Sex Education
The Average Clit is 4-Inches Long
Knowing basic anatomy can revolutionize your sex life.
The clitoris is an erectile structure, just like the penis. Whether you are touching yourself or starting to play around with a lover, arousal will send blood pulsating into the clitoris. Providing the vulva with a magnificent boner.
There are many reasons why people know more about the penis than the clitoris. One is that scientists and doctors weren’t legally required to include women’s bodies in medical research until 1993. Which could explain how information about the clit is anything but mainstream. Even with more inclusive medical research, we still inherit biases about our sex organs.
I’d wager that one main reason the penile erection gets more exposure is simply because we can see it. When a dick gets hard, the shaft straightens, then the head (the penis’s most sensitive part) begins to look around, eager to be touched.
The clitoris experiences the exact same sensation, however, the shaft of the clit is inside a person’s body. Still, once the clit begins to get hard, the tip of the clitoris (similar to the head of a penis) is eager to be played with. Sometimes the tip of a clit will expose itself during an erection. Other times the clit’s tip is a little more demure.
Don’t feel forgotten if you don’t have an extroverted clitoral tip, that is perfectly normal. The most important thing to remember is that this sensitive area is just as eager to be fondled as a penis.
…but very few people know how big, and arousing, a clit really is.
The average clitoris is four inches long.
I should be more specific. The average flaccid clitoris is four inches long. When a clit gets hard, it can grow to be longer than the average penis.
Dr. Heather Jeffcoat, who specializes in pelvic health, explains:
The vaginal lips will swell during arousal so that they are two to three times bigger than usual. [The tip of the clitoris] will peak out of the clitoral hood and grow in size 50 to 300 percent.
Basically, clitoral erections are a big deal. The reason the vaginal lips swell during arousal is because the shaft of the clitoris is located right underneath them. When vaginal lips engorge it is a signal that a vulva is experiencing an erection.
Even though almost all of Earth’s population is sexually active, most of us do not know that vulvas can have an erection. This is a big gap in our sexual knowledge.
Take a glance at the anatomy of a clitoris above, because you are extraordinary and deserve to know exactly how this erection operates.
Most often, when we think of the clit we think of the very sensitive piece of flesh located on the upper portion of the pelvis.
This is ‘just the tip’ of the clit and it is called the glans clitoris. This external portion of the clitoris is extremely sensitive. Many vulva-owners achieve orgasm primarily by stimulating the clit’s tip, just like how most people with a penis climax primarily through stimulation of the penises shaft and head.
The shaft of the clitoris is often referred to as the clit’s legs. These legs sit right underneath the luscious lips of the vagina. Scientifically speaking, these legs are made up of the corpus cavernous and the crus clitoris. With the bulbs of vestibule, or erectile tissue, surrounding the vaginal hole.
The clitoral shaft, or these caverns of erectile tissue, almost exactly resemble the erectile tissue that a penis uses to achieve an erection. Both are labeled in Latin as corpora cavernosa (f) or corpus cavernosum (m). Which literally translates to “cave-like bodies”.
Dr. Myrtle Wilhite, who ran a sexuality research center, explained this similarity the best:
“Technically, it isn’t a penis that becomes erect. The clitoral caverns inside of the penis are the structures that become engorged and erect […] Therefore, because all mammals have clitoral caverns, all mammals get erections regardless of their gender.”
However you desire to label your erectile tissue, the point is that all humans have erections. With all this information you may be thinking, dang, the clit and penis seem to be pretty similar.
I’m glad you noticed, let’s break that down too.
The penis and the clitoris originate from the same tissue in the womb.
No wonder these two cute body parts are so similar! According to pregnancy and women’s health expert Colleen de Bellefonds:
Up until about week 7 to week 8 of pregnancy, both sexes have what’s known as a “genital ridge” — i.e. an identical preliminary set of genitalia.
It isn’t until week 9 that a fetus may begin showing signs of a penile structure. If a penis is starting to form then the genital ridge will lengthen around this time. However, the clitoris and the penis actually maintain the same size until 14 weeks of pregnancy.
That is an important takeaway for people to understand. The penis and the clitoris both derive from the same tissue in the womb. As such, they are similar in size and function, so all erections should be treated equally.
Finding and Stimulating a Clitoral Erection
So, now that we have a more full-bodied understanding of the clitoris, let’s have some fun with these two exercises.
Before you begin, grab some coconut oil (or another lubricant) and lather up those fingers. If you prefer, a sex toy works as well; I highly recommend a vibrator.
One reason vibrators are so stimulating is because those powerful vibrations stimulate the clit to its core. When the vibrator is placed on the tip of the clit, the entire shaft will feel the magical buzzing sensation.
If you would like to try these exercises with a lover, the more the merrier. I do recommend trying this by yourself as well. Knowledge is power, and sexual knowledge is empowering.
Exercise #1: Start by stimulating the tip of the clitoris in whatever fashion you usually enjoy.
When you feel yourself getting close to a climax, or have simply been feeling good for five or ten minutes, hit pause.
Take your hands and feel the lips of the vulva. Notice if your lips are warm and swollen. If a lover is present, ask them to hand you a mirror so you can both notice if the skin around your vaginal hole has changed color slightly. Usually, the skin will have a rouge or pink tinge.
Another fun trick to try during this pause is pressing your legs together and squeezing. When I do this I can literally feel the pulsation of my engorged lips. It’s wild.
Mainly, this exercise is about finding the clitoral shaft.
Don’t be surprised if you don’t feel your shaft the first time you try this. First of all, just like a penile erection, a clitoral erection will begin to simmer down when the stimulation stops.
Second, learning about our bodies is a process akin to learning a new language. Even with the best tools, you won’t speak French in a day. So there is nothing wrong with you if it takes some time to locate your clitoral shaft and learn about your erection.
Exercise #2: How to directly stimulate the clitoral shaft.
Whether you have met your erection or not, it is still possible to stimulate the clitoral shaft.
If you have a vibrator all you need to do is rest your buzzing friend on different areas of your vaginal lips. The higher you go, the more intensely you will feel the vibrations. Obviously, the most intense point will be the tip of the clitoris. I use my vibrator to figure out the most sensitive pressure points of my clitoral shaft. It also helps me estimate just how long my shaft is. This is also a fun way to tease a lover before stimulating the head of a clitoris.
If you are using your hands begin with your dominant hand. Use your palm to lightly stimulate the clitoral tip. Stimulating the tip with your palm will awaken the erectile tissue. While this is happening, use your fingers to massage the vaginal lips. Notice where the lips of your vulva get warm. Notice if any swelling occurs, or even a light pulsation as blood begins to flow into your shaft. If you like, you can bring in your other hand to help stimulate the vaginal lips. I love this skin-on-skin approach because you can experience first hand how your body is responding to stimulation. As your fingers continue to massage your lips, try and find the lovely pressure points of your shaft.
As I mentioned with exercise one, this practice takes time. Relax, breathe, and play some sexy music. Don’t get discouraged if you don’t think you’re seeing results right away. Your erection is not going anywhere, and you can self-pleasure whenever your heart desires.
Becoming familiar with the clitoral erection is a revolutionary act.
In a world that hierarchies the g-spot, connecting to your clitoris can be a very transformative experience. Essentially, folks with a penis often orgasm only through their version of the clitoris. Meanwhile, many people with a vulva are taught that if they don’t orgasm from g-spot stimulation something is wrong with them.
Why is it okay for the penis to be a main source of orgasm, but not the clitoris? That’s silly. There is no right or wrong way to feel good and there is no ‘best’ or ‘better’ way to have an orgasm.
The constitution declares that all people should be treated equally. I decree that all erections should too.
Nadège is a sexuality scholar and spiritual mentor who uses her knowledge to bring warmth to heavy topics. Stay up to date with all her sexy new discoveries here.
