A woman's vagina goes through a lot – puberty, monthly menstrual cycles, childbirth and menopause. It is surprising how most women know very less about it and its surrounding areas. Majorly because it is not openly (and often) discussed.

HAIR THINS DOWN THERE: As you age, your hair down there will start thinning. Many women will even lose their pubic hair, just what happens to the hair on your scalp and leg after you hit menopause. Having said that, there are some rare cases when women get hair on their face and other unwanted areas.

VULVA WILL CHANGE: For the uninitiated, vagina is the inside canal and vulva is the outside of that canal. This involves the lips, labia minora and majora, clitoris and even urethra. Vulva remains majorly unchanged from the time you hit puberty to even menopause but gradually tissues become paler and smoother. This is when it starts to lose its fullness.

VAGINA TOO WILL CHANGE: As you age, the vaginal opening as well as the length of your vagina can shrink. And as the inner canal loses its elasticity and moisture, you will experience discomfort during sex and it can be painful too.

YOU BECOME PRONE TO UTIs: With the lack of estrogen, the dynamics of your vagina changes and the urethra becomes thinner. This makes women more prone to urinary tract infections (UTI). Not only this, women have to be extremely cautious because they can easily succumb to sexually transmitted infections (and unpleasant odor).

NAGGING ITCH: With VVA comes the risk of a nagging itch. This can be relieved with moisture restoring therapies and in some cases an active sex life helps the inner canal stay moisty.

COLOUR WILL CHANGE: As you hit menopause, you will see that the colour of the vaginal lining will get paler. This is because of reduced blood supply.