Vaginal Dilators

Hi,
I'm a new member, I'm 21 and been living with vulva pain for just over three years and I joined to ask a specific question about vaginal dilators. I was given them only yesterday as I have not been able to cure my pain with medication. My doctor suggested that I used dilators to learn to cope with the pain (I will also be starting therapy soon). The first time I used the dilators I managed to use the first three sizes with absolutely no pain or discomfort. The 4th size, which is fairly big, I was also able to use without pain it just felt very uncomfortable. The next time I used them I went straight back to the 4th size and it was very painful and I could only get around halfway. Has anyone else experienced this or have any suggestions as to why this might be? Does this suggest perhaps that my symptoms are partly psychological? And how should I continue to use them?
Would be really interested to hear other people's experiences as I've never met anyone with this condition before.
Thanks!

Hi there,

I get the same thing to, I don't think this means it is psychological. By using the smaller dilators and moving up slowly, you are showing the muscles where to go and lowering the pelvic floor gradually, giving the vagina more space. My therapist described it as your muscles are on the third floor you need to come down the ground floor. I am assuming you have a tight, lost pelvic floor like mine, it snaps back to a contracted position rather than relaxed. By going in with the larger dilator straight away the pain is present as the muscles haven't slowly been shown how to relax and lower (an unnatural state for girls like us), their go-to position is tight and contracted one, obstructing the vaginal opening and deeper in.

That is good you are going to a therapist too. I would avoid pain by starting with the smaller one then moving up. That way you are telling your brain that having something in your vagina is not a pain situation. Same thing happens with any type of pain not just vulvodynia! Pain=avoid to our brain. Once you are in the larger dilator with no pain imagine in your mind where you pelvic floor muscles are and try to replicate this next time. Use a deep inhalation breath to lower the pelvic floor helps. That's what I have been told to do, your therapist might say different based on your case

Hope that helps!

I have been using dilators since around august. I don't think your pain is psychological. If your doctor ever tells you the pain is all in your head I'd stop seeing them. This pain is very real and very painful. It sounds like we have similar issues "down there". I have a tight pelvic floor. When I first started using dilators it didn't hurt so much as felt like a lot of pressure happening down there. I had never put anything larger than a finger in there so it felt very different. Now I can use the largest size in my set no problem. It takes a while though. My doctor instructed me to use 2 sizes at a time for 10 minutes every night before bed. I'd use the smallest one for 7 minutes and then the next size up for 3 minutes going around and around. Then after a week I'd go up a size and repeat the same steps. After about a month or 2 I was up to the largest size pain free. Don't rush yourself to get up to that big size. You need time for your muscles to adjust to the change. Take your time and you will get good results. Eventually the pain won't be as bad. I had surgery to correct this last summer which took away the initial pain, but the dilators got me feeling 100% normal. Make sure you stay consistant with it. I'm a full time college student and often get too busy to dilate every night. Right now I'm in pain for not having used them in about 2 months . I'm slowly trying to get back into the swing of things since school will be out soon. Anyway I hope I was of some help! If you ever have any questions let me know!

-Jen