The clitoris is the female sexual organ
found where the labia minora, or inner lips, meet. It consists
of a rounded area or head, called the glans, and a longer
part, called the shaft, which contains cavernous bodies
similar to those of the penis.
The tissue of the inner lips normally covers
the shaft of the clitoris, which makes a hood, or prepuce,
to protect it. The only directly visible part of the clitoris
is the glans, which looks like a small, shiny button.
The size and shape vary considerably among
women. It can be seen by gently pushing back the skin of
the clitoral hood. There is a high concentration of nerve
endings in the clitoris and in the area immediately surrounding
it.
The abundance of nerve endings in the clitoris
makes it very sensitive to direct or indirect touch or pressure.
Stimulation of the clitoral area can be very pleasurable.
The Only Organ Designed for Pleasure
In fact, providing its owner with sexual pleasure is the
organ's only known function, and the clitoris is the only
organ in either sex with pleasure as its sole function.
It has nothing to do with getting pregnant, with menstruation,
or with urination.
When a woman becomes sexually aroused, both
the glans and the shaft fill with blood and increase in
size. The glans can double in diameter. There is no evidence
that a larger clitoris means more intense sexual arousal.
As erotic stimulation continues and orgasm
approaches, the clitoris becomes less visible as it is covered
by the swelling of tissues of the clitoral hood. This swelling
is designed to protect the clitoris from direct contact,
which, for some women, can be more irritating than pleasurable.
It moves out again when the stimulation stops.
After orgasm the clitoris returns to its
normal size within about ten minutes because the orgasm
leads to a dispersal of the accumulated blood. If the woman
doesn't have an orgasm, the blood that has flowed into the
clitoris as a result of sexual arousal may remain there,
keeping the clitoris engorged for a few hours. Many women
find this uncomfortable.
A woman's clitoris can be stimulated through
direct or indirect contact. During intercourse the penis
does not contact the clitoris directly. The thrusting of
the penis in the vagina, regardless of the position used,
moves the labia minora, and it is this movement of the lips
against the clitoris that usually creates the orgasm.
Direct contact with the clitoris by touching
it with a finger, vibrator, or a tongue can cause more discomfort
than pleasure for many women. For these women, more general
rubbing or licking of the area around the clitoris is likely
to feel better. Other women enjoy very intense direct stimulation.
There is great variability in sensitivity of the clitoris
and each woman.