The G-spot may exist, but all pleasure paths still lead back to the clitoris

Few phenomena in this world are sliced and diced more than the female orgasm — did it happen? Was it good? Where did it come from? Does size matter? Why did one technique work last week, but not this week?  

A new study is likely to add even more speculation to the mix. Researchers at the University of L’Aquila in Italy have found physical evidence that, yes, Virginia, there is a G-spot.  

Vaginal ultrasounds of 20 sexually active women found increased thickness in the tissue between the vagina and the urethra — where the G-spot is thought to reside — only in women who reported having vaginal orgasms and not those who reported clitoral orgasms. Dr. Emmanuele Jannini, lead researcher on the study, concluded that some women simply have a G-spot and others don’t. And, consequently, that some women are capable of “vaginal orgasms,” while others are not.

Ahoy! Like searching for evidence of the Loch Ness Monster, the existence of the G-spot had been caught on paper. However, before you get a map and make an appointment with your doctor for an ultrasound, a few things need to be considered.

In the mythology of female sexuality, a lot of fuss is made over the differences between clitoral, G-spot, blended and vaginal orgasms. The clitoral orgasm is often criticized as being quick and lighthearted, while the others are somehow deemed more serious and substantive, possibly because they include partner-friendly penetration. But a quick study of anatomy reveals that all orgasms are clitoral. The clitoris is the sexual epicenter, an orgasmic powerhouse in which no sensation goes unnoticed.

Many people know and love the clitoris as the pea-size bump you can see externally; however, this is merely the tip of the iceberg. The clitoris is actually a vast internal network of parts that extend deep into the pelvis and connect with other internal parts of a woman’s sexual anatomy — measuring about four inches in total! And guess what the clitoris backs right into? The G-spot, which, anatomically speaking, is an area of spongy tissue that surrounds the urethra to protect it during penetration (named for the man who discovered it in 1944, Dr. Ernst Grafenberg). 

In other words, all roads lead back to the clitoris. What we think of as the G-spot is simply a part of the clitoris. A G-spot orgasm, like all female orgasms, is part of the same fantastic, magical pleasure-network inside of a woman’s body. Trying to separate one orgasm from the other is futile and, more importantly, likely to take you further away from orgasm rather than closer to it.

So while the G-spot does indeed exist, I think it’s important for women (and their partners) not to get hung up on distinctions. Enjoy pleasure from wherever it comes. At the end of the day, an orgasm is an orgasm is an orgasm and how you get there is half the fun.

Viva la vulva!

Ian Kerner is a sex therapist, relationship counselor and New York Times best-selling author of numerous books, including the recently published “Sex Detox: A Program to Detoxify and Rejuvenate Your Love Life.” He was born and raised in New York City, where he lives with his wife, two young sons and plump Jack Russell terrier.