Many females are born with a hymen, which is a thin membrane of skin that covers part of the vaginal opening. Some hymens cover most of this opening, and some don’t cover it very much at all. In very rare instances, the hymen can cover the entire vaginal opening. This kind of hymen may not allow a woman to menstruate or have anything inserted into her vagina. Often, if this is the case a health care provider can remove this with a simple incision. Why people have hymens is a mystery.
During puberty, the hymen can become flexible and stretchy. Girls may bleed and experience a bit of pain when they first have vaginal (penis-vagina) sex because this is sometimes when the hymen is “broken.”. However, for many girls the hymen is broken long before this, from masturbation, putting a tampon in or even doing something like riding a bike!
If somebody’s hymen is broken before becoming sexually active (having sex), this does not mean that somebody has “lost” their virginity. There is no way to tell by the hymen whether a female has been sexually active or not. Each body is different, and it doesn’t matter when exactly somebody’s hymen breaks!