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" Q. Can my gyno tell when the last time I had sex was?  A. Only if it was very recently\u2014in that case, your MD may detect some semen. Q. My gyno put her finger in my butt. What the what?  A. It&amp;#039;s part of a regular comprehensive exam. Your doctor may insert one finger in your vagina and another in your anus, and then palpate the area with her fingertips, checking for any suspicious masses in your ovaries and rectum. Q. Will my vagina look different if I&amp;#039;m pregnant or after I have kids?  A. Yes. During pregnancy, your cervix may take on a bluish hue due to increased blood flow. After you&amp;#039;ve had children (unless it was a scheduled C-section without labor or cervical dilation), the walls of your vagina tend to be more lax. Plus, the opening of your cervix may have a wider, &amp;quot;fish mouth&amp;quot; appearance, instead of a small, round hole. Q. Does my vagina stink?  A. They normally don&amp;#039;t smell at all, although if you&amp;#039;re at the end of her period, there may be a slight odor of old blood. What you eat can also affect the scent\u2014asparagus or spicy foods create a distinct smell. If a woman&amp;#039;s vagina has a strong, fishy odor, it can be a sign of a bacterial infection (particularly bacterial vaginosis, or BV) or a foreign body (like a piece of trapped tissue or a forgotten tampon). Q. Speaking of, how often do ob-gyns find stuff that got &amp;quot;lost&amp;quot; up there?  A. It actually happens all the time. In fact, your gynecologist probably has a sterilized instrument in the exam room specially designed to remove their findings. [Dr. Brightman has located hundreds of wandering tampons during her 23-year career, as well as dozens of condoms, a piece of garlic that a woman had been using to self-treat an infection (do not try that at home, btw!), and a strawberry that went missing during sex play (later that day, the patient sent Dr. Brightman a box of chocolate-covered strawberries with a note thanking her for having a sense of humor).] Q. I know you&amp;#039;re going to say that you don&amp;#039;t care\u2014but honestly, do MDs prefer if you shave or wax before a Pap smear? A. It absolutely does not matter in the slightest. Q. Does my vagina look different depending on my cycle?  A. The only change is the appearance of your discharge. Around ovulation, it&amp;#039;s copious, thin, and stretchy. Post-ovulation it&amp;#039;s white, opaque, and pasty. Q. I have crazy-long labia. You see so many vaginas\u2014so what do average labia really look like? A. Probably due to the Brazilian waxing trend and the proliferation of porn, more and more women are expressing concerns about the appearance of their V-zone in general, and labia in particular. But there is so much variation that there really is no &amp;quot;average.&amp;quot; Just like penises, labia come in all shapes and sizes. They can be asymmetric, they can be plump or thin, the inner labia may be longer than the outer labia, etc. Yours are most likely perfectly normal. Trust us. Q. Is it okay to have sex the night before my Pap smear, or could that mess with the test results?  A. It&amp;#039;s fine to have sex. What could yield an inaccurate result? Douching (which is unnecessary in general) and self-medicating for an infection\u2014like using Monistat for a yeast infection. If you are taking a medication, check with your doctor pre-Pap to see if you should suspend treatment. Q. Can my gynecologist tell if I use sex toys?  A. Not usually, although excessive use of toys without appropriate lubrication can create irritation thanks to friction. Other common causes of irritation that gynos see include spinning, wearing mini-pads to line your underwear, and going fuzz-free (hair provides a helpful buffer). "^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://www.cosmopolitan.com/sex-love/advice/a4397/pap-smear/?click=cos_new>