AIBU to want to burn my fanjo off 😭 (please help)

[SpandauBuffet]

I don't know where else to put this but I'm at the end of my rope with this pain.
for 4 days now I've had excruciating pain. The pain is the left side of my vulva, radiating from my labia to deep inside but only on the left side. I've called 111, they told me to go to the pharmacy. They couldn't help. Eventually got OOO appointment and they ruled out a cyst or abscess. The pain is quite deep inside. I do have some swelling but it's too deep to be a cyst and pressing the area doesn't hurt at all. No UTI symptoms at all but I'm in agony. It feels like if you were to tie a bit of string around your finger and the blood flow stops. That's exactly what it feels like, almost like the blood flow is being stopped. Standing makes it worse. Baths don't help. I cannot keep still and I'm in utter agony. The pain goes from my actual left flap and then deeper into my vagina.

Anyone have any ideas? I've taken paracetamol, ibuprofen and codeine and nothing is touching the sides. Even breathing in makes it hurt. Doctors can't do anymore and I am at a loss on what to do. 😭

Surely they cannot leave women in pain like this and that's that? The pain at times is almost similar to giving birth down there and nothing is helping it. Please help, I'm in tears. Any advice or similar experiences?

Fanjo

Veins? Pelvic congestion?
It is ridiculous how people are just expected to put up with pain. Dealing with my FIL's health has scared me-how elderly people are ignored and neglected, and left in agony, if we don't fight for them.
And posts like yours show young people sometimes are too-OP, you are able to argue with them, so demand help if you're in that much pain, go to AE if necessary.

Sounds awful. Don’t be put off by wait times and busy A&E - they will triage you anyway. Have you tried the NHSQuicker app? Gives live updates on all you local services. But if it’s that painful I think A&E is your best option. Or a walk in centre. Good luck

GUM clinic was great for me when my GP couldn’t see anything and they found I had a Skenes gland lump straight away

So you saw a doctor, they examined you and said 'dunno'- then what? Where have you been referred to? Why haven't they given you painkillers?

Honestly I'm angry for you.

I'm not convinced a&e will be able to help, they will be able to give you painkillers but you can get them from 111 or GP.

You need a referral then you probably need to find the money to get the initial consultation done privately unfortunately.

I hope you've been taken care of in A&E OP

hope you have some answers @SpandauBuffet& are feeling better

Thank you. I've been seen and pretty much been fobbed off. Just this minute got home. They've said I have pudendal irritation and advised I take ibuprofen (which I am not really meant to be taking) and to follow up what the GP tomorrow. The very GP who fobbed me off in the first place.

I'm at a total loss on what to do now. I'm in sheer agony. Absolute piss take what we have to be left with because were not listened to.

thank you for all the well wishes. Hopefully it settles down by the morning

ED Drs will refer to gynae if that’s what’s needed 24/7.

Is there a well woman clinic near you? I've always found better than GP or A&E when waiting on GYN appointment.

Or even an STI clinic? Their staff then to more knowledgeable in matters like this.

Does your local hospital have a gynae emergency department? Maybe see them instead of GP/A&E tomorrow. Good luck, sounds horrendous ☹️

OP go to a GUM clinic. They can refer you.

You can't just "go to the sexual health clinic" in some areas. Round here they're only for under 25s and anyone over 25 has to go to their GP instead. Yes, really.

@SpandauBuffet it sounds horrific, you poor thing. Does heat help at all? Or failing that, how about one of those post birth ice packs?

Get the gp to refer you to gynae the sooner the better because of waiting lists x

I had pudendal nerve entrapment and it was horrific pain, I was screaming at points and it made other significant injuries I’d had (like slipped discs) seem like a 1/10. The only thing that stopped it was private manual therapy at a specialist clinic.

Look up pudendal neuralgia / pudendal nerve entrapment. Does it sound familiar?

Mine was like stabbing pains in my vagina and then I had larger attacks of burning. Bowel movements set off the more severe burning attacks as well as being too long in one position. I couldn’t sit or lie on my back could only lie on my side.

Mine was due to hypermobility - I’d had a bad injury 3 months before and my coccyx and sacroiliac joint had partially dislocated which had caused soft tissues to spasm over my pudendal nerve. I’d slipped three discs further up my back at the same time and the doctors were more focused on that and totally perplexed by my other symptoms

Theres a website called pudendal hope with a list of providers of healthcare which was a lifesaver quite literally for me, I couldn’t continue living with the pain. I went to sayer clinic in London. But just want to reassure you I’ve made a full recovery and the first treatment reduced the pain by 50% and completely stopped the burning attacks

edited to add: all the horror stories about pudendal neuralgia being untreatable nearly pushed me over the edge. It is treatable xxx

@SpandauBuffetjust to add further: here is the website I mentioned https://www.pudendalhope.info/

Before I went to sayer clinic I had an AWFUL private consultation with a surgeon. He offered me a nerve block injection for £5000, he said they consider it a success if you get a 15% reduction in pain and 30% of patients get that reduction. At that level of pain I wouldn’t have been able to tell a 15% reduction. I explained I couldn’t really walk (I had two walking sticks and was 27, id been literally running 4 months before). He told me that just progresses damage to the nerve and so he wouldn’t advise it. I then said what can I do and he said morphine patches at which point I burst into tears and he asked why I was crying 🤦🏻‍♀️. Honestly it made me feel suicidal and was just NOT at all the correct prognosis for me. I went through this all in 2017, I suspect things will have improved since then (they have for hypermobility for example). But I just wanted to share that in case you also get told anything horrendous like that

At Sayer Clinic I saw Dr Michael Durtnall who has sadly now passed away but I understand he had a right hand man who took over the practice. But in any event it was manual therapy for pudendal nerve entrapment / pudendal neuralgia that saved the day for me xxx

I am sorry you didn't get more help.

Ask your GP for better pain killers if there is nothing more they can offer and think it will settle on it's own. When I have had bad pain (abdo and neck/shoulder) which won't settle with otc co-codamol and ibuprofen gel (which obviously you can't use in your fanjo), they will usually prescribe codeine short term.

If you haven't tried co-codamol (8mg/500mg) maybe give that a go. Just be aware it has paracetamol in so you can't take it with paracetamol at the same time (god I sound like the pharmacy assistant who tells me that every time I buy a pack and goes into a panic if I happen to want to buy it while being prescribed codeine even though I know what I am doing)!

One-sided pain with tingling/numbness sounds nerve-related/neuropathic to me. If your GP tries to fob you off again see if they will at least give you a prescription for gabapentin, which can really help with that kind of pain. Obviously you still need to find out what's causing it but anything that would help you feel less distressed would be a good start.