THE
HYMEN
Girls
are generally born with a thin membrane that covers the
vagina opening. This is called a hymen. Intact
hymens vary widely in shape from woman to woman.
For
most women, the hymen stretches easily, but even after being
stretched, little folds of hymen tissue remain (below, right).
Though
it was long believed the absence of a hymen meant sexual
intercourse had occurred (i.e., the woman was not a virgin),
this is not necessarily true. The hymen is a delicate
piece of skin that can stretch and break from sexual intercourse,
the use of a tampon, or even vigorous exercise.The
stretching and tearing of the hymen is what causes bleeding
to sometimes occur after intercourse. "Popped her
cherry" is a slang term describing the breaking of the hymen.
