Basic Knowledge of G spot

If you think the G-spot equals mind-blowing orgasms, think again. With constant news headlines about this fabled female erogenous zone, our experts explain why medical opinion remains to be convinced.

What is the G-spot?

There’s still a lot of controversy about whether the female G-spot really exists. Few doctors will give you a definite answer to this query.

• Most standard gynaecological textbooks make no mention of the G-spot at all.
• Anatomy manuals used by medical students and postgraduates do not show such a structure.
• No gynae surgeon has seen a G-spot during an operation.
• No anatomist has yet found one while dissecting a human body.

On the other hand, there is quite a lot of evidence from women’s personal experiences of sex that there’s a particular area, located very close to the front wall of the vagina, that seems to give some females a remarkable amount of pleasure.

And there are women who claim that stimulation of this area helps them to reach orgasm – and sometimes an orgasm of an unusual kind.

So, it does seem likely there is, at the very least, a collection of highly sensitive nerve-endings in the region that has come to be known as the G-spot.

What is the evidence that it exists?

1944: Gräfenberg makes discovery

In 1944 a German gynaecologist called Ernst Gräfenberg discovered a new erogenous zone, located somewhere near the front wall of the vagina.
He published his conclusions in the International Journal of Sexology in 1950 in a paper called The Role of the Urethra in Female Orgasm.

The urethra is the female urinary pipe and is about four centimetres long. It carries urine from the bladder to outside the body.

The important thing to grasp is that the urethra is embedded in the front wall of the vagina. Therefore, pressing on the lower part of the anterior vaginal wall will create pressure on the urethra.

Dr Gräfenberg claimed that stimulating this area would cause the tissues to swell up and would give the woman intense sexual pleasure and orgasm. He also linked this erogenous zone to the phenomenon of female ejaculation.

In 1950, few people paid Gräfenberg any attention. Throughout the fifties and sixties, his name was only known to doctors as the inventor of the coil (intra-uterine device).

1981: the spot is named

The spot started attracting attention again in 1981, when Dr Addiego and his colleagues published an article in the Journal of Sex Research called Female Ejaculation: A Case Study.
This report was based on a study of just one woman, who said she experienced ‘a deeper orgasm’ when the front wall of her vagina was rubbed.

The authors started calling this area of the body the G-spot in honour of Gräfenberg.

1982: the phenomenon begins

In 1982, US researchers Ladas, Whipple and Perry published a bestselling book called The G-Spot and Other Discoveries About Human Sexuality.

This attracted headlines all over the world, and millions of people got the idea that you would have wonderful orgasms if you could find this fabled spot.

1983-2007: a modern gynaecological myth?

During the 1980s and 90s, a lot of scientists tried to establish what the G-spot actually was, but with fairly inconclusive results.

Their studies were limited by the fact that scanning of female genitalia was still in its infancy.
In 2001 this led to the American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology calling the Gräfenberg spot ‘a modern gynecologic myth’.

2008: ultrasound breakthrough

In March 2008 the G-spot again caused a worldwide sensation, when an Italian team from the University of L’Aquila reported they had done ultrasound scans on 20 women.
They found about half of the women had a ‘thickened area’ between the vagina and the urethra.

Females who had this thickened area were more likely to say they experienced vaginal orgasms.

Vaginal orgasms are those caused by stimulating the vagina alone, as opposed to direct stimulation of the clitoris.

This somewhat ambiguous finding has been interpreted by many to mean ‘the Italians have found the G-spot’.

But this was a small sample of women, so the majority of scientists and doctors remain sceptical. A far more significant number of women would need to be scanned before this research is taken more seriously.

In January 2010, a team from King’s College London gained worldwide headlines by announcing that ‘the G-spot does not exist’.

But it transpired that their findings were merely based on interviewing 900 pairs of female twins, asking them whether they thought they had a G-spot, and seeing if the results of identical twins matched each other. This was hardly convincing research.

Within a month, a group of French gynaecologists had hit back – stating that the ‘Anglo Saxon research’ was ‘lacking in respect for women’.

In February 2010, the French group declared that at least 56 per cent of females do have ‘un point G’.

What about future research?

Possible future lines of investigation include the following.

• Is the G-spot really made up of Skene’s glands – tiny glandular structures that are rather like the male’s prostate?
• Is the spot really part of the wall of the urethra that contains erectile tissue?
• Is the G-spot actually part of the ‘roots’ of the clitoris, which an Australian doctor has now shown to extend far further than had previously been thought?

What does all this mean for your sex life?

At the moment, more research needs to be done to confirm where the G-spot is and whether all women have it.

• Women: if your partner is able to stimulate your G-spot, you may find it gives you new and exciting sensations. It’s unlikely you’ll be able to stimulate yourself in this way, because it’s hard to reach the right area unless you’ve got very long fingers.
• Men: knowing how to stimulate this area with your fingertips may be a useful addition to your bedtime repertoire and give extra pleasure to your partner. But trying to reach the G-spot with your penis during sex is not easy. You might just possibly have success if the woman is sitting astride you and facing you, and then leans backwards, so the penis presses against her front vaginal wall. However, it remains doubtful whether this pressure really ‘hits’ the G-spot area.

You can also buy G-spot vibrators. They have a kink in the end so the tip can reach the front wall of the vagina. But they are quite difficult to use, unless you have a good knowledge of female anatomy.

What will it feel like?

If you or your man are trying to rub the G-spot, it may at first just feel uncomfortable and give you an overwhelming desire to pee.
If you try to ignore this feeling for a few seconds, you may be lucky and suddenly experience quite a thrilling sense of building excitement.
But we cannot stress too much that this is not the case in all women.

• Some women say they definitely have a G-spot and it’s something that gives them enormous pleasure when it’s stimulated.
• Others tell us they hate having this area rubbed.
• Plenty say its okay, but not nearly as good as clitoral stimulation.

And contrary to what you may have heard, stimulation of the G-spot alone is not very likely to bring the woman to a shattering orgasm. In our experience, few women will climax unless the clitoris is being stimulated at the same time.

So, in conclusion, you may want to have a go at finding your G-spot and giving it some attention – but we cannot guarantee that it will be your cup of tea.

For the average person, the most important thing to know about the G-spot is how to find it – or at least, how to find the place where it’s supposed to be.

• Both partners should agree they are going to search for the G-spot. The man shouldn’t spring it on the woman as a surprise.
• The woman should lie on her back and make sure she is comfortable, relaxed and well-lubricated.
• With his palm upwards, the man should gently insert his index finger into her vagina.
• When it is fully in, he should make a ‘beckoning’ movement until his fingertip comes into contact with the front wall of her vagina.
• He should then rub that area.
• If he is in the right zone, she will immediately experience a desire to pee.
• With luck, she will also experience considerable pleasure.