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Has anyones vaginia have a different smell after there hysterectomy?

By Anonymous November 26, 2010 - 11:15am
 
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Anonymous (reply to Anonymous)

I know this is an old comment, and the guy's feelings were hurt years ago, but I find your comment insensitive. Maybe this guy is going through some trauma too. When he was younger, he probably never envisioned his sex life being over at this point. This part of life is very important to a man. For some, it is a primary
motivation for being married. There is so much more to this than just the taste and smell of the vagina. It is the physical being of his wife that has changed. He is not being shallow! He has lost a significant part of his wife. I understand what he is saying. I feel it too with my wife. The pheromones are gone. Her desire is gone.
She seems to enjoy sex still, but does it for me. I have to be careful because her Vaj is not as strong as it used to be.
It sucks to know that she will never physically want me again, and we are still young.

December 9, 2016 - 5:41am
EmpowHER Guest
Anonymous (reply to Anonymous)

You have hit the nail on the head. I had a hysterectomy in 2004. was told NOTHING ,,,I mean NOTHING. I was left to go home in the dark about my new found sexualty. Nothing was the same. I felt different . It was like they took it all out from me. I went in one woman-came out another. to this day..I am still reading and finding out about different people's stories and this one hit home. After all these years...you got it.

January 18, 2012 - 6:37pm
EmpowHER Guest
Anonymous

I agree, the changes occur from the amputation of the cervix and uterus. It would be similar to your throat being sewn together. Thanks for the detailed description. I think most women are not told by their doctors that their vagina will be sewn into a closed pocket along with the damage and changes that take place. I was never told anything.

November 28, 2010 - 4:29pm
EmpowHER Guest
Anonymous (reply to Anonymous)

WOW THE AMPUTATION OF THE CERVIX AND UTERUS ! How brutal that sounds, but I guess that's what takes place right ! I can relate to a lot of what everyone is saying. I also have had a complete Hystorectomy and nobody said anything about how bad I would smell ! Just using the ladies rooms is embarrassing and I have to use room freshener after I pee !! I am terrified to make love to my husband of 24 yrs. I feel unclean and quite frankly gross ! Wish I knew then what I know now, I may have waited a bit longer and kept monitoring every 6 months or so. At the time Doctor said that it would be best for me to have a complete Hystorectomy because I had survived breast cancer and that the last internal indicated cell change ! If I had known then what I'm now living with I would have waited ! Not happy at all !

November 17, 2015 - 6:59pm
EmpowHER Guest
Anonymous

I had a hysterectomy with cervix removed and what I noticed post-surgery, was an absence of my normal scent. I would not attribute any change post-surgery to "menopause" as that is a natural phase of an intact woman who has uterine/ovarian function. An abscence of what was previously normal would be an apt description for a lot of the changes I noticed post surgery. I am now 12 years post-opt.

November 28, 2010 - 1:23pm
(reply to Anonymous)

Thank you for sharing your story; the information you provided will be very helpful to many women!

November 28, 2010 - 2:26pm

Your question is one many hysterectomized women wonder about. It's great to have a forum where these questions can be asked. HERS has counseled over a million women since 1982, about half of them have undergone hysterectomies, and about half have been told they need the surgery. Many hysterectomized women report that they have less vaginal odor than they had before the surgery, and that it is different. There are a number of reasons for this change, including that the top of the vagina is sutured closed during a hysterectomy, so the natural vaginal secretions intact women have that washes away bacteria, is no longer possible.

In women who have an intact uterus it is not advisable to douche because it can push bacteria and other organisms through the cervix ,into the uterus and through the fallopian tubes into the pelvis, where it can cause pelvic infection. After hysterectomy, because the top of the vagina is sutured shut, douching cannot cause organisms to flow threw the cervix into the uterus because the uterus and cervix have been surgically removed, and the vagina is made into a closed pocket. The bacteria and other organisms that would normally be washed away by your natural secretions now remain trapped in the vagina and can, in time, cause a foul odor. Because a hysterectomized woman's vagina is sutured shut at the top, it is safe to douche. A tablespoon of white vinegar to a quart of warm water used every six weeks (more frequent use may cause dryness) is a gentle solution that will wash away bacteria that can cause a foul odor, and it will help to prevent infection.

For more information watch the video "Female Anatomy: the Functions of the Female Organs" at www.hersfoundation.org/anatomy.

November 28, 2010 - 9:58pm
(reply to norawcoffey)

Thank you very much this make perfect sense without all the mumbo-jumbo I was reading prior to finding your post. Do I need to wait the full 6 weeks before starting this regime?

March 26, 2013 - 4:08pm
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