7 reasons why your vagina may feel too tight, and what you can do about it

Treatment for a vagina that feels tight may include pelvic floor physical therapy, hormone replacement therapy, or estrogen cream.

A vagina that feels tight can make it painful to insert anything from a tampon to a penis. Childbirth, yeast infections, and STIs are common causes of a tight vagina. Other causes include medical conditions like vaginismus, endometriosis, and menopause.

There are many different reasons why your vagina may feel too tight, resulting in pain while inserting a tampon or during sex. In fact, an estimated 75% of women experience pain during intercourse at some point in their lives.

Front-To-Back Wiping Your Vagina: It's A Huge Conversation On TikTok Right Now

Here's Why And What An Expert Says

2022 New Year's Resolution: learn how to wipe.

Hello, people with vaginas. Now, some of you may or may not have been taught as little kids that — after using the restroom — you should always wipe from the front to the back. And, if you weren't taught it as a kid, then I am sure at some point in your adolescent or adult life, you have learned it.

What causes incontinence during pregnancy?

There are many causes for incontinence during pregnancy and postpartum. Some of the proposed factors are:

• hormonal changes,
• pelvic floor muscle and connective tissue modifications,
• bladder neck widening (due to the weight of both the uterus and the growing fetus),
• anatomical injuries during delivery.^{1, 2}

A hormone called relaxin is produced during pregnancy to help soften the muscles and ligaments in preparation for delivery. As the uterus and baby grow throughout pregnancy more load is placed on the pelvic floor muscles causing the pelvic floor muscles to become weaker.³ Also constipation, which is commonly seen in pregnancy, puts an additional load on the pelvic floor.⁴ Furthermore, the pelvic floor has additional strain placed on it during labor; the pelvic floor muscle is stretched five times its original length.⁵

Dr. Erin literally got me back on my feet!

I came to her 7 months pregnant with debilitating sciatica and after having spent hundreds of dollars on chiropractic care with minimal results. I was not able to function normally because of the level of pain I was in, preventing me from walking & all other daily tasks. It was immediately clear that I was in the right hands. Dr. Erin has an empathetic, caring & highly personalized approach to caring for her patients. I felt relief on the first visit. I began feeling better & better until I could walk (even run!) on my own, pain-free

Read more about Pelvic Pain During Pregnancy