His and Her Health

hello,
for the past year, i had used a vibrator on a regular basis up to 5 times a week. i noticed that my sensitivity started decrease after a certain point but was almost always able to achieve orgasm. 4 months ago, i came down with vulvar irritation and was frightened that i had caused some damage with the vibrator -- until i got other symptoms that indicated i had a yeast infection. i treated it with an OTC, and symptoms disappeared.

that first yeast infection was enough to scare me from using the vibrator again. fast forward 2 months later -- i had again, the vulvar irritation (couldn't wear pants comfortably at all!) and before i decided to treat the problem, symptoms disappeared within 5 days. 3 weeks later, symptoms again appeared .. and this time, i decided to treat -- again, with the those intravaginal ovules, even though the discomfort was mainly vulvar. i also tried to use the nystatin cream but it caused burning. after my 3 days of treatment, my vulvar and now my clitoris was extremely sensitive -- wearing pants caused great discomfort and gentle pressure on the clitoris would cause a deeper sort of pain. 3 times also i felt a stabbing pain radiating from the clitoris. for the past several days since, the pain has decreased although although there is still some minor irritation.

i'm very scared -- could these symptoms be a neuropathic pain from my previous use of a vibrator? could the damage have been latent only to become apparent now? i regret the use of the vibrator and have not used it in 3 months now. or is this simply symptoms associated with a yeast infection? i'm extremely embarassed about the vibrator use and don't think i'll be telling any health professional about it, but at the same time, i really need to know if i have caused myself nerve injury.

any insight would be greatly appreciated.

thank you.

hello,

i just wanted to add that i've had some itching within the labial folds as well. would this indicate more of an infectious cause? also, can clitoral pain be cyclical?

thanks again.

dr berman endorses the use of vibs as a very useful tool. im sure anything used in excess is not good, but 5 times a week isnt all that bad, depending on how long each session lasts. the vib brings more blood flow to the area so if it isnt completely numb when you are finished i dont believe that the vib is the source of your problem. my wife can get similar symptoms as you are describing if she overeats a fresh pineappple. is it possible that acid from something you are eating is doing this, possibly some new laundry soap? and like you are doing, she jumps to conclusions and thinks everything she has done in the last week is the culprit. make a log so if and when it comes back you can figure out what triggered it. dont blame the vib, just keep it clean. and good luck!

Here I will jump in and jump out. If you are having any numb feelings in any part of your vagina and especially the clitoris you are doing damage. Stop immediately. That is the point where damage starts. Now very wise advice was given to ME, not for everyone, as I do have the 7 year itch, that to use this sparingly as in years possibly my husband could not pleasure me as much and I will need it more. I still do use it but with care. Was told a wise thing to do was instead of direct contact on the clitoris and other sensitive parts to put a wash rag over the area first. For me when I have severe over arousal I use the Serenity Prayer,

God grant me the serenity
to accept the things I cannot change;
courage to change the things I can;
and wisdom to know the difference.

For me it works:
Peace to All

I have had about a dozen patients who have caused nerve damage to the clitoral branch of the pudendal nerve by aggressive use of a vibrator.

Dr. Goldstein, how would you define aggressive use? Are particular types of vibrators more likely to cause damage? Length of time per session? Frequency of sessions? Degree of pressure used?

Thanks.

Oh, and IIOWHK, welcome back! I thought you might have left forever. Now if we can get Heydude to come back...

Hi Dr Goldstein,
thank you for your response. i rarely ever used it in direct contact. but seeing as i have not used it for 4 months now, is it common for hte problem to develop so much later? also, the discomfort varies in quality and will sometimes be in the vaginal area too. where do i go from here??? your insight would be greatly appreciated. thank you.

eva_m
Full Time Member
Hi Eva: It has been so long since I have been here I have no idea of how to put the quotes. This subject scared me. Last night I used my wonderful vibrator. The great one. The one I wrote about. Just plain needed it. It worked great. I tried not to stay in one place and moved around a whole lot. Had a tremendous clit orgasm but then when I somewhat came near it again I had one good sharp pain and some hurting. Again I went near and it happened again. This is with the electric but from what I am hearing can be with direct clit. You take care and nice talking to you. Hope this bit helps.

I used my vibrator last Monday or Tuesday night. I usually use it on my clitoris. I think I used it too long and applied too much pressure to one spot. About a day after I started to feel a slight burning sensation on my clitoris then it increased. I feel it most when I shower. I bought Vagi-Guard for it on Saturday and began using it. It burned when I applied it to my clitoris. I've been soaking in Epsom Salt, but I'm worried that it is taking too long to go away. How long will it take for my clitoris to come back to normal? Should I use neosporin on it instead. I was at my ob-gyn a week and a half ago for my annual visit which was fine. I'm a bit embarrased to go back for this. Any advice?

You can definately do some damage to your clitoris by too much direct stimulation. It is a very sensative part of the vagina and must be treated as such. Too much direct contact over a period of time can cause it desensatized. When you are using a vibrator you should move it around to different areas and tease yourself.Go around it as the arousal will be just as high and go to your G-Spot and back. Play your own game of love. Never directly stimulate the clit. Even finish yourself off with your fingers to be on the safe side especially until it is healed. I am not a physician but if it was me before I would head back to a doctor I would leave everything off of it, take some sitz baths and do not worry and leave it alone. Give it some time to heal as you have added further irritation to annoy it. Don't touch and bathe a couple times a day and see where it goes. Otherwise the doctor but relax. Take care. Caroline

Thanks for the advice. I'll try to leave everything off it and see what happens.

I just wanted to responsd to Caroline's advice. I agree that you can cause damage with vibrators, but to say you should never directly stimulate your clitoris is going too far, in my opinion and may unnecessarily cause anxiety. For many women, myself included, if I don't use a vibrator on my clitoris, there's no point in using it at all. There's no other place it works. I've been using vibrators regularly for nearly 40 years and never experienced any numbness or problems from it at all. I had quite a bit of loss of sensation when I reached my late 40s, but since I hadn't changed my vibrator use and used it for so long before then, I would have to attribute the loss to hormonal changes or other reasons.

That said, I never used a vibrator all the time, used one that's too strong or used hard pressure. But the anxiety caused by thinking you may have caused nerve damage by touching a vibrator to your clit or thinking you can never do it again might be as harmful.

I think your advice to Jane is excellent, I just wanted to temper it a little in case you scared her (or anyone else) off ever using a vibrator again.

Eva and CuriousJane: I am sorry if I gave the impression that I never use it on the clitoris. I do but I tease myself and move it around to not stay too long in one place. That is the thing that can cause problems. With the powerful Elect (whatever it is spelled)just teasing and going to other areas does the trick. 4 months ago I had never used a vibrator so everyday is Christmas that I decide to use it. But I am wise enough to make it a special treat. Second love of my life. Take care, Caroline

Hi i am going through the same pain...and no doctor understands me. i have been using a massager for a vibrator for a veryyy long time, not thinking i would damage myself. At first I was having this feeling like I have to go to the pee all the time but now I have severe stabbing sharp pains in my clitoris like no other pain..I feel like i am going to die this occurred last weekend and went away but it came back again this weekend. when i have sex with my boyfriend the pain goes away b/c my clitoris is being stimulated but right after it becomes muuuuuch worse!!! I will never to that again or use a vibrator. I went to the gynocologists today and she was like everything looks fine..as i layed there holding in my tears. I told her and my mom i got kicked playing soccer and this may have caused the damage, because i am too embarrased to say what really caused. The doctor gave me a painkiller which is not working at all!! I just got the pain so badly that i had to go to the emergency room but there was about a five hour wait. My mom looked up pudendal nerve damage. I don't know to do i feel soooo horrible. I have been missing sooo many days of school because this pain. I can't even sleep. Am I damaged forver??? sry if my spelling is all messes up..its the pain killers(that arnt working) PLEASE HELP ME