svenfooMar 10
Vagina Museum
Pain during ovulation is called Mittelschmerz - literally, "middle pain". Having a bit of pain mid-cycle is pretty normal, although if it's so serious it interferes with your day, it might indicate there's something wrong and you need to see a doctor. Here's why many of us feel pain at ovulation...
Mar 10 at 3:17pmWeb
Show threadVagina MuseumMar 10

Sometimes Mittelschmerz is experienced as a short, sharp burst of pain. When this happens, it's because the ovarian follicle doesn't come with a handy escape hatch for the egg. Instead, the egg just fucking bursts out of there like the Kool-Aid man.

Pain from the egg bursting out is pretty short-lived, though can be quite intense. Sometimes you might experience the pain as definitively to one side or the other, depending on which ovary.

Show threadVagina MuseumMar 10

And sometimes Mittelschmerz is experienced more as a duller pain that goes on for a few hours. You might imagine that the egg just whizzes down the uterine tube like a helter-skelter. This is not, in fact, how it works. The tube squeezes that egg down like a tube of toothpaste.

It's this squeezing action (peristalsis) which might be experienced as the dull, aching pain around ovulation.

Show threadVagina MuseumMar 10
If we look at a real ovary and tube, we can see some signs of all this action going on. First, if we look at the surface of the ovary (the rounded, paler part), we can see little scars all over the surface. Each little scar is caused by an egg bursting out of there.
Show threadVagina MuseumMar 10
We can also see in the photo that the uterine tube isn't just a chute-like, simple tube. It's quite muscular. And those muscles are important for squeezing the egg along the tube!
Show threadVagina MuseumMar 10
The preserved organs in the photo are on display at the Vagina Museum. They are on long-term loan from a 30 year old trans man who had a gender-affirming hysterectomy. You can examine the organs from all angles here at the Vagina Museum - start planning your visit! https://www.vaginamuseum.co.uk/visit
Visit — Vagina Museum

The Vagina Museum is open! Visit the Vagina Museum at Arches 275-276 Poyser Street, London. Wed - Sun 10am - 6pm.

Vagina Museum
Show threadCoral 😷Mar 10

@vagina_museum OK, that is extremely badass. "I don't need this anymore, would you like it?"

Hi5 to him! 💜

Show threadFloreanaMar 10
@vagina_museum
Ah, didn't know that stab to the side had a name!
Show threaddona 🌿Mar 10
@vagina_museum Thank you for this explanation... I have PCOS and to this day I feel like I don't "understand" ovulation, and then some months it's excruciating cramps ahoy! Really fun! Not.
Show threadGender David CopperfieldMar 10
@vagina_museum this is bullshit. Someone should redesign this. Worst part of the human design. It shouldn't be nearly that dramatic just to lay an absolutely microscopic egg. 0/10 for the yeeterus.
Show threadA cool crab wearing shadesMar 10
@old_angry_queer @vagina_museum Real 5 PM on a friday design quality
Show threadSordid Amok!Mar 10
@vagina_museum I will definitely use "Mittelschmerz" for the name of a villain in a future book.
Show threadCourt Cantrell does not complyMar 10
@vagina_museum Out of curiosity, why is the German word used when discussing it in English?