How To Keep Your Bits Juicy: A Dry Vagina Story

I have one or two (or three) phobias: I’m claustrophobic, I have gerascophobia (fear of getting old), and as of late, I’ve developed a new phobia: fear of dry vagina. There’s no actual term for that particular phobia — although there should be. There is, however, a term for actual dry vagina. vaginal atrophy or atrophic vaginitis.

I ask you, is there a more soul-crushing term out there? I’d wager that the person who coined that term was of the male persuasion.  In fact, I don’t even need to look that up, I’m that convinced.

Dick!

Why couldn’t he — they — call it something more poetic?

I propose the following terms…

♥ drained daisy

♥ withering flower

♥ waning wee wee

♥ burnt out beaver

♥ parched pee pee

♥ thirsty Thelma

♥ weary warrior

♥ dwindling diva

♥ sapped Susie

or my favorite…

♥ chilled out cherry

I came up with so many more — those are just my top ten. Surely, that man could have given the naming of this condition a little more thought, been a little more sympathetic, less of a dick. Notice how they give their problem a kinder name. Erectile dysfunction.  Now, I’m in no way diminishing the gravity of their sexual issues, I’m simply showing the disparity in the nomenclature.

Dysfunction suggests hope –  it’s not functioning now but it will again, do not worry male person.

But atrophy? Look up the synonyms for atrophy (I did) and you know what you will find? “waste away, wither, shrivel, decline, and decay.”

DECAY!

You see the problem here? Do you understand the bigger issue? Aren’t those the same words used to describe women after a certain age?

Coincidence? I think not.

They may as well tell us that our vagina is dead on arrival with no hope of resuscitation and that we should “waste away” quietly in a corner and accept our fate.

Well, no one puts baby — I mean us spring chickies — in a corner.

Again, dicks!

But let us (me) stop whining and instead find a solution. Because there is always a solution. And because the prospect of my vagina drying up like the freaking Sahara sparks a dread in me that can only be described as…irrational?

No, not irrational, more like frantic. In fact, if they told me that WD-40 would help, I’d promptly visit my nearest hardware store, buy a case of the stuff and douche with it.

As with all things that have to do with what is “supposed” to happen to me as I get older, I am challenging it. I am determined to keep my vagina as juicy as a rare cooked steak — no matter what.

I’ve again resorted to the science and found some good news. So if you want to reverse the curse and turn your Sapping Susie into Sopping Suzanne, keep reading.

But first things first…

Reasons why you may have a dehydrated vagina

Glands in your undercarriage are responsible for producing a fluid that keeps the skin and tissues in the vagina juicy. And that’s the goal…for life.

Vaginal dryness can occur at any age and for many reasons. Birth control pills, certain medications, harsh soaps, smoking and even stress can cause your vagina to dry up.

The most common reason, of course, menopause, or… the end of life as we know it. During menopause estrogen levels decline and lead to thinning and drying of the vagina. This can cause itching and painful sex.

But worse — and this is where I think there is lack of information and discussion —the drying of your vagina may have a deeper psychological impact that may be greater than the physical symptoms. Feelings of sadness and powerlessness over the decline of youth are what concerns me most and it is why I started this blog.

Anything, whether it’s vaginal dryness, wrinkles, loss of muscle tone, or any other things we experience as a result of aging can have devasting consequences for some of us — okay, for me.

But I know I’m not alone. I just talk about it more (over and over and over). Because I don’t want you to have feelings of unworthiness, shame, or helplessness that comes with all this physical stuff.

If keeping the honey in your honeypot will have a positive effect on your psyche, then you need to figure out how to produce more honey.

And that’s what I’m trying to figure out.

Side note: only about half of post-menopausal women suffer from vaginal dryness. Thank God! I’m banking on being on team wet pussy, but there’s no way to ensure this, so I am taking action.

What we can do about it

I don’t want to play the victim, ever, especially not when it comes to aging. I believe in taking control and finding solutions. I am a prepper when it comes to all things anti-aging. So I’m taking preemptive measures because if my well ever runs dry I need a backup source of water. I’m preparing for menopause like you’d prepare for an impending natural disaster – I’m storing up my juices.

Estrogen cream: topical estrogen therapy is said to be effective but not permanent. You slather a cream in your vagina and the effects should last about 3 days.

Diet: this one is of great interest to me because I’m a firm believer that the food you eat and don’t eat has a huge impact on our health and our aging.

This is why this makes sense to me. Vaginal lubrication comes from glands in the cervix, as well as the vagina, but a majority of the vaginal fluid is actually from the bloodstream. Eating a diet high in fatty acids and proteins may help in producing vaginal lubrication. Makes sense, right?

♥ Pumpkin, sesame seeds, sunflower seeds, salmon, mackerel, and tuna are good sources of fatty acids.

In supplement form, Vitamin A and B-complex, Omega 3-6-9, Omega 7 and beta-carotene supplements have the same effect.

Stay hydrated: Poor diet and hydration are said to affect vaginal fluids. Six to eight glasses of water a day helps keep your tissues moist, and this includes your vagina tissues. Plus, We know that drinking plenty of water is good for our skin. So, winner, winner chicken dinner.

Another side note: sometimes drinking water will not be enough to hydrate you because water goes right through you. Sometimes you have to eat your water. Foods that have a high water content like berries, cucumbers and basically most fruits and vegetables, in conjunction with your water, will keep all your parts — including your lady parts — hydrated.

Vitamin E: This supplement has been shown to increase blood supply to the vaginal wall. Again, vitamin E is great for aging skin. I think we can fairly assume that what’s good for the skin is good for la vagine.

Vitamin D:  (source)  and (this source) This supplement decreases the pH in the vagina and dryness. Women who have been diagnosed with that awful term, vaginal atrophy, have high pH levels in their vaginas. So we need to keep those levels low. If you are not taking vitamin D, especially D3, I urge you to talk to your doctor about it. This is one super supplement (it’s actually a steroid hormone) that is responsible for over 1000 processes in the body. I wrote a post about it here.

Dietary phytoestrogens: phytoestrogens are naturally occurring plant compounds that are chemically similar to estrogen in the body. Studies have shown that phytoestrogens – lower-dose estrogens found in foods or herbs – can improve vaginal dryness. (source). Flaxseed, flaxseed oil, soybeans, soymilk, tofu, and miso, chickpeas are rich in phytoestrogens.

It makes a lot of sense to me that since the cause of vaginal dryness is a decline in estrogen, the taking hormone-mimicking supplements or eating these kinds of foods is a way to go. Herbs like dong quai, hops, and sage leaf contain phytoestrogens. (source)

Isoflavones: a type of phytoestrogen, foods that contain isoflavones can help regulate declining estrogen levels. Foods high in isoflavones include flaxseed, soy, legumes, cherries, nuts, apples and celery.

Omega 7 and sea buckthorn oil (source) and (another source). Sea Buckthorn oil contains Omegas 3, 6, 7 and 9. It also contains palmitic acid.

A recent trial published in Maturitas showed that taking 3g per day of sea buckthorn seed and oil helped improve vaginal dryness, itching and burning in the active group compared to placebo.

Say no more.

I’ve included this link so you can see some of the supplements available to balance your hormones.

But here’s my disclaimer, cuz, you know, there are some cray people out there (I’m not talking about you) that will take anything and everything without doing their due diligence. Before you start taking any supplement, herb or applying anything to your lady parts, check with your doctor. Some natural supplements may interfere with certain medications. Be safe.

xoxo,

V