February 20, 2020 | Caroline Knight

What is the Best Treatment for Vulvodynia?

Best ways to treat?

The Vuvatech site is full of information about the troublesome condition known as vulvodynia, and many others of its kind. We won’t tell you too much about the condition in this article, since we have many other articles on vulvodynia already. However, we are often asked what the best treatment for vulvodynia is, so we decided to address that separately.

Vulvodynia does not discriminate; it affects women of all ages and all ethnicities, and can even starts during the teenage years. When you consider that there are an estimated six million vulvodynia sufferers around the world, It will probably come as no surprise that we’re asked about vulvodynia treatment so often!

So without further ado, we’ll get straight to our recommendations on the best treatments for vulvodynia:

Home treatments for vulvodynia

These options are more about behaviors and product choices, but they can prevent vulvodynia flare-ups too, so they’re worth incorporating into your self-care protocol:

Choose chemical-free, plant-based oils for moisturizing the vulva area
Take sitz baths (but at a lukewarm temperature – too much heat can aggravate!)
Exchange tampons for sanitary pads or Mediterranean sea sponges
Clean the whole area with gentle, chemical-free soap after sex, and even after peeing
Use water-based lubricant during sex to prevent friction, and a cool gel pack afterwards if necessary
CBD oil is a great natural treatment for vulvodynia thanks to its anti-inflammatory and pain-relieving qualities

We know that these treatments alone may not be enough to totally free you from vulvodynia pain, but they should certainly ease things for you.

The best treatment for vulvodynia

In our opinion – as well as the opinion of many clinical researchers – the best vulvodynia treatment is vaginal dilators. Obviously you will be looking to reduce the pain, and a lot of women find that pain diminishes or disappears when they can relax their pelvic floor muscles.

Vaginal dilators (also known as vaginal expanders) are a very safe and effective treatment for vulvodynia. Our Neodymium magnetic dilators help blood to flow to the area while stretching the tissues and muscles to promote relaxation. Rest assured there are studies to back these findings! Women who took part in the trials noticed significant pain reduction after dilator use, as well as improved sexual confidence and mental health.

Using dilators just once or twice per day for around twenty or thirty minutes should be enough to help relieve your vulvodynia pain. You can start out with small dilators and work your way up to the bigger sizes as you feel comfortable.

Do you need a stronger treatment for vulvodynia?

If self-care strategies and dilators are not bringing you enough relief, it may be time to think about a more serious treatment for vulvodynia. If so, the following options could be helpful – but be warned, there could be side effects with some:

Sign up for a course of pelvic floor physical therapy (which may include pain-relieving biofeedback therapy as well as dilator therapy)
Speak to your Doctor about appropriate medicines like steroids or tricyclic antidepressants (but proceed with caution, as some medicines can exacerbate the problem). Trial and error may be required.

If things are really not improving, you could speak to a vulvar specialist about surgery. However, bear in mind that the odds of success are not very high, so it really is a last resort. Surgical options exist, but success rates are not so high.

We hope that you find the solution you’re looking for. Treatment for vulvodynia is the first step, and even if it takes a bit of trial and error, you should be able to find a solution that works for you.