Your cervix is located inside your pelvic cavity, anywhere from 3 to 6 inches inside your vaginal canal. It begins at the base of your uterus and extends downward onto the top part of your vagina.
A low cervix means it may only be about 2 inches up inside the vagina or even lower. But if you have a high cervix, you may have to go about 5-6 inches in to reach it. Everyone else's cervix is about 3-4 inches deep. Check out our guide on how to measure your cervix if you're not sure how deep yours is.
You can feel your cervix by gently putting one or two clean or gloved fingers deep into your vagina (make sure you don't have any sharp or jagged edges on your nails). Using lube may make this more comfortable. Seeing your cervix can be a little trickier, but it's possible.
Feel for the cervix.
The tip of your finger will touch the donut-shaped opening at the end of your vagina. You'll know it's your cervix if your finger isn't able to keep reaching further. The cervix may be soft, like pursed lips, or firm, like the tip of your nose, depending on whether or not you are ovulating.
Cervical stimulation is a completely safe activity. However, just because it is safe does not mean that everyone has to be okay with trying such deep penetration. It is essential for a woman to communicate with her partner about what feels good and whether she finds this type of penetration comfortable.
For some people the cervix being stimulated during deep vaginal penetration feels awesome and pleasurable, but for some people it can be uncomfortable or even painful. If you ever experience cervical stimulation, pay attention to how it feels and communicate that with your partner so you don't hurt yourself.
Use one hand to separate your labia and your dominant hand to insert one finger into the vagina. Your middle finger or pointer finger are typically the best fingers to check your cervix with, according to Dr. Evans. “You can use water-based lubricant or coconut oil if needed,” she adds.
Your body position should allow you to easily reach your cervix. That may be sitting on the toilet, putting one leg up on the edge of the bathtub, or squatting. Reach your finger inside your vagina. Use the index or middle finger and slowly slide your finger in as far as you can reach, in sort of an upward motion.
Your care provider will place two fingers inside your vagina (this is called a vaginal examination) and work out how many finger widths fit into the opening of the cervix. If one fingertip fits, the cervix is considered to be 1 cm dilated. If the tips of two fingers fit, this means the cervix is 2 cm dilated.
The test involves inserting two fingers into a woman's vagina to check for the presence of a hymen or the size of the vaginal opening. However, the test has been widely criticized by human rights activists and medical experts, who argue that it is unreliable, unscientific, and violates the woman's dignity and privacy.
The texture of the cervix also changes in early pregnancy due to increased blood flow. If the woman has not conceived, the cervix will feel firm to the touch, like the tip of a nose. If she has conceived, the cervix will feel softer, more closely resembling the lips.
During menstrual bleeding, the cervix is normally low and hard, and slightly open to allow the blood to flow out. It feels like the tip of your nose. After your period stops, the cervix remains low and hard and the opening to the uterus (uterine is) remains closed.
Cervical squamous epithelium is smooth and looks slightly pink to the naked eye in its non-pregnant state. During pregnancy it becomes progressively more vascular and develops a bluish hue.
The cervix looks a little bit like a donut. When it's closed, the hole looks like a dimple, but it opens during ovulation to let sperm in, explains Ronald D. Blatt, M.D., gynecologist and chief surgeon and medical director of the Manhattan Center for Vaginal Surgery.
During early pregnancy your cervix is likely to feel soft and rise up. The feeling of softness comes as during pregnancy your cervix will contain more blood due to rising levels of estrogen in your body.
Every woman experience things differently and it is very much possible to have a low cervix even when you're pregnant because your body may not be yet ready for pregnancy. There are cases in which a woman's cervix wouldn't rise up during the first month of pregnancy.
Trigger digits or trigger thumb are generally common conditions but fluid retention and swelling in pregnancy can potentiate the condition. This often feels like a clicking or catching with opening and closing the fingers that may be painful, particularly at the base of the digit. It is often worse in the morning.
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When the average woman is unaroused, it's 3 to 4 inches deep. For someone who has a high cervix, it's 4 to 5 inches deep. For someone with a lower one, it's less than 3 inches deep. Keep in mind that the vagina lengthens when aroused.
Check for dilation.
Try to insert the tips of your fingers into your cervix. If one fingertip fits through your cervix, you're considered one centimeter dilated. If two fit, you're two centimeters dilated. If there's additional space in the opening, try to estimate how many fingertips would fit to determine dilation.