The strange case of ... the vanishing labia minora

[2JFDIYOLO]

I'd seen several random things recently on Insta by women worried because they'd heard the labia minora can shrink and disappear after menopause.

I'd never heard of it. At 62 I'm through and out the other side and I've read a LOT of lists of peri and meno delights and recognised loads of them.

This has to be one of those windups, like women doing videos on shedding skin like lizards to freak men out ... Surely ...? I thought.

This is silly, I thought. I'll have a feel ...

Anyway. They used to be two different sizes, with the left having a rounder frilly edge.

Not any more ...

Both have definitely got smaller and the frilly bit has ... gone.

Anyone ...?

😳

It's all a bit less plump and cushiony.😟

The pessaries and ring sound good- less faff!

I'm 47. How do I prevent this? I'm peri but am finding things managable. I think. Or maybe I'm just use to feelings achy and tired with an entire restless body, rather than legs.

I don't think id know if things have shrunk. Sex is no longer fulfilling.

@BadgersSuitcase talk to me about organic toilet paper. How does it help? I am so fecking sore all of the time.

Dryness and atrophy is a thing - HRT or gel

Better that than being a guy whose testicles drag down with gravity according to DH 🤣

Sadly you are never 'through' menopause. I had menopause at 52 and kept getting additional symptoms at age 57! I ncluding unfortunately clitoris sensation got up and left.

You need vaginal pessaries like Vagirux. Testosterone has worked for me for sensation which I am.very thankful for.

I like the very thin Bodyform So Slim Dailies pant lines, they do a good job - but could they be contributing to this? I've used them for years. God I sound old.

@SVTqueenIndont know that it does to be honest! But it occurred to me last year that if you whack a toilet roll, you’ll see all the dust floating into the air. Try it. So then it got me thinking about my fanny (I’m ridiculously proactive about this stuff. Or err a hypochondriac) And I’d been feeling a bit ‘itchy’ and sore sometimes.

So I switched to Bumboo! My friend set up the company hence why I went with that one but look at Naked Paper or Who gives a crap. I like Naked Paper because although they don’t look ‘pretty,’ they’re unbleached and they REALLY can help with soreness. Organic liners ideal too - not the hideous scented pads or even usual ones.

They’re just small tweaks but used all together, can have a big impact on soreness. Look up Nadaya oil too.

I'm sorry, it shrinks?? The clitoris still works though right?

You need vaginal estrogen, you can get it in prescription (cheaper!) or over the counter

pessaries and cream if you can plus a moisturiser like YES VM

no soap or hot baths

@2JFDIYOLOtry switching to organic, unbleached or bamboo liners. What you're using is probably absolutely fine but in the interests of doing all you can to alleviate symptoms, inexpensive tweaks are worth a shot.

That shrinks too though you can alleviate that with estrogen cream. Mines nothing like it was tho and neither are the orgasms :/

Imagining going into Superdrug and loudly asking to be directed to the gash stash please ...

Estriol cream has been a revelation for me. Started last year due to repeated UTIs but an added bonus (for me) was a noticeable improvement in plumpness and lubrication. My partner was amazed at the change which was pretty much instantaneous. I can't recommend enough. Get on prescription but as it counts as HRT it's covered by the annual HRT prepayment certificate.

Estriol 1% cream. Game-changer x

I’ve just had my second baby and mine seem to be much shorter. I’m a bit sad as they used to be quite long and frilly, as you describe.
that said, I have felt, but not looked…

I've always used regular shower gel, so maybe I'd better get something more mindful there, too.

Are there unbleached pant liners out there? I've never even thought about it ...

It's quite a high maintenance and product-hungry part of the anatomy, isn't it?!

So much SHOPPING.

Bloody hell. I never knew this was a thing. I've been wondering if I have vaginal atrophy. I just beetled off to the loo to check and one has gone completely.

How did I not notice???? I thought if felt different down there but bloody hell.

Thank you for this public service announcement. I'll be contacting the GP on Tuesday.

Tmi - mine are uncomfortably large (I've thought of surgery before) so bring it on. I might not have to "tuck myself in" before riding my bike etc. Clit wise, I don't think I've ever had an orgasm so no loss there.

Sorry for those who are finding it difficult though.

Rather have my bits shrivelling up than my current favourite symptom of forgetting how to spell words / getting homophones mixed up which I've never done before.

@2JFDIYOLO Oh yes. There is. I use Rael Organic or Natracare.

And the cost is huge. You could literally go on and on 🤣

And nobody gives you a fucking heads up! I try and tell myself that I was really lucky for so many decades - never one single problematic period and I never thought about my fanny ever. So yeah, lucky.

I think about it now though but proactive is good and it really does stop things getting any worse the sooner you’re ’on it’ and in a little regime

How do you know if it’s happening?

My symptoms were extremely painful sex - feeling like broken glass on entry and itching, my god the itching!! Plus things I didn’t realise at the times were symptoms like going to the loo a lot!

I was listening to Begin Again Podcast and Davina talks to the sex expert T Cox on there and towards the end they cover this. They talk about women going for smears and everything is closed up and the doc can't insert anything. If you don't regularly insert things apparently the vagina can effectively close up.

They talk about skin conditions like eczema that do all sorts of damage in the region. Steroid cream is treatment for this. What I thought was interesting is Cox had never heard of it until she got it and she knows a lot about that part of our anatomy.

I think generally the treatment they suggest is oestrogen vaginal creams and dilators to regularly stretch the vagina if you not having regular sex.

This is information on skin condition https://drlenkliman.com.au/services/vulval-and-vaginal-skin-disorders/

@Scaredaboutthiswell, I can only give my experience.

I said before, I’ve never had any issues ‘down there’ in my life. Until last year aged 52 when I felt a bit ‘sore’ and perhaps itchy.

I did the usual stuff of changing washing powder and I got some itch type cream etc and it ebbed and flowed for 6 months like this until the day it suddenly dawned on me that it HAD to be related to menopause and that, at 52 (and now 53) I had to be in late perimenopause despite not many symptoms.

So I started taking it more seriously and last week actually put a name to it - Atrophy. I believe it’s mild for me but this is only because I made a load of smaller changes last year and have now finally added in proper HRT last month.

Fecking heck. £44 for 48 rolls of bog roll? I might as well wipe my fanny on a £1 coin.