…including what clitor-is and what clitor-isn’t true that you might have read elsewhere online. Let’s get cliterate!
I was unsure about whether to open this article with a joke about the clitoris; after all, for many people, it’s a sensitive spot. ;)
In truth though, it’s no joke how much misinformation, myth and misogyny-induced mystery surrounds this exquisitely sensual part of the body, despite over half the world’s population owning one.
Having access to more accurate, up-to-date and in-depth info about the clitoris – how it’s built, how it can behave, and how to maximise its potential to bring pleasure – is essential for everyone from specialist medics seeking to improve the safety of pelvic surgery techniques, to everyday women who want to boost how brilliant their own bodies can make them feel.
So: hop on board the Elvie Express and become a whistle-stop CliTourist, while we take you on a fast-track 6-part trip to help you get clitorally clued up.
1/ Location, location, location: where is the clitoris? And what does it look like?
It’s a common wisecrack that straight guys can’t find the clit without a compass, but a study recently published in the International Urogynecology Journal [ ] found that 37% of people surveyed could not correctly label the clitoris on a diagram…and the majority of those quizzed were female.
“People who literally have clitorises themselves frequently have no idea where they are, or the full extent of their structure,” says Sophia Smith Galer, author of Losing It: Sex Education for the 21st Century. “Regardless of gender, education systems have rarely taught us much about them.”
The visible portion of the clitoris (we’ll address the bits of your bits that can’t be seen with the naked eye in just a sec) is called the glans, and is situated at the front junction of the labia minora – so, at the top of your inner lips. It’s just above the tiny urethral opening (AKA your pee hole), which is itself just above the larger opening to the vagina. You can see a drawing on sex education site BISH.