Chemicals in toilet paper - could they be irritating to the vulva?

Chemical free toilet paper is hard to find. I used to by Papura on the Internet, but it is not sold any more. They do, however do tissues which I use - just put a tissue on top of the ball of toilet paper so that it is the tissue that touches me.

Catts, how long have you had vulvodynia? What are you doing to get rid of it? 

I had vulvodynia for 1.5 year, starting in summer 2015. I cured it with a combination of amitriptylene, acupuncture (western), manual  sensitisation and pelvic floor exercises. Plus all the suppliments I take and organic scent free nasty chemicals free stuff for my body. Also apply coconut oil to my vulva after I go to the toilet. There is also a wonderful gel called Saginil gel that you can get form the Italian manufacturers website (Epitech) which has a great pain soothing effect - it was developed from natural plant extracts especially to tackle vulvodynia. That gel make may daily life bearable then I believe the amitrip together with acupuncture and manual desensitisation cured me. I have written about all these things elsewhere on this forum - I don't know if it is possible to find them.

You do not have to accept just managing the pain - it is curable. You just need to find what works for you.

Catts, if you click on my name, you can look at all the discussions I have contributed to.

Hi again Catts,

i found thus thus previous post of mine:

 I was diagnosed with vulvodynia in summer 2013. I was given amitriptyline. I gradually worked my way up (5mg increases every 2 weeks, otherwise I got side effects - have to cut the tablets in half) to 50mg. It did help - it made day to day living more bearable, but sex was still out of the question. What finally got me better was acupuncture - western acupuncture given by a qualified doctor - it compliments the amitriptyline in damping down the over active, hyper sensitive nerves. Manual densensitisation also helped to retrain the nerves to register touch as touch and not pain - stroke yourself on the area that is painful, with lots of oil based lube ( coconut oil is great), very gently and only once to start with. Very gradually increase the number of strokes and pressure. You have to do it once every day and only enough so that you do not significantly increase your pain. I did it until I was up to 200 fairly firm strokes, then I started to put my finger inside - from this point on you can start training with vaginal dilators e.g. Amelle, or you can just increase number of fingers. Pelvic floor exercises can also help - I did these too. There is a good book which takes you through the pelvic floor exercises and manual desensitisation steps called "Seven steps to pain free sex". I did all the above and, after 1.5 years was having wonderful pain free sex again, then got dry due to menopause!

you may also want to try the saginil gel - that really helped me, but did not get rid of the pain completely. My GP recommended it (but could not provide it) as some of her patients had got complete pain relief from it.

Also, as discussed on this page, take care what you put on there. 

Hi suki

thanks so much for all the information you have given me i really appreciate it.i have been suffering for 12months.im currently taking 75mg of lyrica 3 times a day and 25mg of amitriptyline a day.i also started using coconut oil lately.i also have started doin pelvic floor exercises every day.some days are good and others are bad.its hard to find help ive seen so many doctors and specialists who really dont know how to help like a lot of people i suppose.im currently waiting for an appointment to see a pain specialist.i am also in the menopause i think thats what triggered all this with me unfortunately but im trying to stay positive.thanks again for all the information im hopeful ill find what will help me

I got up to 50mg amitrip. The person who really helped me and recommended the things that worked was a consultant dermatologist who runs a vulval pain clinic. She said I needed to be on 50-70mg amitrip - can you up your dose? I could only do it by upping it by 5mg every 2 weeks (cut the 10mg in half). I really really recommend western acupuncture - this is acupuncture performed by a qualified doctor. I just got better and better after each session.

Hi suki

Unfortunately their are no vulval pain clinics where im from.the last gyneacologist i saw is familiar with the condition she put me on the meds im on and has referred me to a particular pain specialist who she said is also familiar with it.i recognised the gel you spoke about earlier saginil.i jad ordered it a good while back but hadnt gotton any relief using it at the time but i wasnt taking any meds then either so im goin to start using it again.ive had accupunture yrs ago but im not familiar with a qualified doctor who does it.ill have to look into that.at the beginning the meds made me feel groggy but they dont anymore thank god.

Do you live in the UK? The British Acupuncture Council and the Acupuncture Society have websites where you can look up registered acupuncturists, their specialisms and their "proper job" e.g. GP, physiotherapist. That is how I found mine.

Im in US my health ins doesnt cover acupuncture or id try it also

Hi suki

Im living in ireland but ill try check if maybe we have something similar here maybe. xx

I have private health insurance via my husband's work but it did not cover acupuncture as it is not recognised as a cure. So, I paid for it myself and it was worth it!

We have a 6000 deductable before anything is paid for..i call it junk ins.only thing company offered from work. High deductables are the rage in the US now. So with that in mind..i dont think i could afford acupuncture as we might end up having to pay 6000.

It cost me £30 per session ($44). My acupuncturist told me she usually cures people after around 10 sessions. I am not sure how many I had, I had them for a year, initially 2 weeks apart then gradually increasing to 6 weeks apart. Not sure why it took so long for me. I was in a lot of pain to start with - all I wanted to do was stay in bed. I couldn't sleep and I couldn't functions on a normal day to day basis. It may also have been the fear of stopping the acupuncture when it had helped me so much.

Did it hurt? Are you in the US..So they actually put the needles in the vulva?

I'm in the UK. No, they put the needles in at the base of the spine, where the nerves to the pudendal area leave the spine. My first session she put them in my legs to test I was ok with it. They do not hurt, it just feels warm in the area they put them in. Rather, it should not hurt, if it did I had to tell her and she would reposition the needle a little. In western acupuncture they pass a small electrical current through the needles - you are in control of how strong the current is. I loved the feeling. By the end of the session I was so relaxed and pain free. The effect wears off which is why you need repeat sessions for the effect to build up. Each session I had I was able to raise the amount of current passing through the needles. This treatment dampens down the overactive nerves and restores them to normal levels of activity. Acupuncture cannot cure illnesses but it has proven effectiveness with pain / nerve problems, especially lower back pain which is the same general area as our pain problems.

I'm in the UK. No, they put the needles in at the base of the spine, where the nerves to the pudendal area leave the spine. My first session she put them in my legs to test I was ok with it. They do not hurt, it just feels warm in the area they put them in. Rather, it should not hurt, if it did I had to tell her and she would reposition the needle a little. In western acupuncture they pass a small electrical current through the needles - you are in control of how strong the current is. I loved the feeling. By the end of the session I was so relaxed and pain free. The effect wears off which is why you need repeat sessions for the effect to build up. Each session I had I was able to raise the amount of current passing through the needles. This treatment dampens down the overactive nerves and restores them to normal levels of activity. Acupuncture cannot cure illnesses but it has proven effectiveness with pain / nerve problems, especially lower back pain which is the same general area as our pain problems.

Thanks