A woman has two groups of
reproductive organs, the external group, that which is easily seen, and the
internal group, which is comprised by two ovaries, two oviducts or tubes, the
uterus, and the vagina.
Ovaries- A woman has two ovaries, each about the size of a
robin’s egg, one on each side of her abdomen.
These ovaries, corresponding to the male testicles, produce the female
egg. When a girl is born, her ovaries
contain between 300,000 and 400,000 little follicles called ova. Only about 3 to 4 hundred will ever reach
maturity and be released from the ovary.
As a girl matures, her ovaries begin to secrete the female sex hormones
that cause her to develop. Her breasts
begin to enlarge, hair grows under her arms and on her genital organs, her hips
start to broaden, and she begins to take on a curvaceous, feminine
appearance. At approximately one- month
intervals, an egg matures until it is about one two-hundredths of an inch in
diameter, at which time it is released by the ovary into the fallopian tube.
Fallopian tubes- sometimes called oviducts, meaning egg
ducts. These tubes, about 4 inches long
are attached to the uterus and take the egg to the uterus during a period of
approximately 72 hours. If intercourse
occurs during this period, it is very probably that at least one of the active
sperm will work its way through the vagina and uterus into the Fallopian tube
and will unite with the egg. At that
moment life is conceived. If the egg is
not fertilized by the sperm in the Fallopian tube it then passes into the
uterus and dissolves.
Uterus or womb- the firm and muscular organ usually
described as the size and shape of a small pear, about 4 inches long. The interior of the uterus is a narrow,
triangular-shaped cavity surrounded by thick muscular walls. The two Fallopian tubes enter at the
top. The lower part of the uterine
cavity that forms the narrow base of it is called the cervical canal. The uterus, which can be greatly expanded, is
the area in which the baby grows during pregnancy. The uterus prepares a rich,
nutritious lining each month to receive an egg.
When an unfertilized egg passes into the uterus it will not attach to
the lining, the lining then sluffs off.
This is what creates a woman’s monthly period. The uterus will then prepare a fresh new
lining for an egg the next month. This
is all regulated by her hormone production.
Cervix- the neck of the uterus. The cervix surrounds the cervical canal and forms
the narrow, lower end of the uterus.
About one-half of the cervix projects into the vagina and therefore can
be examined by the physician. The
passageway is so narrow that nothing larger than the lead in a pencil can pass
through it easily. The normally tight
passage helps to keep the interior of the uterus virtually germ-free,
especially since there is a constant, slight current of cleansing moisture that
flows outward.
Outside Body:
Vagina- the primary female organ for intercourse. Comparable to the male penis and designed to
receive it. It is three to five inches
long, and its inner walls of delicate muscle tissue tend to lie in contact,
their smooth surface “draped” in folds.
The walls
of the vagina contain many tiny glands that continuously produce a cleansing
and lubricating film of moisture so that the vagina is self-cleansing. In its upper reaches, the vagina forms a
curving vault that encloses the tip of the cervix.
Near the external opening of the
vagina is a concentration of sensory nerves.
This opening is encircled by a constrictor muscle that responds to the
communications from these sensory nerves.
This muscle can be tightened and relaxed at will. Implanted in the constrictor muscle are two
glands called Bartholin’s glands; the size of the letter O or slightly larger,
they produce a very small amount of additional lubricant, mainly upon sexual
stimulation.
The first
response to sexual stimulation in a woman involves lubrication of the vagina,
which occurs usually within 10 to 30 seconds.
Recently it has been found that this excitation causes the walls of the
vagina to be covered with beads of lubricant, which has a very practical
application at the time of actual insertion of the penis in intercourse. The husband may need to reach gently into the
vagina for some of this lubricant, or in many cases he may wish to apply some
form of water-soluble artificial lubricant.
Only a small amount may be needed, applied just to the head of the penis
or to the outside of the vagina, for usually enough natural lubrications exists
inside the vagina.
Vulva area- the external opening to the vagina, containing
several organs including the outer lips called “labia majora.” The lips are
formed from the same kind of coarse skin as the scrotal sac of the male. Under sexual excitement these lips swell or
thicken. When they are opened, they reveal
the inner lips, called “labia minor,” which are very delicate membranes at the
front of the vulva structure. These
inner lips are made of skin very similar to the skin of the glans penis.
Hymen- a membrane at the back part of the outside opening of
the vagina that may be relatively tough.
The hymen, however, may be absent from birth. The opening in the hymen of a virgin is about
one inch in diameter, but must be about one and one/half inches in diameter for
comfortable intercourse. Fifty percent
of brides admit to experiencing some pain at first intercourse. 20 percent have no pain at all; and 30 percent
have rather severe pain.
Before
marriage every young woman should be examined by a doctor; at his discretion
and with her consent, the hymen can be broken to avoid unnecessary delay in
intercourse after the wedding. If the
young woman has serious objections to this procedure, a physical exam can be
scheduled for the day after the wedding.
If she chooses to have her husband stretch the hymen on her wedding
night, it is very important that lubricating jelly be generously applied to the
penis and around the vaginal outlet.
Then, with whatever intercourse position is chosen, preferably one so
that the penis is directed downward and toward the back of the vaginal opening,
she should be the one to do the thrusting in order to control better the amount
of pressure she can tolerate. It may
take several trials to penetrate the hymen:
if she is not successful after a few attempts, she should not keep bruising
this area, lest it become so painful that she can’t enjoy the time with her
husband. Rather, the couple should just gently
and slowly caress each other’s genitalia until they are sexually satisfied.
Avoiding pain
With
generous amounts of lubricant on his fingers and with fingernails files short
and smooth, the husband can manually dilate the vaginal opening. He must gently insert one finger into the
vagina, then two fingers, using a gradual, firm, downward pressure toward the
anus until there is definite pain and until both these fingers can be easily
inserted all the way to the base of the fingers. If this is too painful, it is usually better
to be patient until the next day before again attempting well-lubricated
introduction of the penis. Most of the
pain comes from entering too quickly, giving the muscles around the vagina
insufficient time to relax. Sometimes an
overanxious bridegroom can produce physical pain because of the presence of the
hymen. Although this does not product
lasting damage physically, it can leave psychological scars if the bride
associates pain with the entrance of the penis into the vagina. In this case, her fear will shut off the
natural flow of body fluids in the vaginal area and cause painful intercourse
that is most unsatisfactory to both partners.
When the hymen is stretched or
torn, there may be bleeding, but usually no more than one or two
teaspoonfuls. If this bleeding continues
or if there is as much as one tablespoon of blood, the wife should not be
afraid, but just look carefully for the exact spot that is bleeding and hold a
clean tissue on that spot with firm pressure.
There is no bleeding that can’t be stopped by this method. The tissue may be left in place about 12
hours and then loosened by soaking in a warm bath to avoid new bleeding. The couple may resume intercourse the next
day. If bleeding reoccurs, repeat the
local pressure.
Urethra- the outlet for the urine from the bladder. The urethral opening is about ½ inch about
the vaginal opening and entirely separate from it. It resembles a rounded dimple containing a
tiny slit. The urethra is a tube that runs just beneath the pubic bone and is
easily bruised in the first few days after marriage unless plenty of
lubrication is provided for the penis in the vagina. This bruising produces what is commonly
called “newlywed cystitis”, basically a bladder infection. Characterized by
pain in the bladder are, blood in the urine, and rather severe burning when the
urine passes, it is a symptom that injury to the urethra has allowed bacteria
to grow. This often requires an
antibiotic to treat.
Clitoris- this is the most sensitive organ in a woman’s
body. It has over 8,000 nerve endings,
this is more than the head of the penis, but in only one-tenth the size. Its
shaft is approximately one-half to an inch long. It’s closed by the peak of the labia about 2
inches above the entrance of the vagina.
At its outer end is a small, rounded body about the size of a pea,
called the glans. The only function of
the clitoris is sexual arousal.
Stimulation of the clitoris alone will produce an orgasm in nearly all
women. The clitoris must be stimulated
directly or indirectly for the wife to achieve orgasm. It is extremely sensitive and direct
stimulation can be too much, causing pain.
For this reason some women prefer stimulation of the hood instead. One
must be very gentle in the stimulation of the clitoris. The clitoris has no other function than
sexual pleasure. This organ alone
testifies of a loving God, who not only designed our bodies for function, but
also for pleasure.
Labia minora- this is the small lips, the two parallel folds
of smooth, hairless, soft tissue that connect to the hood over the clitoris and
end just below the entrance to the vagina.
Sexual arousal will cause these lips to swell to 2 to 3 times their
normal thickness. The gentle stroking of these small lips can give a more
pleasant sensation than the clitoris.
Thus, direct stimulation is not always necessary to increase intensity
of sexual feelings. It is extremely important that a wife
communicates with her husband the type and amount of pressure that she finds
enjoyable as this is different for every woman.
Labia majora- the major lips lying outside and parallel to
the labia minor. They are not nearly as
sensitive
Areas of sensitivity- both the breasts and the
genitalia. The woman has more sensitive
areas than the man. A woman’s breasts
are often very sensitive, and thus affectionate caressing helps prepare her for
sex. When she is aroused, her nipples
will become firm and protrude slightly, indicating proper stimulation. The outer lips also become more sensitive as
they enlarge under sexual excitement.
The vagina and clitoris are also extremely sensitive areas. When a woman is sexually stimulated, several
glands secrete a lubrication that bathes the area in a slippery mucus, easing
the entrance of the penis. This makes
entrance much more pleasurable to both the man and the woman.
Men often
have the tendency to go straight for the sex organs to get their wives excited,
because that totally works for them.
However, he will be much more successful if he prepares and excites her
first with kissing, nibbling on the neck, body massage, etc. A woman wants to be loved all over, not just
seen as a set of breasts and vagina. She
is much more apt to respond in an accepting, desirous way, if a man will slow
down and take his time before hitting the hot spots. Otherwise, she may just find it irritating,
completely killing the mood. It is also
important that he kisses and caresses her at other times, not expecting sex as
his reward. Otherwise, again, she will
know that his kisses means she is expected to have sex with him, which can also
kill the mood.
Orgasm- the climax of both women and men in intercourse,
followed by a gradual decline in sexual stimulation and producing a sense of
satisfaction and gratification. A woman
does not ejaculate fluid, like the man.
A woman’s experience is every bit as glorious as a man’s. The main difference is that a man’s
ejaculation is almost guaranteed, whereas a woman’s is an art that must to
learned by two loving, cooperative partners.
A woman is
capable of rapid orgasms if re-stimulated before tensions have dropped and she
is capable of maintaining an orgasmic experience longer. A man’s orgasm leaves
his sex drive depleted for 20 to 45 minutes, depending on his age. A man can
have as many as 3 or 4 orgasms a day, but not usually for more than a couple
days in a row. His reservoir takes time
to rejuvenate.
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