To douche with tea tree oil before a smear test?!

[floraeasy]

Was talking with friends today. I have a smear soon. Just mentioned I was going to pick up some tea-tree oil on the way home. They asked what it was for so I told them I douche before these appointments.

I occasionally do it after sex too. In fact I try not to have sex in the few days leading up to an internal.

They were .

Now I feel weird To me, it's like giving my teeth an extra good brush, flossing, mouthwash before seeing dentist. Just preparing myself, you know?

A lot of women in the US seem to have this as part of their regular routine.

By the way, I've been doing this for a few years now and no gynae problems so far.

This is SO going to be in the Daily Mail.

It is a feminist issue I think.

Thinking that an orifice like the vagina might be "off" is just ridiculous.

I can understand that maybe some might think there might be a "whiff" or something down there when dealing with strangers/medical profession, but it is imaginary. As I said earlier, a quick baby "wipe" is all I need sometimes if I feel a bit meh. That's after showering don't get me wrong. Why? Well it just boosts my confidence TBH.

Contradictory? Maybe, but it's a lot easier than tea tree oil up the red lane. Yeew.

Tea tree oil is extremely potent. Omg, I would imagine that hurts.

Vagina is a self cleaning oven. Douching disrupts the good bacteria!

So how do you actually douche them? A squirty tube up your vag, and you just squoosh liquid around randomly?!

I like to wash my vagina at 90 degrees with Bold detergent, and Lenor fabric softener then add an extra rinse cycle.

I also Hoover it daily, dust every other day and make sure to give it a good blast of febreeze every now and then.

I'd hate for anyone to think my vagina was less than fresh!!!

Crikey

www.motherjones.com/media/2012/02/when-women-used-lysol-birth-control

The most popular brand of douche was Lysol—an antiseptic soap whose pre-1953 formula contained cresol, a phenol compound reported in some cases to cause inflammation, burning, and even death. By 1911 doctors had recorded 193 Lysol poisonings and five deaths from uterine irrigation. Despite reports to the contrary, Lysol was aggressively marketed to women as safe and gentle. Once cresol was replaced with ortho-hydroxydiphenyl in the formula, Lysol was pushed as a germicide good for cleaning toilet bowls and treating ringworm, and Lehn & Fink's, the company that made the disinfectant, continued to market it as safeguard for women's "dainty feminine allure."

@notanothernamechagebabes

LOL.

A friend once said (drink taken obv) that she puts hair conditioner on her pubes. It softens it down she said. Right I said.

Yes, it is a feminist issue

I don't like the "gush" either so I insert a small tampon for an hour or so then remove it. Job done.

I'd worry about affecting the ph balance of my dear vagina

You don't need to do that. And it'll wreak havoc with your natural flora down there. I'd advocate not using any shower gels or products such as vaginal washes either. They disturb the mucosa and can actually lead to odd smells. The vag is a self cleaning area. At most I'd use something like Dermal 200 shower gel (I use this) or just water. No wet wipes either.

Your right to avoid sex for a few days prior as this can lead to contamination of the sample i.e. Too few cells being lifted.

Ex nurse here. Taken hundreds of smears 😊

I like to wash my vagina at 90 degrees with Bold detergent, and Lenor fabric softener then add an extra rinse cycle.

Douching with Domestos isn't too far from the truth for women in the US in the past, see the first entry on the link below.

www.cracked.com/article_19644_the-5-most-insane-original-uses-famous-products.html

Ha, cross post with the OP!

"You're" right!

A nurse once told me that if I wouldn't be prepared to put something in my mouth I shouldn't put it in my vagina.

Think that's quite a good rule to live by.

Your poor vagina though!

But that's just skin, if you are douching you are washing the inside of your body, do you not see the difference?

The feminist issue is the fact that women think their vaginas are dirty and need water squirted up them.

Oops thread has moved on, I was referring to the foreskin remark

Quick question to all ye sexual health experts: Can't condoms also change the PH of a vagina?
I'm not advocating not using one, of course! But just wondering.

I'm curious as to when a man might need to visit a screening service and retract the foreskin (if they have one).

Fekkers. I do realise that Prostate issues can be problematic. That's different, But there we are.

I live in a small community. The nurse has seen every single cervix, bum hole and testicle in town. Amusingly, we recently discovered that the same patter about how beautiful my cervix is is used on every single one of us, presumably to get us to laugh and relax. God knows what the fellas get for a testicle exam. Must ask around on the school run...

Lightweights. I napalm my vagina twice a day.

I once did get domestos on my fadge! My mum had bleached the loo and I went for a shit. Bit of Splashback, all was ok I thought. That evening it felt as if my twat was in a worlds hottest chilli eating contest! Hurt for a week!

floraeasy, that vintage ad is just unbelievable... and sad that a lot of women were influenced by that. There are so many vintage ads that really are shocking.. freshen up before he gets home, have dinner on the table waiting for him, etc... blech. It's crazy to think women were Lysoling themselves.

Hey don't put the blame for your weird and unhealthy habit on Americans. I've lived in the USA for twenty years and no it is NOT a normal thing to do, in fact most women here are actually quite smart and understand that you simply don't mess with your vagina like this.

American women are obsessed with douche products, I have never in my life , seen the amount of fanny cleaning products than when we were in the US. It just weird