Have you ever Googled “Is a queef a fart?” 

Has someone ever made a queefing joke at your expense, and everyone laughed, even though it wasn’t medically accurate (or, more importantly funny)? 

Have you ever heard your vagina make a whoopie-cushion sound after sex and you can’t seem to control it?

 

If you answered “yes” to one or more of those questions, then this blog post is for you (or, really anyone who wants to better understand the human body, which is hopefully everyone, right?). Yes, I’m here to demystify and destigmatize the queef — a.k.a the silly sound that exits the vagina, sometimes during or after sex — and assure you that it is completely normal and safe. 

Let’s start by dispelling the biggest rumor that looms over the queef: that it’s essentially a vagina fart. This is entirely untrue! In reality, the queef and the fart are two completely separate bodily functions, with the only commonality being a similar sound. While a fart is made up of gas from the digestive tract, a queef is a trapped pocket of air that has been pushed inside of the vagina, and simply needs to come back out. 

The sound you hear is caused by the vibrations of the vulva and vaginal lips. The lips flutter as the air passes through and make a ruffling sound, like wind through a sail. This sensation most commonly occurs during penetrative sex acts, when a penis, finger, or sex toy repeatedly moves in and out of the vagina, and air becomes trapped. Your vagina expands while experiencing pleasure, but once it contracts, the air will escape.

While anyone may experience queefing, some people experience it more often than others. How frequently you experience queefing depends on the length and shape of your vaginal canal and how wet your vagina becomes during arousal. Air bubbles can get trapped inside of lube during sex, which may cause queefing after sex as the air bubbles pop. Queefing can also happen during exercise or when coughing or sneezing.

We don’t see any shame in queefing, but if want to avoid queefing during sex, you may want to skip certain sex positions like Doggy Style or X Marks The Spot. These positions can create a strong air-flow into your vagina, especially if there is heavy thrusting involved. As I’ve said before: there is truly nothing wrong with a queef here and there, so don’t let a common bodily function stop you from being creative and enjoying your favorite positions. 

So, next time a queef slips out after sex or at the gym, try not to let the goofy sound send you into a shame spiral. Take a deep breath and remind yourself that it’s just your vagina working as it should, and that is something to be grateful for.