Loosing Virginity At 19

Losing your virginity can be a big deal, regardless of your age 19, experience, and the research you’ve done (though it doesn't always have to be). Your first time having sex can be super uncomfortable, a lot of fun, really awful, or all of the above — there’s no right or wrong way to have sex. Sometimes, it’s hard to define what even counts as sex. No matter what you’ve seen in movies or heard about from your friends, there are things no one tells you about anal sex, like how you might feel afterwards or the pain you might have during. It definitely helps to understand what’s really happening when you’re having sex. Like: If there are two holes in your vagina (your urethra and your vaginal canal), which hole does sex happen in? And what about all this "popping the cherry" stuff I've heard about? And WTF is a hymen?!

Let's start off by answering that last question. Your hymen is a majorly misunderstood part of your body — many people think being a virgin is defined by how open your hymen is. This is totally false! Everyone’s hymen is different, whether intact or not. It has nothing to do with your virginity. According to Planned Parenthood, the hymen is “a thin, fleshy tissue that’s located at the opening of your vagina.” In most cases, it’s what covers your vaginal opening, where your period blood comes from and your tampon goes in. Your hymenal tissue can be stretched open from masturbating, putting in tampons, vaginal sex, riding a bike… the list goes on.

When it comes to sex, all of the action happens in your vaginal canal (which is where you put a tampon in and where period blood comes out). Your urethra is a tiny hole above your vaginal opening where pee comes out AKA it's not involved in any kind of penetration.

There are SO many different reactions you could have, both emotional and physical, to having sex for the first time, all of which are completely normal. As long as you use protection and are 100 percent sure you're ready, you're in a good place. Keep reading to find out things that no one tells you about losing your virginity.