anatomy

sexual & reproductive anatomy

All bodies are different, and that is especially true when we're talking about our sexual and reproductive anatomy. We might have the same parts as someone else, but they still probably look a lot different; that's normal! It's also normal for our genitals to change as we age. Knowing what's going on in your body, what's normal for you, can help you better understand how to take care of yourself, experience pleasure on your own or with others, and communicate if something isn't feeling right. On this page, we use common medical/scientific terms to describe all of the parts of our sexual and reproductive anatomy, but you can use whatever words feel right to you. Read on to learn more about internal reproductive anatomy, external genitalia, and how to take care of your unique body parts.

bodies with vulvas

People whose sexual anatomy include a vulva are typically cisgender girls and women or transgender men and other transmasculine people who have not had genital surgery. The external genitals as a whole are called the vulva. You've probably heard people refer to this kind of genitalia as the vagina, but that's actually just one part of the vulva. There's a lot going on down there! The vulva is made up of the inner and outer labia, the clitoris and clitoral hood, the urethra, and the vaginal opening.
Vulvas are all unique; don't get stressed out if yours doesn't look exactly like someone else's! The length, shape, and color of the inner and outer labia vary greatly, resulting in some people having an "innie", where their inner labia are not visible when your legs are closed, and some people having an "outie", where the inner labia extends beyond the outer labia and is visible when your legs are closed. The two sides of the inner labia can also be different lengths and sizes.

labia majora (outer labia): the fleshy folds of skin that enclose the genitals
labia minora (inner labia): the thinner, sensitive folds of skin enclosed by the outer labia
glans clitoris: the tip of the clitoris, or glans, is a sensitive bundle spongy tissue containing thousands of nerve endings that can be stimulated for sexual pleasure
clitoral hood: the skin that covers and protects the clitoris
urethral opening: the hole you pee from
vaginal opening: the opening to the internal vagina, where menstrual blood (or a baby!) exits the body

paraurethral glands (Skene's glands): two glands located between the vaginal canal and urethra that produce fluid to help lubricate the vagina. Some people with vulvas ejaculate fluid from their paraurethral glands, which is commonly called squirting.
vestibular glands: glands that are located on each side of the vaginal opening that secrete fluid to helps lubricate the labia and vagina

The clitoris is actually much more than just that one little spot at the top of your vulva. There's a much larger internal structure that makes up the clitoral network (shown on the diagram to the left in pink), and as far as we know, its only purpose is to give you pleasure! When you become aroused, blood flows into the clitoris and it becomes erect, though you may or may not be able to see a difference, depending on the size of your clitoris.

The internal reproductive system is contained within your pelvis, and it is composed of the vagina, uterus, cervix, uterine tubes, and ovaries. Your internal reproductive system is responsible for the menstrual cycle (aka your period), sexual pleasure, reproduction, and hormone production.

All images in this section are sourced from Learn Body Literacy and used here in accordance with Creative Commons Licensing.

vagina: the muscular tube that connects your vulva to your cervix and uterus. The vagina expands when aroused, and you can also contract your vaginal muscles.
cervix: the lower canal of the uterus that connects the vagina to the uterus
uterus: the muscular organ where a fetus grows during pregnancy
uterine tubes (fallopian tubes): tubes that carry eggs from the ovary to uterus
fimbriae: fingerlike projections at the end of the uterine tube that help move an egg from the ovary into the tube
ovaries: the glands where eggs are stored and where the hormones estrogen, progesterone, and testosterone are produced

Lots of people with vulvas prefer to use other words when talking about their genitals. Some of these terms are considered more vulgar and explicit, while others are euphemistic and considered more appropriate to use in certain settings. You can use whatever words feel best to you when talking about your genitals. Some common slang terms you might hear to refer to a vulva include: pussy, coochie, vajayjay, cunt, snatch, box, beaver, twat, gash, fanny, slit, core, flower

bodies with penises

People whose sexual anatomy include a penis are typically cisgender boys and men or transgender women and other transfeminine people who have not had genital surgery. The external genitals, as shown in the diagrams below, include the penis and scrotum. Penises can vary greatly across size, shape, color, curvature, and more. When you are aroused, blood rushes into your penis, making it erect. The penis is made up of the shaft and the glans, or head. The urethral opening, at the tip of the glans, is where pee and ejaculate come out. On the bottom of the glans is the frenulum, a sensitive spot that connects the penis to the foreskin, the protective skin that covers the glans.

When a baby with a penis is born, some parents choose to have a doctor remove the baby's foreskin in a procedure called circumcision. Circumcision is most common in Africa and West Asia, but it is also fairly common in the United States; most circumcisions are done as a part of Muslim and Jewish religious traditions. Some people believe that removing the foreskin can improve cleanliness, but as long as you pull your foreskin back to clean around your glans, there is nothing inherently less clean about having an uncircumcised (also referred to as "uncut" or "intact") penis.

The internal anatomy of a person with a penis, as shown in the diagram below, includes the structures that produce sperm and pee, make you ejaculate, and give you pleasure.

bladder: the organ that stores pee
prostate gland: the gland that produces fluid that helps sperm move; many people find that touching their prostate gland, which can be reached through the anus, is pleasurable.
Cowper’s glands: the glands that produce pre-ejaculate
testicles: the glands inside the scrotum that produce sperm
epididymus: the tubes where sperm matures that connects the testicles to the vas deferens
vas deferens: the tubes that carry sperm from the epididymus to the seminal vesicles when you ejaculate
seminal vesicle: the organs that produce semen, the fluid that contains the sperm
urethra: the tube that carries pee from the bladder out of the body and semen from the seminal vesicles out of the body

All images in this section are sourced from Planned Parenthood.

Lots of people with penises prefer to use other words when talking about their genitals. Some of these terms are considered more vulgar and explicit, while others are euphemistic and considered more appropriate to use in certain settings. You can use whatever words feel best to you when talking about your genitals. Some common slang terms you might hear to refer to a penis include: dick, cock, wang, dong, prick, wiener, knob, tool, unit, member, pecker, willy, johnson, package

intersex bodies

Intersex people are people with unique variations of their reproductive or sexual anatomy that do not fit typical definitions of male or female bodies. These variations can be found in the chromosomes, genitals, or internal organs like the testes or ovaries. These variations may be apparent at birth or become noticeable later in development, often around puberty. There are over 40 types of intersex variations, and about 1.7% of people are born intersex — that's about the same amount of people who are natural redheads. Sometimes, doctors refer to intersex traits as "differences in sexual development", but many intersex people do not prefer this terminology. As with anyone else, intersex folks can use any words that feel right to them to describe themselves and their bodies.

Image source: Bloom for All Teen Hub

Throughout history, and still to this day, many infants who have intersex traits are operated on to change their external genitals to appear more "normal", even if there are no threats to their health based on their intersex variation. These surgeries can leave intersex people with pain, scarring, and loss of sensation, which is why many intersex activists are working to get surgeries on intersex infants banned. Not all intersex people's external genitals will look different than typical cisgender genitalia, but many do. The diagrams below explain how some of the possible intersex variations to the genitals develop, and the shared developmental pathway that all human erectile structures come from.

This image is sourced from Learn Body Literacy
and used here in accordance with Creative Commons Licensing.

Want to learn more about intersex people, or find resources for intersex youth? Check out InterACT.

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transgender bodies

Transgender bodies are as unique as cisgender bodies, whether they have been changed through puberty, hormone therapy, surgeries, or not changed at all.

If you are trans and not on hormone therapy, you can learn more about your anatomy in the previous sections, but use the language that feels comfortable to you! Remember, on this page we use common medical/scientific terms to describe all of the parts of our sexual and reproductive anatomy, but you can use whatever words feel right to you.
If you are trans and you are on hormone therapy or you are thinking about going on hormone therapy, refer back to our gender affirming care page to learn more about all of the changes your body might go through on HRT, including changes to your sexual and reproductive anatomy.
If you are trans and you have had gender affirming surgery or are thinking about getting gender affirming surgery, refer back to our gender affirming care page to learn more about all of the different kinds of gender affirming surgeries.
- If you want to learn more about trans bodies and see images of what different trans bodies look like after having gender affirming surgeries, check out transbucket.com. To keep the site private and safe for trans folks, you must make an account to access it.

talking about trans bodies

Lots of trans folks prefer to use different terms to refer to their body parts rather than using gendered words for their genitals. Language has power, and some words might make a trans person feel more dysphoric, or distressed about the misalignment between their gender identity and, in this example, their physical anatomy. But using the right words could make you feel euphoric, or aligned and happy with your gender! If you are trans, or if your partner is trans, take time to think about and communicate to your sexual partners what words you would like to use to talk about your sexual and reproductive anatomy.

some slang terms for trans bodies

instead of vagina or vulva:
- front hole
- bonus hole
- boy pussy
instead of clitoris:
- bottom growth
- t-dick
- boy/manclit

instead of penis/testicles:
- clit
- strapless/strap-off
- girl/ladycock
- girl/ladydick
- girl/ladyballs
- gock
- gridlock

taking care of your body

We all have to take care of our bodies, but we aren't always taught how to do that, especially if our body is changing. To take care of your body, you have to get to know your body! Even if it's uncomfortable, awkward, or even dysphoria-inducing, it's a good idea to learn what your body's baseline is. Try taking a hand mirror and looking at your external genitals. Once you get to know what your genitals normally look and feel like, you'll be better equipped to tell if something has changed or feels wrong. If you notice any sudden or unexpected changes to your genitals, it's always a good idea to see a health professional so they can evaluate what's happening and determine if you need medical treatment or not. Even if nothing has changed, you should still plan to get regular yearly checkups from a general practitioner, gynecologist, and/or urologist once you begin to engage in oral, vaginal, or anal intercourse, or when you turn 18, whichever happens first. It can feel intimidating or uncomfortable to talk to a doctor about this stuff, but it's really important to have a doctor monitor your sexual and reproductive health; preventative care, which is health care you access before something is wrong, helps make sure that if something is going on in your body, it can be identified and treated early.

if you have a vulva...

If you have a vulva, you should start getting yearly gynecological examinations once you begin to engage in oral, vaginal, or anal intercourse, or when you turn 18, whichever happens first. At your gynecological exams, a health care professional will take your vitals and have you provide a urine sample for testing. You can also be tested for STIs at your annual appointment. For the examination, you'll have to take off your clothes (they'll tell you if you can leave anything on, but usually you'll take everything off) and put on the gown they provide. You'll then lay on the exam table and put your feet up in stirrups so the doctor can perform the exam. During the exam, the doctor will visually examine your external genitalia. They will also examine your internal reproductive genitalia by lubricating and then inserting their fingers and/or a device called a speculum into your vagina. You may need a pap smear, which is a test done by inserting a long cotton swab into your vagina and collecting cells from your cervix, to check for signs of HPV, cancer, or pre-cancerous cells. Your doctor will also perform a breast exam to check for any signs of cancer.

self chest/breast exams

Everyone has breast tissue, no matter your gender identity or sex assigned at birth. It's a good idea to perform a self exam of your breasts/chest every month so you can tell if anything changes. Here's how to do it.

image source: https://www.drmarkgodat.com/self-breast-exams

if you have a penis and testes...

If you have a penis and testes, you should start getting yearly regular sexual health exams from a general practitioner or urologist when you begin to engage in oral, vaginal, or anal intercourse, or when you turn 18, whichever happens first. At these exams, a health care professional will take your vitals and have you provide a urine sample for testing. You can also be tested for STIs at your annual appointment. For the examination, you may have to take off your clothes (they'll tell you if you can leave anything on) and put on the gown they provide. During the exam, the doctor will visually examine your external genitalia. If you communicate to the doctor that you are engaging in receptive anal sex, they may also inspect your anus. The doctor will perform a testicular exam to check for any changes or irregularities, during which they will feel your testicles and ask you to cough to check for hernias. It's also a good idea to perform a self exam of your testicles every month so you can tell if anything changes. Here's how to do it.

image source: checkyourballs.lt

body diversity is natural!

The ways that our bodies differ from others' bodies do not make them wrong. Despite what messages you might have gotten from society and the people around you, there is nothing inherently better or worse about the way that anyone's body looks. Beauty standards are not the same across places, times, and cultures. When it comes to your sexual anatomy, remember that your body's uniqueness is a part of what makes you yourself! Penises, vulvas, breasts, uteruses, and pretty much every other part of the human body comes in all shapes and sizes.