You’re in the middle of having super hot sex, totally lost in the moment, when your vagina lets out a noise that sounds suspiciously like you had too many beans for lunch.
You
just queefed, nbd. While you've probs experienced this kind of "vagina
fart" before (and btw, probs will again), you might not know what a
queef actually is. Since this definitely wasn't covered in your sex ed
class, it's time to set the record straight.
What exactly is a queef?
"We
don’t devote any education to this in residency, but I tell patients
it’s a very normal thing," says Mary Jane Minkin, MD, clinical professor
of obstetrics and gynecology at Yale Medical School. "It’s different
from expelling gas from your rectum, which happens because of bacterial
activity in the gut."
Instead, queefing is the
result of a trapped pocket of air getting pushed out of your vagina.
FYI: The vagina isn’t a straight tube, says Dr. Minkin. It has
wrinkle-like folds called "rugae," so air could easily get trapped in
there.
Should you be worried?
Not
at all. "Queefing is of zero health consequence," explains Dr. Minkin.
Slightly related, she does caution against blowing into a pregnant
woman’s vagina because the air can get into her pelvic veins and create
the risk of an air embolism. "You know how people get nervous when
there’s an air bubble in an IV?" she explains. "It’s the same concern:
What if the air gets into the vein and travels to the heart or lungs or
fetus?" That sounds pretty scary, but Dr. Minkin says the worry is more
theoretical than practical. (Still, good to know—just in case.)
Check out this video to learn about what actually does affect your vaginal heath:
When does queefing happen?
It often occurs during sex, because a penis (or other penetrating
object) is going in and out of the vagina, which can displace the air
inside of it. "It can happen during any position and is usually fairly
quick," says Dr. Minkin.
Of course, that's also just so happens to be the last time
you'd want to rip one. A queef can also slip out during exercise, like
when you’re getting into downward dog or knocking out the last set of
crunches.
Can you queef while you’re masturbating?
Queefing is so not limited to sexual
intercourse—anything that causes air to get caught in your vaginal
canal, including a vibrator or other sex toy, can be a culprit, says
Stephanie Ros, MD, an assistant professor of obstetrics and gynecology
and maternal fetal medicine at the University of South Florida. "This is
all about a tunnel that has no other opening," she says. "If air gets
trapped because of movement [no matter what causes it], it has to get
out."
Do some people just queef more?
Just like some gals seem to get all
the (ugh), some women’s vaginas are just graced with a greater
queef-ability (add that to your vocab). That can change with time and
experiences, too. For instance, you can become more queef-inclined after
childbirth or massive weight loss, says Dr. Ros. "When people lose a
ton of weight, and they have a lot of sagging skin, the same thing can
happen in the tissues of the vagina."
Are you more likely to queef in certain sex positions?
Doggy-style
fans, you’ve been warned: You're more likely to queef in positions
where your pelvis is tilted upward, says Dr. Ros. But the same goes for
many, many other positions. If you’re in missionary but your butt is
lifted off the bed (or floor, or couch, or beach…), for example, "that
would be more likely to cause air entry and, with further movement, the
air comes back out and, sometimes, it makes a noise," she says.
In other words: Don’t even bother trying to avoid
queefing. "Sex is weird, noisy, and messy," says Dr. Ros. "Just laugh
and go with the moment. Don’t try to fight it."
How should you handle it during sex?
And that's exactly what
you should do when—not if—it happens to you. Since there’s no
mysterious secret to avoiding a queefs, you might as well embrace 'em.
"Just joke about it and keep going. These things happen!" concurs Dr.
Minkin. Remember, it’s a natural bodily function—laugh it off and get
back to business.
Okay, so, just to review—what should you do the next time you queef?
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