Today is one of those days where I’m glad to be a woman, but also very confused about being a woman. You see, tomorrow Tyra Banks is having a woman on her show who has two vaginas. You read that right. The reason I’m confused is it’s been a long time since sex ed, and I think a lot of us tend to use the word “vagina” to refer to much more than what’s actually the vagina. It’s sort of an all-encompassing term. Luckily, Tyra goes over the nitty-gritty with the woman, Lauren Williams, and they chat about all the things that Lauren has two of, and exactly what kinds of issues that leads to.
It’s a “Tyra Show” international exclusive, meet the woman who was born with two vaginas in an episode scheduled to air on Friday, November 6th. Lauren Williams, who is now 29 years old, was born with two vaginas.
Lauren Williams: “I’ve got two uteruses. Just one to each (fallopian tube), then they go down to two cervixes, and then it did go down to the two vaginas.” Williams, who was diagnosed with two vaginas when she was 25-years-old, also believes she has 2 periods.
Lauren Williams: “I think so because my periods generally last about 21 days…When I was a teenager I had really heavy periods…I would have to change pads every hour.” Tyra also questions Williams on her ability to have children and was amazed by her answer.
Lauren Williams: “The doctor in England said pregnancy wise, it should be okay…if I do get pregnant it should push the other uterus over to one side and keep it out of the way. Me and my partner would need to plan on using condoms just in case I got pregnant in the other one.”
Tyra Banks: “You’re the only pregnant woman that can get pregnant while pregnant.” Tune in to find out what sex is like for Lauren and what 2 vaginas looks like!
[From The Tyra Show’s promo email]
Since the vagina is the opening (I quadruple checked that), that means Lauren has two openings. And that’s what confuses me – how did she only get diagnosed at 25? I can understand how she wouldn’t know about the inside business with the uteruses. But most women start going to the gynecologist around 16. And doctors do check even little kids to make sure everything looks alright down there. How could no one have spotted the two openings until she was 25?
Lauren says in the video that she thinks she has two periods because it starts off really heavy, then sort of peters off, then starts all over again. Her phrasing makes it sound like she’s almost never completely without a period. That sounds just miserable to me. She can get pregnant so that’s good. It seems like the only huge negative is the constant menstruation.
I can’t stand Tyra and make it a policy to never ever watch her show. But I will abso-freaking-loutely be staring intently at the T.V. tomorrow. I need to know about how sex works. Can her partner choose Option A or Option B? How does she explain these things to him? It reminds me of the time my very quirky sixth grade biology teacher told my class about how snakes have two penises, and they can alternate. When we didn’t believe her she pulled one out of its formaldehyde jar and showed us. I really hope no one ever makes that comparison to Lauren. I’m not making that comparison. I’m just saying her story reminded me of that story.
Hey, but at least she’s just got one fallopian tube per uterus. I think?
Tyra is just a glorified Jerry Springer. She’s trash!
what time and channel is this show?
I wonder about the getting pregnant twice thing. It would seem that the unpregnant (is that a word?) uterus would still be subject to all the hormonal effects of pregnancy (like suppressiong ovulation and menstruation) because those hormones are systemic.
Just my non-medical opinion.
(p.s. Taking Charge of Your Fertility by Toni Weschler is a fascinating read and should be on the reading list for sex ed courses)
My toughts exactly Jaybird. How did she not know she had two vaginas until she was 25.
Also, if she has two periods, would she not have to have two tampons for each opening?
Frankly, I can’t say I will tune in for this. It is just a ratings getter, and would be better suited to Springer, which Tyra is quickly becoming.
A few months ago she had male pRon stars on who did gay movies, but were married. I fail to see the importance of these types of shows, other than to snag ratings.
This is “intriguing”, Jaybird. And by that, I mean disgusting and gross.
So… are the vadges side-by-side, or are they lined up, back to front, as it were?
So many questions…
Does Tyra have any idea how sleazy she is in her quest for ratings? Probably but doesn’t care. Doesn’t mind being mocked on The Soup every week. Anything for the ratings.
I’ll wait until this show comes out on YouTube. Sounds like this woman was originally supposed to be a twin but then fused into one embryo at some point.
Now you got me thinking Jaybird: I understood this to mean externally she has one labia majora and minora, one vaginal opening, which leads up the two vaginae. A gynecologist would certainly have noticed two. I hope!
Yeah, the possibility of getting pregnant in each uterus really intrigued me, because it made me think she has a period per uterus. But since menstruation is part of your endocrine system and thus systemic, like you said, that makes me wonder.
But it seems like most of the conventional anatomical rules don’t apply to this woman, so her doctors are probably just telling her what could maybe/kinda/sorta theoretically happen.
This may be another totally gross question, but does she have two [plural of clitoris]?
Ummm no thanks, the one I have is enough.
I also wonder how this did not get noticed before.
If I were here, I would seriously consider a form of birth control that stops your period just to maintain my sanity!
If she has 21 day periods, why isn’t she on the pill? I’m surprised she isn’t anemic!
But most women start going to the gynecologist around 16.
Um, I’m 24 and I’ve only ever been to the gyno once, when I was 22. Girls really start going at 16? I so could not have handled that.
Also, “diagnosed with two vaginas” is a really funny phrase.
Kaiser – not a gross question at all. I was thinking along the lines of Green is Good and then there would probably be only one clitoris.
Kaiser, you’re asking the questions that I’d ask, too!
wha?????
I wonder if she has problems getting dates? Some men can’t even handle one vagina, let alone uping the ante by throwing an additional one into the mix that’s not attached to a whole other different female.
@Wow: ha ha ha ha!!!!
Is anyone else DYING to see a photo of this??
I work in the medical field… GYN to be exact. Every woman should be seen by a gyn once a year for a annual pap. I can understand not starting @ 16, thats a little young. But if you are sexually active at that age then YES you should be going. Cervical Cancer is rather common for girls in their early 20’s. Its pretty important to have a yearly pap. You dont really have any signs of cervical cancer until its around stage 4. By that time it could be too late.
DUDE!
Make sure you write a recap of this show…I don’t have DVR.
Found another article with more info – apparently she HAD been for smear tests with nurses, but nobody ever noticed that she had two vaginas. Not even her boyfriends! Wow.
http://www.iheartchaos.com/content/meet-lauren-williams-woman-two-vaginas-more-you-know
LOL. I had this very conversation with my aunt (who is a retired doctor) last Thanksgiving. We were talking about hermaphrodites, gender identity, and sex chromosone issues (X0, Y0, XXY, etc). I asked her if it was possible for people to have two vaginas and two penises and she said yes.
She went on and on about it in medical terminology, but she did say that women with two vaginas often externally look the same (clitors, urethra, labia). She said one vagina is often “blind” — not attached to the reproductive system — and that they can be side by side or one on top of the other. She said depending on when the woman sees a gynocologist for the first time, she may not realize she has two vaginas until she has sex. My aunt said the blind vagina might be shallower than the working one and may cause a lot of discomfort.
I was pretty shocked by this at the time, and our conversation was cut short because we were eating Thanksgiving dinner at the time. LMAO.
Nothing surprises me about the “anamolies” of the human body anymore.
Kaiser I imagine they’re lined up more top-to-bottom. Like a double electrical socket. That’s the only way it makes sense to me.
I THINK it’s just her inner business that’s doubled. The vagina being the only thing that’s accessible from the outside. But again, I just know from that brief clip. THERE ARE SO MANY QUESTIONS TO BE ANSWERED!
I absolutely want a photo, an x-ray, and a properly labeled diagram. I told Kaiser I actually wished I were a man, so that I’d have a chance of seeing it up close. I cannot take the not knowing!!
So curious. I could see how she didn’t know earlier, if she wasn’t very sexually active and was using pads instead of tampons… and depending on the actual er, layout of the vaginae. (really, spellcheck? Vaginae?!) A lot of young women are really unfamiliar with their own vulva and all their lovely bits. It’s a leftover ‘good girls don’t’ mindset from the dark ages.
The double-pregnant thing is so bizarre. But I have heard that a lot of women ovulate twice a cycle, they just don’t realise it. So maybe it’s an ovulation from each fallopian tube and they don’t always happen at once, but I would still think that meant that she could only get double-pregnant in the first month or so, before the hormones really take control.
Lenore, thanks for the iheartchaos link, that explains a lot. It says, “The surgeon removed the barrier between her two vaginas, leaving her with one big one. ‘The vagina I was using was half the size of a normal one.'”
Hmmm.
Also, there is a link for a story titled, “Keep your t*ts toasty with a USB-powered breast warmer.” Just thought you all should know.
Jaybird: “Like a double electrical socket” – now that’s just wrong. 😆
Also, “one big vagina” is like, the WORST way to describe a medical procedure.
Erin: LOL, I was thinking the same thing. A 21 day period? I’d be perched on the ledge of a tall building by the end, and I don’t even want to think about all the dead/mangled people I’d leave in my wake.
That’s totally how I visualize it though. I imagine asking, “should I plug it into the top socket or the bottom?” and hoping you get power.
Now the cord’s just going to wiggle around I guess.
I think I should now change the title to, “Tyra Banks to feature ‘woman with one big vagina’ on Friday’s show.”
If this is so uncomfortable for her why doesn’t she have surgery to fix this? I know that this is the way she was created,but that doesn’t mean it’s right. She needs to see a GYN specialist for this particular disorder. Many women have reproductive problems (this is an extreme case) and take birth control to stop their period or have less periods or even having surgery to correct some things.
😆 😆 😆
Jaybird, you totally should! “Update: Nevermind, it’s just one big vagina.”
Kaiser, what about clitori?
Like cacti, only a succulent w/o the spikes (hopefully anyway.)
I think I would rather have 2 small vaginas, then 1 giant vagina!
Yeah, at first when I read the thing about the turning into one big vagina, I was less intrigued by the whole story. But I think I still want a lot of details, because I want to know HOW big.
Jaybird, you are KILLING ME!
Now the cord will just wiggle around?!?! I’m lucky I’m not cleaning my smoothie off my monitor!
Haha, thanks. I wasn’t sure if I took that analogy too far. But I’m really concerned that the one giant vagina isn’t a better solution.
Not sure which women start going to gynecologists at 16, maybe wealthy ones with good health coverage. We had to be half dead before our folks took us to a Dr. and not for any flu stuff, it had to be serious unable to function crap.
The health info I always got in high school said you should go the gyno when you turn 16 or have sex, whichever happens first. Maybe they’ve changed it or pass on slightly different info depending. Point is, she was way past those ages when she went.
I have the same condition, only my doubling stops at the vagina; although my urinary tract system is doubled up to having 4 kidneys. Why she didn’t know until she was 25 is that the tissue dividing the vagina just lays over to one side or the other. It took me 5 gyno doctors and 7 years of actively looking for an answer to my pain issues and screaming periods. My tea drinking mom would get me drunk rather than watch me punch holes in the wall. I remember the doctor that found the problem telling the nurse to come look because she would never see this again. Yeah I felt like a freak. Don’t judge what you’re lucky enough not to experience.
So which hole is her boyfriend’s favorite?
Does he change it up every now and then?
I think she could be able to reproduce normally. Kangaroos have two of everything, branching off from a single vagina, and they breed okay. But omg, is anyone else thinking she’d have a fantastic career in porn?
Wait a minute….I have heard of women who have a divided uterus, sounds like hers is just the extreme version, much in the same way some babies are born with hymen type problems, or covered and have to get these surgically altered (usually early in childhood not at age 25). I know a woman who has a divided uterus, and had a high-risk pregnancy as a result. This really doesn’t sound all that different….it’s not as if she’s got four ovaries does she ?
I find it laughable that none of her boyfriends noticed that not only were there two, but that they were actually using the half sized one. Did they not slip in there from time to time? Way to go boys.
That aside, how did she not notice this? Gyno or no gyno, this poor girl must have missed out on a helluva lot of quality alone time over the years.
zpup: I know someone with the kidney thing.
I also heard of someone with the double cl …. and unfortunately used it as the excuse to why she was screwing around with everyone (single or no single)
@Princess Pea
When a double ovulation occurs, typically it is one actual ovulation with 2 (or more, rare but it happens) eggs released at the same time. It is common for yoru body to gear up to ovulate then not for whatever reason (stress, illness, etc.) This typically happens with the same 24 hour (or so) period, days or weeks apart. I highly recommend Weschler’s book Taking Charge of Your Fertility:)
Just FYI:)
She had one opening. That’s why she or boyfriends never noticed.
And I dont know where you live, but DR’s do NOT check little kids to make sure everything is okay ‘down there’ unless the child is at the DR specifically for a ‘down there’ problem.
So she can have three guys at once!
I started going to the gyno when I became sexually active which was earlier than 16. I’ve gone every year since. This is at the free health clinic btw….I’ve no insurance.
Btw, the doctor checked my daughter’s vagina. My husband and I were standing right next to him and watched the whole time. It was just an external exam. He said it was because sometimes the skin can fuse together. I imagine he was also looking for abnormalities.
she didnt say she didnt know until she was 25, she said she wasnt OFFICIALLY DIAGNOSED until 25. theres a difference, a huge difference.
i had known for awhile that i had some sort of neurologic disorder, but i wasnt diagnosed with it officially until a few years later. this is probably the same way, unless she said something else to the contrary in the show that wasnt mentioned in this article. otherwise, she very well could have meant she knew about it, she just didnt have a name attached to the condition. that happens to alot of people, myself included.
not being diagnosed doesnt mean you dont know something is wrong, it just means simply that the doctors didnt acknowledge something was wrong. thats all. just trying to throw that out there
this is amazing i LOVE tyra banks! she is bat-s#!^ and awesome.
Ooooh my god. I’m sorry but I can’t believe how many times I had to stop myself from laughing out loud while reading everyone’s comments… Everyone is so hilarious (obviously the seriously aren’t since its useful information) definitely sucks to be her but I don’t think I’ve seen the word vagina so many times in one post
It’s pathetic that women don’t know the names of our lady bits. Seriously you had too look up exactly what part the vagina was? We need to better educate women. You never hear of male gentalia being collectively called a “bottom”. We need to stop thinking of women’s genitalia as dirty.
HOLY SHIT.i love her. can we hook up
I definately want to see this phenomena up close and personal. Is it a disgusting thing to want to see the double-snatch ladies pi-pi up close and personal?
This is called Uterus Didelphys. Its a known uterine anomoly. Tyra is not some genious that discovered this.
its very easy to go unnoticed. a lot of people dont notice until they get pregnant and have an ultrasound.
its not like there are 2 whole outer systems down there. the hole to the vagina has a septum going through it. normally its off to the side so no one would ever notice unless you were looking for it.
you people have no idea what you are talking about and you sound ignorant.
princess pea: “(really, spellcheck? Vaginae?!) ” LMAO!
The extent of my “Tyra” viewing is every Friday night with Joel McHale on “The Soup.” I’m sure he will touch on this episode, as well.
My question is why this woman would decide to use the Tyra show as her venue for sharing this info. Strange.
I have to peee…..ok .done….good lets get going…..I have to peee….ok ….pheww done…now lets get going……..I have to pee….. hey its tough drinking coffee with 2 vaginas
I got you all beat I have six vaginas and a tail … and a shell…….and rabbit ears…..see 2 vaginas not so bad after all….
I’m in love with Lauren!
Poor girl…I cannot imagine how horrid this is. I have one vagina and it’s nothing but a huge nuisance, so two would just be the worst thing ever. Why don’t they just take out her other uterus, to fix the constant periods? What a nightmare.
And yes, women should probably know more about our reproductive parts, but for me personally, I have had so many issues with those parts that I hate them with a virulent passion and do not want to think about them more than I have to. But I guess it’s a good thing to know….
Ron…. you do realize that you don’t “pee” from there…..
I don’t see how Tyra Banks is trash because she hadf a women on her show with two vaginas stop hating Hater!!!
I heard of a woman that was about 3-4 months pregnant, and then got pregnant again…with everything NOT being doubled….I think it is def. possible for her to get pregnant twice, although the hormones from the initial pregnancy will lessen the odds somewhat. Wow…as a college student going for my Medical Assistant degree…this is so interesting.
My husband can barely stand me on a 6 day period let alone a 21 day period. Dear God!!! I would go nuts!!!
FYI, this is not that rare of a condition. In fact, many women have it – and probably even more go undiagnosed.
Interestingly, it often happens during the early stages of growth. Cells don’t combine correctly to form organs and you’re left with two (or partials). I myself have a natural septum in my uterus – a semi-uterine di-delphi.
Well this is not common but it does happen and I am one of those women with such a defect (anomally) its something that happens during development. Its not certain the cause, I had pap smears several times before I was finally diagnosed with what is called a didelphis. I carried my first child to term but was on limited activities, and I was on a home monitor for contractions that started @ 6 months along, she was in a limted space like a half of a uterus. Then I had surgery to remove the division in my utereuses, I still have two vaginal cavities and two cervixs, after my 1st child I had 3 miscarrages before the surgery and then I was able to to carry my next 3 children without any complications (1st two were breech and had c-sections w/all 4). My ob/gyn was very open and explained things with me indepth so that I was able to understand my condition, after my 4th child was born I had my tubes tied, my periods were very regular thruout teens and until early adulthood, after my 4th and tubual my periods are simular to what the lady on tyra explained. I tell my husband that is just opposite of everyone else 3 weeks on 1 week off (normal 3 weeks off 1 week on). I was about 22 when I found out about this birth defect. Due to the division being inside the actual opening it is easy for it to get overlooked, not something most ob/gyn’s look for. Hope this helps clear the air, as for the personal aspect of things I’d like keep private and ovalution does stop, it would be rare to get preganent in both sides only if two eggs were released, one in each side.
There was a couple that used to be in the freak shows where the man had two penises and the woman had two vaginas, if memory serves. I think they married and had children, again, if memory serves. (Can’t remember the website where I read about them, atm.) Abnormal biology fascinates me.
To all, it is sad that so many see this as a freak show, medical science and the doctors practicing medicine should be more aware of the many different forms of physical differences there are among humans and how best to achieve a better standard of living by helping to correct the problems that afflict us.
Just think of the many people that are affected by socialistically, mental and physical problems, this is no less devastating to the person with this complication. If you have ever Loved or Cared for someone with a problem that you did not understand nor did they, you would come to realize that something is wrong and the person is having a difficult time dealing with the problem. Compassion is the best medicine. Be kind to one another, please.
I have the same problem as that woman…except i only have one period…that usually isn’t too bad!! Only lasts a few days, maybe 7. Never too heavy. The bad thing is, is that wearing a tampon…it still bleeds out the other hole 🙁 NO….2 tampons does not work! But my family and joke about my 2 vaginas all the time! And if i were to get pregnant twice….at the same time. It’s hilarious when i tell people! They trip out!! Ha Ha! I haven’t been pregnant yet…so we’ll see what happens!
i feel the women on tyra with the two vagina’s umm i really i’m scared to say this but i’m like thoes girls and i hate it all i wanted to be was like other girls i really don’t want a boyfriend because i feel like a freak soometimes and the periods are crazy u can have to of them in one time man sometimes i hate my life and one else like this please write i need help and information about this. 🙁
Interestingly, Tyra is wrong about Lauren being the “only woman who can get pregnant while pregnant.” It’s called superfetation. http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/33006136/ns/health-kids_and_parenting/
i would really like to know more information about this because i never thought that i would hear something about this before being a woman my self
GET SOME MAN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Ok, just because you are not interested in Tyra does not mean that you should not watch this show if interested. For those of you that did…. she has two vaginas internally… externally everything looks normal until about half way in when her vagina splits into two and forms two cervixes which leads to two uteruses, one fallopian tube per uterus. Obviously, her mother or any bf’s would have noticed two holes when having sex, or when her mother changed her as a baby, not to mention when getting tests done. They never noticed it until she was 25 when she went to see the gyno. Note: “You only need to go get tests done once you start having sex, and if that is 16 so be it. I was 14 myself.” If she would have had to have a pap before 25 they would have noticed it because there are two cervixes.
I’m a 24 year old woman who didn’t find out I had uterus didelphys until I was 23. It is possible for gyno’s to not find it. I had regular pap smears starting at age 17, no one ever noticed the vaginal septum, as most women with this have 1 side smaller than the other. The only reason I found out at 23, was because I was having an ultrasound done for my pregnancy and they saw a 2nd uterus. It amazes me how ignorant all of you were, because it was new information to you. My little sister has the same condition, and my current gyno told me it’s not that rare of a condition anymore. Most woman who have it, have no idea.
I agree with Kylie. This is a part of the female body. Everyone needs to be mature and respect all of this.
I am 18 years old and I have Uterus Didelphys. I’m honored because I’m one of the few women who has this. =]
Tyra Bank’s face looks almost totally flat in the first pic, never seen a picture quite like it.
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