How does a normal vagina look like?

Submitted by Love2boys on November 14, 2008 - 4:45am
Body: 

I am anxiously waiting for my app't on Tue with my OB. In the meantime i can't figure out what kind of prolapse i have and even what and how a normal vagina is suppose to look like. I don't remember how my vagina looked like before i had my vaginal birth. What i assumed was normal the past many months, now i'm not sure if it's a cystocele staring at me straight in the face without me realizing it. I'm not sure if the lump i thought is suppose to be there is really a bladder prolapse now.
Basically what i see is my urethra opening on one lump, lets say, at the upper portion of the vulva. Then immediately beneath it, which looks like it's attached to the lump the urethra is on is a second lump...the one i assumed is suppose to be there but now not so sure if it's a cystocele. And then below that lump is another lump that is smaller, about a size of a dime from what i can see. That is the one that sinks in deeper sometimes and sometimes closer to the opening. That is the one i've been curious about all along.
I am just confused as to what a normal vagina should look like. Now i'm wondering if i have 2 abnormal lumps or just one. Can anyone tell me what a normal vagina would look like, like am i suppose to just see my urethra opening on one what looks to be a lump and then a black hole underneith that, or what? also my urethra opening looks dialated alot.
Thanks!

alemama

November 14, 2008 - 8:26am

we are all the same in many ways- but we also have many differences- I have changed many a diaper and never have I seen one baby bottom look exactly like another-
and if you have ever looked at images of vaginas you will know that there are many different types- there is a great website that is not porn exactly where you can check out "normal" someone here probably has the link-
one way to tell if you have any organs out of place is to first look while standing then bend over in front of a wall mirror and if the bulges move inside you will know. Or even lie down- if the bulge disappears when you lie down then it is probably prolapsed.
Also if you are able to Nauli then when you nauli you can watch and see what is sucked in- or even feel if the bulge moves in or not-
but the best way to know is to do the self exam-

luvmiboyz

November 14, 2008 - 2:22pm

~Amanda
im glad you asked this....before this last delivery i could never see my urethra....now its really far down im alittle embarrassed to say i thought it was my cervix....the dr. was like no that is your urethra and some woman's look like that even when they dont have kids.....mine looks dialated too. It kind of weirds me out that i can see the opening to my bladder now....also i have a big bulge underneath it which i assume is my cystocele.....he says its not bad but its alot bigger than a dime i would say.

Love2boys

November 15, 2008 - 3:45am

Now i am really wondering if the lump i see under the uretha is a cystocele but the weird thing is OBgyn's have seen me...several of them when i had that lump there and nobody said anything. I only asked my last OBgyn about the dime sized lump under that one. So i am very curious as to what my new OBgyn will say on Tuesday when i see her.

luvmiboyz

November 16, 2008 - 8:33pm

~Amanda
back before this last delivery i had the same thing that i think you are describing....it was a very small lump i thought it was normal....none of the doctors ever said anything to me about it so i thought nothing of it.....now it has turned into this but i had it for most of my life that i can remember

Love2boys

November 17, 2008 - 12:08am

What sort of prolapse do you have now? and how severe? also do you get the heavy sensation down there sometime and like something wants to come out of there? like the tampon insterted wrong feeling? i get it when i am walking for a while or even standing too long sometimes.

luvmiboyz

November 17, 2008 - 11:20am

~Amanda
yes! i deffinately get that feeling....a couple days ago i ate whatever i wanted and didnt get the fiber i needed and man did i have hell to pay! im not sure what the degree is but i have a rectocele and cystocele the cystocele almost bulges out but sometimes i feel it and sometimes i dont...i almost always have a heavy feeling down there though....2 days ago i was feeling so good i could barely feel it and then i messed up on my diet and now im just trying to get back to that. You probaly wrote this in another post but have you been to the dr. yet?

Love2boys

November 19, 2008 - 5:25pm

I saw my OB yesterday and she did an exam on me and said that i have a very very minor cystocele and rectocele. She didn't even grade it and told me to do kegels for the next few months and go back to see her and if my symptoms don't improve she's going to send me to a physical therapist.
She didn't check me when i was standing up though, only laying down so i'm not sure how accurate that is. She did try to point things out to me while standing up though with a hand held mirro cause i was asking her what things were. She just said there is always some drooping of the vaginal walls often after having given birth vaginally. I still want to see a physical therapist in Jan after i see her unless i really do see a big improvement. I kind of want to go to see a urogynecologist just to make sure...do physical therapists also know very well what kind of prolapse and severity? If so then i'll skip the urogyn.
My OB just put her finger and she was able to. It was a little bit painful at first as she put it in but then it was fine so i was relieved about that too cause i thought things might be more messed up more than i thought after my surgery 3 months ago. She asked me to bear down and she felt around and that was it.
I asked her about the heavy feeling down there and she said everyone's symptoms are different. She said my cervix feels slightly lower but nothing significant. I'm happy with her diagnosis but i wish she checked me standing up...i should've asked her.

Amanda...are you going to physical therapy and were you checked by an OBgyn or urogyn? standing up? Thanks.

granolamom

November 19, 2008 - 6:22pm

I'm happy you got some answers from your OB

I wouldn't worry all that much that she didn't check you standing, because really, a prolapse could change due to position, but also time of day, day of week and hormonal fluctuations. that's why so many of us resort to the 'check-o-rama' (where has sue been lately??) in the beginning. it becomes almost an obsession, to see what the prolapse is doing at any given point during the day.

like in any other profession, you will find some PT's who know more than others. type physical therapy into the search box and you'll probably pull up some threads. I'm not convinced PT's do much more than kegels and e-stim (which is only useful if you have nerve impairment), but again, I've not been to every PT out there.

a surgeon will typically look for something to operate on. keep that in mind if/when you consult with one.

collecting all the data you can is not a bad move. the hard part is processing it all and coming up with a plan of action. really you are the only one who can do that.

I had a bad 'doctor week' (unrelated to prolapse) and I'm feeling particularly cynical today. that said, remember that the only one who prioritizes your life is YOU. not the ob, not the PT, not the surgeon. you will be the one living with symptoms or side effects. gosh, this sounds like such a downer, but really all I mean to say is don't overlook your own wisdom and insight into your body and health. you know more than you realize.

louiseds

November 19, 2008 - 7:06pm

Ditto from me. It is so easy to forget the bigger picture when you are deep in conversation and thought processes with a therapist/doctor/healer who holds a particular view of your body. It is important to step back frequently and look at all the info again. I work on the principle of not making binding decisions about major courses of action (bodywise or other things) for several days or even weeks after a new option has been put to me. The new option needs to be allowed to sink into the background with everything else before you can see it in perspective with all the other options.

Cheers

Louise

Love2boys

November 20, 2008 - 3:29am

My OB said that eventhough she is a surgeon she wouldn't recommend any surgery unless absolutely necessary. She told me how surgery isn't always guaranteed, especially prolapses. I feel like she is looking out for my best interest. But i feel like she could've been more thorough when checking me although she did explain alot to me about prolapses. I heard some people did benefit from PT so i do want to give that a try in Jan. I hope my OB was right cause sometimes i feel my symptoms are worse and sometimes ok. Not sure if she checked me during an ok moment.

granolamom

November 20, 2008 - 10:27pm

that's great, that you have an OB who is knowlegable about the risks of surgery, and who is open to exploring other options. I hope my post didn't come across as if I was trying to give you reason to lose faith in your dr.
and PT can't really hurt, I don't think, unless they have you doing crunches and things like that.

and suppose your OB did check you during an ok moment and really you're a bit worse than she said. it doesn't really matter in terms of plan of action. you'd proceed the same way. personally, I'm staying away from the numbers, the grades, the 'official' diagnoses, because the numbers mess with my mind. but that's me. I know that for alot of women, the numbers are reassuring or grounding. so if you think she saw you at an ok moment, add a 1/5 grade to what she said.
but if she knows as much as you think she knows about prolapse, then she knows how variable it could be, and probably graded it with that in mind. so I'd just as soon assume she's right, especially since 1- she probably is 2- it doesn't really matter in terms of treatment and 3- it'll make you feel better.

just my unsolicited advice : )

louiseds

November 21, 2008 - 3:41am

Hi Love2boys

One of the things you need to remember is that bodies with prolapse are a little like cars that have been involved in a minor crash. They just look a little wonky because different bits, maybe on the inside, have been damaged. The panel beater takes a look at different parts from different angles and reels off the parts that are causing the vehicle to look wonky. All vehicles will be differently damaged, and may not look damaged. There the similarity ends. Prolapses change with time of day, time of month, what you have been doing etc, so you can get quite different diagnoses from different people at different times, and they can both be right. You will actually be the one who will work out what is happening, cos you live in your body all the time.

You're not going to die of POP so no POP surgery is absolutely necessary. Give it time.

Cheers

Louise

Love2boys

November 22, 2008 - 3:37am

I'm trying not to worry about it for now and do my kegels and see what happens in the next few months. I think i'm coming into terms with it better now that things changed down there and will never be the same as it was before. I'm trying not to check in the mirror anymore.
Thank you ladies again for your advice.

kath333

November 22, 2008 - 1:14pm

So....my urethra moved down a little bit and looks dilated as well. Multiple people have stated that this has happened. Anyone know why? Is it related to the prolapse? thanks!
kath333

Love2boys

November 22, 2008 - 4:03pm

Yah, mine is moved down too...i'm not sure either why it's like that. I'm also wondering why it's like that now.

lacey2008 (not verified)

February 5, 2009 - 4:18pm

I have never given birth, and I can tell you right now that it's not right to have lumps there. I think you should definitely get it checked out. The escort agencies london would probably be the best place to ask for advice on this topic. These girls have gone through everything you can think of.

louiseds

February 5, 2009 - 11:23pm

Thanks for the advice Lacey.

Hmm, those girls certainly have very nice lumps, and in the right places too!. Some great examples of Wholewoman posture as well! But seriously, I couldn't find any links that related to getting advice about vaginal health. Who's the bunny here? ;-)

Once again, let's be open-minded about this. But seriously ... health services which cater for lots of sex workers would be useful. At least you know that their practitioners *have* seen it all. Many major cities have at least one organisation dedicated to sexual health and/or the health of sex workers, eg even little old Perth Western Australia has www.fpawa.org.au and the related organisation, www.magenta.org.au.

Cheers

Louise