To use soap or not??

So my friends and i are sitting in our small house in the middle of Israel, with no t.v, discussing vaginas, as you do...

It all started when i went to the toilet, and it burnt when i pee'd. when i asked the room, why this was, they replyed that
a. i hadn't drunken enough water today... (questionable)...
b. a sexually transmitted infection (which i'm telling you its not... really, i'm pretty sure that its not... damn...)
and b. its because when i shower i wash my vagina with soap. apparantly your not supposed to, and i can understand why not, but i have always done it, and never thought twice. why just now, at such an age i find out that your not supposed to.

so here is my question to you... first... why does it burn??? and second... should i or should i not use soap when washing?? even if it is unscented and without dyes??

yes, thats right, i am having a mid-life vagina crisis...

 

I use soap to wash myself and nothing burns down there when I do(unless you wash down there really super duper hard and you scratched yourself down there), it's possible you could have a urinary tract infection(those are cured by creams and such)so check into that.

 

it could be a UTI or a yeast infection or vagintitus (i know thats not how you spell it) i never use soap, you could just use a wet washcloth instead of soap, soap doesnt sound too safe

 

Ive always used soap too, fuck not doing that, gawd.

Id just say you might have been a bit too rough with the soap, its a delicate area.

 

it could be that something in your chemistry changed and now the soap is bothering you. i've always been very sensative to soap down there so i just wash it really well with water in the shower (but i'm super-duper sensative, even shampoo running down hurts)

aslong as you wash it with water well then youll be fine, but if that bothers you for health reasons try going to a health food store and getting a mild, natural soap

 

yeah, could be a urinary tract infection or whatever. If you can find some cranberry juice, then try drinking heaps, it's really good for you, kind of like buying a ferrari for your vagina. to appease it's mid life crisis

 

Please use soap. Please.

 

oh yea, and don't use old soap, i'm not sure how long it takes, but soap does go bad! maybe your soap is just rotten.

 

Hmm, lots of people seem to use soap on their privates. Weird, the only time soap comes even close to my genitals is when I shave the majority of my pubic hair off.

Anyways, it's probably a urinary tract infection like others have said... I doubt it's yeast (which is candida vaginitus, they're the same thing I'm pretty sure) because usually that starts with itching, which when scratched can turn to burning.

The main concern with using soap is the strongly scented or non-sensitive formulas - they can upset the natural balance of fungi and chemicals and such in your vagina and cause a yeast infection.

 

hey guys, thanks heaps for all your suggestions. i dont think that its anything serious, and maybe just a change in my diet... and also, i am very aware now of soaps.
i guess, its just because i am using body wash, that is both scented and dyed. so i will purchase non-scented soap, natural, cos i dont think its anything else.
and i am very proud of my fellow women for knowing so damn much about vaginas.
big ups to the vagina-clan... haha!!

 

Tamara--Who is that guy in your sig? And can I have a piece?

 

wait are you talking about the picture of bob marley in her sig pic? please tell me you are looking at a different sig pic..you have to know who bob marley is...and no if you are talking about bob you may not have "a peice of him" he unfortunately passed away quite some time ago

 

Hahahahaha!! You're kidding me? Oops...:& Yes, I do know who Bob Marley is, I just had never seen a photo of him without the long dreds...all apologies.

 

wow!! i'm part of the vagina clan!! yay!! can i put that on my resume? lol

anyways i went to a health food store and told the guy about my problems, he gave me this soap he said it is the most mild on the market..... its called ECCO BELLA and its actually a shower gel. ummm it smells sooo yummy


hmmm. ecco bella, i wonder if that means earth beauty?

 

Er... I really wouldn't use soap! Get some of that summer's eve stuff or whatever. The skin in there isn't like the skin of yer arms/legs/etc. and I guess why they make special stuff fer it.

 

I'm very sensitive to soap, especially if it's scented. I also used to get a "burning" sensation.

What stopped it for me was switching soaps.

I starting using Johnson & Johnson Baby Wash which smells nice and softens, and it's meant for super-sensitive skin/areas.

I can also use Dial Anti-Bacterial Body Wash. That works well, but doesn't feel as nice as the baby wash.

Hope this helps.

I also used to be prone to UTIs, but find them easily treatable w/a doc and preventable by drinking lots of water and making sure to urinate before AND after sex.

 

OK, please don't take this the wrong way, but how much do you know about urinary tract infections? I ask because of the possible reasons you listed, & because several people have suggested it as a possible cause, but your response focused on the soap & your diet... You are aware that UTIs are not sexually transmitted, right?

A UTI is caused when bacteria get up into your urethra, which can happen in multiple ways. The only real association with sexual activity is that, all that bumping & grinding may cause bacteria to be rubbed over the opening, increasing the risk, which is why you should pee before & after sex, to rinse out anything that may have gotten in before it can take hold (at least that's how it was explained to me). But, that's also why you are supposed to always wipe front to back when using the restroom -- the majority of UTIs are caused by bacteria from fecal matter, which was, to put it crassly, smeared forward while wiping (it may not even be enuf fecal matter to see on the toilet paper, but the bacteria can be there).

I hope for your sake that changing to a different soap will fix the problem, just cuz that seems like the simplest solution. However, if it continues, please go to a doctor. If you catch it while it is still just a UTI, it is relatively easy to deal with -- I just had to take antibiotics when I had one. However, if you let it go, it can cause more painful issues...

 

An untreated UTI can lead to a bladder infection, and worse a kidney infection. That's what it sounds like to me. If the burning occurs WHILE you are peeing, it is mostly likely NOT your vagina. And, btw, you aren't using soap on your vagina unless you are sticking the soap inside of you. The vagina is internal. You are washing your vulva and labia.

 

i used to get that too! but i figured out i just wasnt rinsing all the soap off. so dont forget to rinse

 

Thank goddess, someone who knows proper terminology! I get so frustrated by people referring to female genitalia as "vagina". You're my hero now