These days, we look at our vaginas — or more correctly, vulvas — much more than women (or men) used to. And as we get older or after childbirth, many of us are shocked to find the area has changed.

So, what can you expect to happen to your vagina? What’s normal and what’s not?

First things first. Just as everyone has a different body shape, eye colour, or preference for sexual partner, there is also enormous variation in vaginas and vulvas, regardless of age.

“It’s like anything — there’s a complete spectrum of appearances of the area and they’re all usually completely normal,” Dr Yasmin Tan, a gynaecologist and laparoscopic surgeon with the Women’s Health and Research Institute of Australia (WHRIA), said.

Add the passage of time into the mix, though, and certain changes tend to be more universal.