagina. Since we can’t control the genes we inherit, it’s important we take proper treatment measures to regain our vaginal muscle strength.

Treatment Options to Strengthen Your Vaginal Muscles

Avoid or improve a loose vagina with these various treatment options to choose from.

1 Kegel Exercises

Kegel exercises are the most beneficial pelvic floor exercises that someone with a loose vagina can do.

Your pelvic floor muscles support your vagina alongside other body parts, such as your uterus, rectum, and bladder. So when it weakens by loosening up, your pelvic floor muscles are also affected. Thus, pelvic floor exercises ensure on keeping your lower body afloat without complications such as mild incontinence or pelvic pain.

Back to kegel exercises, they are easy and private to do. One way to effectively do them is during urination. Here’s how you can do it:

1. Relax your body.
2. As you do your business, try to halt the flow. The muscles you’ll feel are your pelvic floor muscles. But be careful: Regularly doing this may affect your bladder health!
3. Hold it! Contract and squeeze those muscles for around 3-5 seconds. 
4. Release and breathe after under the same time range.
5. Repeat the said process 5-10 times and, if possible, schedule 3 sessions daily (morning, afternoon, and night).

These steps can also be done lying down and when you don’t need to pee either. You can also incorporate kegel balls into this routine.

2 ThermiVA

This procedure is a “non-surgical treatment that uses radiofrequency energy to gently heat (vaginal) tissue.” In other words, this radiofrequency energy can jumpstart new blood vessel growth, promoting vaginal tightness inside and out. It can even improve your sexual experiences as the procedure helps produce more natural lubrication and sensitivity. As a result, you experience fulfilling o’s and more pleasurable sex rather than uncomfortable.

3 Neuromuscular Electrical Stimulation (NMES)

Another form of non-surgical treatment for a loose vagina, NMES utilizes electricity to regain pelvic strength. With a probe, a pain-free electric current rushes into your pelvic floor to contract and relieve those muscles.

4 Vaginal Cones

This intriguing tool is similar to a tampon but with weight. As if you’re inserting a tampon, Healthline suggests that you hold it in place for 5 minutes. Since they come in different weights, you can start out with the lightest one and then build it up from there when you’ve gained strength from each one.

5 Surgery

Going through this option is only applicable after pelvic organ prolapse, wherein one or more of your pelvic organs are misplaced due to weakened pelvic muscles. Because such prolapse is painful and can’t be fixed with exercises alone, getting operated on is the next best and recommended option. 

6 Consulting with a medical professional

Talking to someone specializing in women’s health (gynecologist) or pelvic health can give you personal guidance and prescriptions. That way, you’d have a clearer idea of how to navigate your journey with a loose vagina. Or rather, prevent it.

How to Deal With Negative Loose Vagina Comments

In this day and age, people can joke about anything. Some of which can be hurtful, and the person who said it won’t feel sorry or see harm in it. If you find yourself in a situation wherein someone tells you that you have a loose vagina, here’s a short step-by-step guide on how to civilly approach it.

1 Politely step out.

If you need to excuse yourself from the person or the group, do so. Keep your composure as you exit from their presence, and keep your posture tall. It’s encouraged not to speak when you’re at the peak of your emotions. So it’s best to process and diffuse in private, letting all your emotions out. From there, you can properly take action.

2 Confront the person.

Confrontation is a big word. That’s why a lot of us avoid or dread it, especially when it’s along our path. In this case, regarding any lowly comments related to having a loose vagina, doing this allows you to be transparent and honest with that person. 

Watch your tone as well as you do this step. Yes, they hurt you. That’s valid! Thus, it may become easy to act mean or annoyed as a result. However, fire doesn’t extinguish with fire. It just gets bigger and makes the situation worse. Be respectful and honest with them without any pettiness.

3 Educate the person you’re talking to.

On top of confrontation, this step can go immediately if the mood between you and the person who hurt you isn’t heated. 

As we mentioned above all the possible causes of a loose vagina (or rather a changed one), use that knowledge and tell those around you about it. Not only will the person who hurt you get a clear idea about it, but if there are other people around, they get to learn new things and become more aware of how to watch the words they say.

The more people know, the less stigma and shame there’ll be towards women having sex, regular or not.

4 Accept whatever reaction you get.

If they’re apologetic after telling them, simply accept it. It’s still possible that they weren’t conscious of their words. However, they should still be held accountable because they could hurt others with their words. Don’t hold a grudge either with them, saving that moment when they make another mistake towards. 

If they get defensive or try to appeal that it’s just a joke, don’t stoop down to their level. Just let them be. It’s hard, but it’s a waste of time and energy to argue with someone who clearly has too much pride to admit their wrongs.

5 Seek support from loved ones.

Know that you’re not alone when things go downhill! If it so happens that you have a close companion during that time, reach out to them. You don’t have to face everything alone, nor keep all these rising emotions bottled up within you.

Takeaway

The whole concept of being seen as someone with a loose vagina merely because of your sexual activity feels degrading and frustrating. Sex is a normal aspect of life, so why must there need to be shame in it? Alongside that, making jokes about it only worsens the problem and makes it harder for vulva owners to peacefully engage in sex. 

As a result, it’s important to remember the actual reasons behind the changes in vaginal elasticity: age, childbirth, your body’s overall preparation to do the deed and genetics. Hence, the idea of having sex numerously to the point that your vagina can lose its elasticity is false. So don’t give anyone the power to insult you with a hurtful term like this. Stand tall and defend yourself if you must.

And to clarify, having a loose vagina due to natural circumstances is one thing. But insulting someone with having one without knowing them is a whole different thing! So at the end of the day, watch your words and be kind to one another.