How to Pop a Cherry

In writing erotic fiction it is important for writers to understand the physiology of the sexual acts they are describing. Nothing will undermine a story quicker than a sex scene that in simply outright impossible. A simple misconception about a certain facet of sex or sexuality can easily lead to errors in a narration and especially here at Literotica, you can count on the readers to find, expose and flaunt even the slightest mistake. One area in erotic writing where stories are easily undermined by misconceptions and myths involve Literotica's First Time category.

You've seen portrayals of the deflowering of a female virgin where the bloody sheets are proudly displayed as a proof of a bride's innocence or at least her virginity. Accounts of large penises tearing the hymen in painful, powerful thrusts accompanied by heavy bleeding are simply untrue. Although we know the term "popping a cherry" and have made jokes about friends named Buster Hymen, these are based upon the incorrect notion that a woman's vagina is covered, either entirely or partially by a membrane that ruptured upon penetration during their first sexual encounter. This is simply untrue.

The established term "hymen" actually describes what is called the vaginal corona which is located just one to two centimeters inside the vaginal opening. This corona is made up of folds of mucous tissue which may, depending upon the woman, be tightly or loosely folded. It is slightly pink, almost transparent and some have described its appearance to be similar to the petals of a rose or other flower. It may be carnation shaped, or shaped like a jigsaw puzzle or half moon, again, depending upon the woman. In most cases the vaginal corona is elastic and stretchy.

In some very rare cases these folds may cover the entire vaginal opening in which case the woman will need to see a gynecologist to open the corona to release menstrual blood and allow insertion of a tampon or have penetrative sex. Older, post menopausal women who haven't given birth vaginally and don't have regular penetrative sex may have the corona close up again, giving them some difficulty having sex. They may need to have their gynecologist open their vaginal corona to have an active sex life again.

Since the vaginal corona isn't the brittle membrane that is ruptured or torn during the woman's first penetrative sexual encounter often the narrative accounts of painful sex for the woman are incorrect. In fact, the experience of inserting a tampon, masturbation or having penetrative sex for the first time may or may not be painful, depending upon the woman. Some women report no pain, while others, with thicker vaginal corona report having some pain. The mucus folds will stretch and sometimes there may be some minor ruptures in the folds causing some pain, along with a little bleeding.

While some women experience bleeding, the vast majority of women don't bleed. It is reported that few women bleed because the vaginal corona is tight, it is more often caused by other reasons. If the woman is not fully aroused, or is too nervous to be fully lubricated (wet) ruptures may occur in the vaginal corona with subsequent bleeding, but this has nothing to do with how many times the woman has had sex.

As far as virginity is concerned, just as you cannot look at a man's penis and determine if he has had sex before, it is impossible to look at a woman's vagina whether you are a gynecologist or her lover, and determine if she has had sex before. In some countries, women face the demand that they have an intact hymen as a guarantee they have not had premarital sex. While doctors can and do perform surgery to tighten the vaginal corona, the procedure is expensive and does not guarantee bleeding. More often they try to help patients through non-surgical treatment from the gynecologist, counselor and physiotherapist in an approach to reduce a woman's self-inflicted guilt.

Hopefully a better understanding of the physiology of sex and of the vaginal corona will provide the writers of erotica some help in writing stories of virginal sex. Clearing up the myths and misconceptions regarding the vaginal corona can not only help writers create more accurate portrayals of sex, it may also help in a person's actual sex life. Perhaps this bit of information will help some of the writers here create better or at least more realistic accounts of first time sex.

The information outlined above was from a booklet issued last Spring by The Swedish Association for Sexuality Education or "RFSU" and from a press release titled "Time for a more accurate terminology: Hymen renamed 'vaginal corona'," issued December 8th, 2009.