Something else? Ask Aunt Vadge – bottom left of your screen!
Hi Aunt Vadge,
I’ve always had pain during and after sex and struggled to use tampons, but never really known why. Recently I was brave enough to get a mirror down there and have a proper look. I opened the entrance of my vagina with two fingers and saw something that surely isn’t normal.
I got straight on Google to find out if anyone else had the same thing. I found a diagram that looks a lot like what I’ve got – it’s sort of like a wall or growth running down the middle. Do you know what this is?
Sincerely,
Suffering
Dear Suffering,
From what you’re describing – a band of tissue running down the middle of the vaginal opening, with lifelong pain from sex and tampons – it does sound like it could be a longitudinal vaginal septum, sometimes called a ‘double vagina’. It’s an anatomical difference you’re born with, where a wall of tissue divides the vagina into two channels. You can read more about it in our guide to transverse and longitudinal vaginal septa.
This is exactly how it often comes to light: pain trying to have sex or insert a tampon, and, if you look, a visible wall. Because most of us don’t examine ourselves closely, it can go unnoticed for years, so well done for looking.
The important next step is to be examined by a gynaecologist who has experience with these, ideally one used to congenital differences – not every doctor has seen one. This is firmly a job for an in-person specialist, not something we can diagnose or treat from here, because the whole point is looking at the tissue directly and imaging what’s behind it.
A simple longitudinal septum is usually straightforward to divide surgically, after which tampons and sex become comfortable and your fertility isn’t affected. The reason a proper assessment matters is that a vaginal septum can sometimes come alongside differences in the uterus or cervix, so a specialist will usually want a scan to see the full picture before deciding what, if anything, to do.
One more possibility to hold lightly: what you’re seeing could be a prominent hymenal band rather than a full septum, and those often stretch and settle with time, tampon use or gentle dilation. An exam will tell you which it is, so you’re not guessing.
Whatever it turns out to be, getting it looked at is the way to finally understand the pain you’ve lived with – and to do something about it.
Write back anytime – we’d love to know how you get on.
Warmest regards,
Aunt Vadge
This is general information, not a substitute for personalised medical advice.
