Menopause and your vaginal health
Today on A.Vogel Talks Menopause, I'm going to be talking about vaginal symptoms that should not be ignored in perimenopause and menopause.
Vaginal health can certainly change in perimenopause and menopause. Many women can end up experiencing symptoms such as vaginal dryness, itchiness, a little bit of extra discharge, or some discomfort. However, there are some vaginal symptoms that really shouldn't be ignored or accepted as part and parcel of menopause.
So today, I'm going to look at these troublesome symptoms and what can cause them and why these really need to be checked out by your doctor. So, let's take a look at these:
1. Heavy bleeding
Although this is common in the run-up to perimenopause, a lot of women, at this point, can experience periods that get a bit longer and a little bit heavier. This is part and parcel of the way the hormones are changing towards menopause. But if you are getting really heavy bleeding, if you are having to change tampons or towels more often than usual, if it's starting to stain your clothes, if you find that the bleeding is going on and on and on, then this really does need to get medical attention.
There can be lots of causes of this. It could be fibroids. These can either suddenly appear or for many women who may have had them for years without even realising, they can start to grow bigger and they can get irritated, and this can cause bleeding.
It can be things like polyps or cysts. It can also be a prolapse and this is where the pelvic organs (the bladder, the bowel, the womb, and the vagina) can change place. So, if these end up moving even slightly, that could put an awful lot of pressure on the womb and trigger intermittent or continual bleeding.
It can also cause anaemia. Even having a heavy period for a few extra days can lower your iron levels
If the bleeding goes on for more than seven days, please get this checked out. We've had so many women come back to us who've been to get this checked out and have been told to go away and wait and see what happens.
Please don't do this. Just really demand to get this checked out because if it goes on, it could lead to other more serious conditions. And let's face it. If you were bleeding anywhere else from your body for more than seven days, you would be taken seriously and probably whisked off to a hospital. So, this is one where we really do say please don't just put up with this for weeks and weeks and weeks.
2. Painful sex
Very often, this can be due to vaginal dryness, which I've mentioned before is really, really common. It can be due to bacterial changes, so you can end up sometimes getting things like thrush as well, which can make sex painful. But if you find that pain occurs when there's deeper penetration, then again, this needs to be checked out by your doctor.
It could be issues with the cervix. You can get infections of the cervix. Again, it can be due to a prolapse. If your womb has changed position or your bladder is pressing on the womb or on the vagina itself, then this is automatically going to cause a lot of pain and discomfort.
Are you Menopausal? Need help with your symptoms? Try our Menopause Symptom Checker.
Answer 3 question to find out if you could be menopausal and get personalised tips and advice straight to your inbox based on your results.
3. Ongoing pelvic pain and bloating
If you're getting ongoing pelvic pain, if there's discomfort, if you're getting bloating that doesn't go down then this should be checked by your doctor.
Now, I know, for a lot of women, digestive problems and bloating in this area due to digestion can be really, really common. But discomfort and bloating due to digestive issues tend to come and go. You may find that you get bloated at the same time every day and then when you go and move your bowels, everything calms down. It feels comfortable again.
But with this pelvic pain and bloating, it's there the whole time and may get worse if you exercise, or you move about, or you have to stand for a long time.
4. Heaviness sensation in the pelvic area
It could also be a heavy dragging feeling. And again, this is a common symptom of a prolapse if you just feel that everything is really pushing down, and maybe you're getting an urge to push sometimes just because of that feeling. Again, these ones need checking out.
5. Increased vaginal discharge
Discharge can be quite a common thing. A lot of women find that in perimenopause just before a period, they get a little bit more discharge. So, this is if you're getting a discharge on a daily basis and it's not stopping, this could be due, as I've mentioned before, to something like thrush. It can also be due just to a bacterial imbalance in the whole area. But again, these things need checking out if they're not going away.
6. Increased repeat urinary tract infections
An increase in repeated urinary tract infections can be caused by a change in the whole pelvic area. And if you find that they're not clearing up with antibiotics, they're not getting better, if they're getting worse, if you're getting more of them, then, again, just ask your doctor to really check into this for you.
And don't just put up with repeat antibiotics because very often, if antibiotics don't work the first time, then any subsequent infections you get, they're not going to help either; and you can end up in this vicious cycle of very uncomfortable UTIs, taking antibiotics, and nothing resolves itself.
Simple ways to support your vaginal health throughout menopause
This is an area of our body that we tend to forget or just close our eyes to. Looking after our vaginal health, generally, can very often prevent some of the issues I mentioned above from occurring. So here are a few things that I recommend:
Get things checked: If there is anything you're unsure of, any sudden changes to your vagina, if it looks different, feels different, or smells different, then please consult your doctor just to make sure there's nothing else going on.
Continue to get your regular smear test: Now, I do know different countries have different ages. I live in Scotland and in my particular health area, they stop smears at 60. For some other areas, it may be slightly older.
Please don't ignore these because they can pick up things that you may not be aware of. So as long as you're still in the age group for being able to get them, please still get them done. It's a really good health check for you.
Practice pelvic floor exercises: They can be really good. If you keep your pelvic floor muscles strong, that's going to help prevent a prolapse.
I would suggest going to see someone like a Pilates instructor. You can find these exercises on YouTube etc but if you don't get proper tuition, you could end up doing them wrong and you could end up doing more harm than good. So, this is one instance where I would say please get proper tuition for this. And there are lots of classes around now. So many Pilates instructors are focusing on women's health and pelvic health, so it's a really good investment for now and for later life as well.
Help ease any vaginal dryness: If you're getting a lot of vaginal dryness, you can look at natural lubricants. You can get them from your local health food shop. Most of them are water-based which means they're not going to interfere with the balance of friendly bacteria. You can look at things like a Sea Buckthorn Oil supplement, which can be really, really helpful.
Speak to your doctor about an oestrogen gel or pessary: If it's getting to be a bit of a nuisance, then for those of you who are willing to look at HRT, you can look at oestrogen gels or pessaries that are localised. And some women say they've made such a huge difference. So, again, that's worth looking into.
Go with a vaginal probiotic: I recommend taking a course of probiotics once every six months just to keep everything healthy. Your friendly bacteria in the vagina also protects your bladder from those UTIs, so it's another good investment.
Look at the products you're using: This is a very sensitive area and if you're using really harsh chemical soaps, bubble baths, or shower gels, then that's going to cause a lot of irritation, especially as the skin can get more sensitive as your oestrogen levels fall.
There are loads of lovely, natural, and organic intimate products that you can get from your local health food shop. And don't forget toilet paper. The majority of toilet paper is bleached. And there's a whole range now of scented toilet paper and toilet paper with moisturisers in them. Again, if this is a particularly sensitive area, these things are not going to help so make sure that you go for natural, unbleached toilet paper if you're really sensitive down there.
So, I hope you found this one helpful. If any of you out there have had any vaginal issues and you sorted them, or you've got some really good tips, please share them in the comment section below.
Until next week, take care.
You may also find these topics helpful:
6 vaginal and urinary symptoms of menopause
