Can vaginal penetration without tearing the hymen?

Overview of the hymen

The hymen or hymen is a thin skin tissue that surrounds and protects the vaginal opening during a woman's early development. Each hymen has a different shape, some are thin and elastic, some are thicker and less elastic.

An intact hymen usually has a small hole that allows menstrual blood or other fluids to flow.

The hymen can stretch or tear as a result of various other sexual activities, such as inserting a finger or sex toy into the vagina, and non-sexual activities such as gymnastics, horse riding, or other physical activity.

source: Center for Young Women's Health

There are several types of hymen in women, namely:

1. The imperforate hymen

This membrane can be diagnosed at birth. Generally, the diagnosis is made during adolescence. The imperforate hymen is a thin membrane that completely covers the opening to the vagina, so that menstrual blood cannot flow out of the vagina.

This usually causes blood to return to the vagina which is often back pain. Some teens also may experience painful bowel movements and difficulty urinating.

2. The microperforate hymen

The microperforate hymen is a thin membrane that almost covers the entire vaginal opening of a young woman. Menstrual blood can usually flow out of the vagina but the opening is very small.

A teenager with a microperforate hymen usually won't be able to insert a tampon into her vagina and may not even notice that she has a very small hole.

3. The septate hymen

The septate hymen is when the hymen's thin membrane has an extra tissue band in the middle that causes two small vaginal openings instead of one. Teens with this hymen may have difficulty inserting or removing tampons.

Is there a way to have sex without tearing the hymen?

The answer, of course, doesn't exist. If you want to have sex or have penetration, there is certainly a risk of tearing the hymen. This risk cannot be avoided, although indeed in some cases the hymen may remain intact after sex.

When penetrating, the hymen will stretch to help the passage of the penis. You can keep the hymen from tearing during sex if your body is relaxed and has good lubrication. However, this is unlikely to happen. This is because each woman's hymen is different in shape, thickness, and texture.

In addition, sex with tearing of the hymen is often accompanied by bleeding and pain. However, not all women experience it. The first time sex does not always cause vaginal bleeding.

Some women who experience bleeding during the first sex, because the hymen structure that is owned is thicker or more resistant.

The torn hymen can be pulled back together

Although sex without tearing the hymen is inevitable, the torn hymen can be pulled back together.

There are two specific procedures to help repair the torn hymen. Here's the procedure.

Hymenoplasty or hymenoplasty reconstruction surgery

This procedure is done to re-glue the hymen located on the vaginal lips using stitches. The doctor will sew back the remaining hymen tissue in your vagina.

The stitch applied is the dissolvable seam type. So it will not be visible in plain view and do not need to be removed after the procedure is done.

Artificial hymen

An artificial hymen can be inserted into the vagina, thereby releasing false bleeding when penetration occurs. This artificial hymen is non-toxic and safe to wear. Usually this procedure is done when the hymen layer can no longer be repaired because the damage is very severe.