For the past two years my vagina has made sounds when I’m making love, or sometimes when walking. It is worse in the morning. What should I do? I want this to stop. What is wrong with me?

Vaginal wind, queefing, vaginal flatus, fanny farts. We’re not lost for descriptions of noisy vaginas. But talking about this openly remains taboo.

Why won’t my vag shut up?

Perhaps a better question to ask is this: why do vaginas make noises at times when we’d really like them to be silent? Like during, or after sex, at the gym, or during a pelvic exam at the doctors.

Vaginas aren’t quiet during these activities because they involve air being pushed inside you. During sex - with fingers, penis, or sex toy. By a speculum during a pelvic exam. Or, if you’re inserting a cap, the internal (female) condom, mooncup or tampon. Air can be pulled into the vagina during some kinds of exercise – I’m looking at you Pilates.

You can also introduce air if you’re dilating your constructed neovagina for post-surgical recovery, or following chemo, or radiotherapy. Some people are encouraged to dilate (widen) as part of treatment for psychosexual problems, a contested treatment that may set women back further if vaginal wind makes them more self-conscious.

Usually noisy vaginas are just a matter of cause and effect. If you push air in, it has to come out. And, as it escapes, it makes that characteristic sound. Sometimes this can happen right after the air’s been pushed in, sometimes it can be a while later when things like laughing, coughing or walking force the air out.

How to quieten the queef

If you want to reduce vaginal wind during sex, avoid lots of deep and fast penetration. If you’re into fisting, dilation, or like using sex toys with a wide girth you may want to leave off these if they’re making you noisy and that’s putting you off.

If you haven’t had sex before, or not had sex for a while, you may notice your vagina can be particularly windy - which can feel awkward if you’re with someone you don’t know sexually.

Swapping for oral sex or other, non-penetrative, pleasures could also work. It’s worth remembering while some people are shocked by fanny farts, others are turned on by them. While most realise through experience this is just 'one of those sex things'.

You may prefer just to keep doing whatever feels good for you sexually, with the understanding sometimes that’ll also lead to queefing.

Vaginal wind could also be related to pelvic floor problems, caused by childbirth among other things.

Elaine Miller, women’s health physiotherapist and stand up comedianrecommends pelvic floor care and regularly doing your pelvic floor exercises. She notes that if you experience pain doing this, or need more support, that you should ask your GP to refer you to a physiotherapist.

When to worry

Fanny farts are very normal and not a sign there’s something wrong with you. However, seek medical advice if you have vaginal or abdominal pain during and after sex, notice your vagina smells bad, or there’s an unusual discharge. Particularly if you’ve recently had colorectal, bowel or gynaecological surgery, or have had a baby.

You also need a medical opinion if you’re leaking wee outside of urination, or notice poo inside your vagina as this might be symptomatic of a fistula.

What vaginal wind is not

Despite expecting women to be noisy during sex we’re judgemental about vaginal flatulence and can wrongly believe it’s a sign of:

infidelity

poor genital hygiene

having a sexually transmitted infection (wind’s not a symptom, although you can also have an STI alongside queefing, so if you’re worried about this have a checkup )

) having had multiple partners

You may worry about being judged, or shamed, for fanny farts but hopefully on reading this you won’t be so concerned.

If a partner dislikes it or believes it’s a sign there’s something bad about you, this says more about their lack of awareness than it does about you.

If they are concerned they may also find it helpful to read this reply. But if they continue to make you feel bad you may want to find someone who likes your body, noises and all.

Shake it off

Some people prefer to carry on and ignore any vaginal farts while others just laugh about it.

If this continues to worry you and you’ve ruled out any physical problems, you may consider psychosexual therapy (either paid for or free on the NHS via your GP but with a waiting list). Or you might prefer to read up on feeling more sexually confident.

Remember pretty much everyone with a vagina makes noises sometimes. It happens to the best of us. Although not, always, at the best of times.

Petra Boynton is a social psychologist and sex researcher working in International Health Care and studying sex and relationships. She is The Telegraph’s agony aunt. Follow her on Twitter @drpetra.

Email your sex and relationships queries in confidence to:agony.aunt@telegraph.co.uk

Petra cannot print answers to every single question submitted, but she does read all your emails. Please note that by submitting your question to Petra, you are giving your permission for her to use your question as the basis of her column, published online at Wonder Women.

All questions will be kept anonymous and key details, facts and figures may change to protect your identity. Petra can only answer based on the information you give her and her advice is not a substitute for medical, therapeutic or legal advice.