VERY red, swollen labia minora immediately after intercourse

[edelweiss]

I am so baffled by my condition, which started a couple months ago. Was diagnosed with bacterial vaginosis first. Then a yeast infection which was treated with Diflucan. My nurse practictioner told me to not have intercourse for about 10 days to allow the yeast to clear up. So, I waited the 10 days. Then, after intercourse, I would feel so uncomfortable - itchy, burny, just not right, but the most alarming thing was that my labia minora (especically one side) would turn bright red and swell up like a balloon. Very hard, and swollen and would take several hours for the swelling to subside. This only happens during sex - other than that, I have no symptoms, and no swelling. I went back to a different doctor thinking maybe the yeast infection hadn't cleared up - got another dose of Diflucan, lab results showed NO YEAST, and waited another 2 weeks before trying sex again.

Same thing. Swelled up literally like a balloon - bright red, hard labia, uncomforable feeling at the base of vaginal opening. I have no visible sores, only feel this after/during sex and chlamydia/gonorrhea test are negative. I have not changed partners, have not changed soaps, lubricants, sheets anything different.

Any ideas? I am going for a second opinion with an MD in a couple weeks - but in the meantime, I am freaking out.

[cable4me2007]

Are you using latex condoms, or any type of spermicide?

[edelweiss]

No -

[stuckinabubble]

well, it is not that difficult to not have sex, try doing that for the couple of weeks before you go for the second opinion.  I am sure that it will not be that difficult.  Then do it again before you go that way they know what they are looking at.  It is hard to diagnose something when you can not see the problem.  Do you know partner's sexual history? he could have given you something too.

[alchris]

Hi it is a great possbility if your not using a condom that your partner has a yeast infection  that they keep passing on to you and that person might need to be on medication themselves to stop giving it back and forth.  good luck

[Kalio1]

I think you need to see your doctor. I had a similar problem and eventually found out it was a bartholin cyst. It was hard to diagnose because it only happened when I had sex and the swelling would go down by the time I got to the doctor, but finally they figured it out.

It could be a million things, but bartholin cysts are aggravated by sex and they swell up because the bartholin gland is the gland ( we have quite a few in our vaginas) that secretes the fluid that makes you "wet" so it happens when you have sex.

They don't go away on their own and can get increasingly painful and problematic. See your gynecologist.

[avalongod]

Also check on semen allergies.  Just reading about that recently.

[edelweiss]

Thanks for all the input - went to the doc today - should know something soon, hopefully.  In the meantime, you bet...I'm taking a break from intercourse.

[kathyx82]

hi, my name is CV. I experience the same symptoms you described (hard, swollen labia during and after intercourse, yeast infection diagnosis, I've taken the prescribed medication and the symptoms would still come back). I've got the Pap test  done and the results were   normal. I've also taken the chlamydia, gonorrhea tests - negative. I've seen  2 gynecologists so far and none of them was able to solve this problem (they prescribed the yeast infection medication but... no results). SO, please let me know what diagnosis you've got and how you solved the problem. thank you

[meliC]

hi, about three years back, I experienced this aswell, immediately after intercourse one side of my labia minora and sometimes both became very red hard and swollen like a balloon, then after a few hours it would go away. Soon after I was diagnosed with bacteria vaginosis, but i had forgotten to mention the swelling and discumfort after intercourse to the doctor, however I treated the BV, and everything was fine there after. this is now three years later and randomly after intercourse the same thing happened again, except this time the swelling and redness and pain hasnt gone away and it has been almost 24hrs, I am going to see the doctor sometime hopefully within the week but just to give me a piece of mind for now, could you tell me what your diagnosis was and how you got rid of it, if that's the case?, i am terrified!

[Y_B]

I am relieved that I am not the only one that has had trouble with this situation. I have the same exact symptoms, but by the time I go to the doctor, the swelling disappears.

I hope all goes well, and we can find the source of this problem, untilthen...no sex.

[brittleigh02]

I have the same problem.

After sex my labia swells up. It is swollen all the way around except the front toward my clitoris area, the rest of the labia is swollen, hard, extrememly uncomfortable I have a hard time walking. It is very frightening to me.
Do any of the rest of you have pain or any bleeding during intercourse?
I do and I wonder if it's related to this.
This problem has been ongoing for me for about a year however I just let it go away on its on...
at the gyno I mentioned the pain during intercourse but forgot to tell about the swelling i guess because it wasnt affecting me at the time.
I agree its hard to make it to the doc while the swelling is there...
If anyone finds out what our problem is....please let me know!

Good luck to all

[crankypants]

wow.
good to know i'm not alone on this one.
i've had the exact same problems. it was so bad, i couldn't walk for four days. it didn't help that i kept having to leave the house and try to walk around and not tell anyone why i was wobbling.
but yah, the first time it happened was with a condom, which i don't usually use, so the doctor thought it was just a latex allergy.
the next time was without so then i started getting freaked out.
i did the whole yeast infection treatment, and it didn't help.
i even tried seeing a naturopath about it, and they said that there are tests that aren't normally done, that are much more in depth, but you have to pay out of pocket for them (i'm from canada. health care is usually free) and she told me a story about a girl who had similar symptoms, tested negative for everything, got the test, and it turned out she had some small, unusual bacterial infection that doesn't come up on standard tests. they treated her with borax and she was fine.
i opted to just get the borax treatment, because they told me that's what the treatment would be regardless of the diagnosis. so i did that (2 weeks borax suppositories, 1 week vitamin E capsules, 2 weeks acidophilus) and unfortunately, it didn't help.
2 doctors and a naturopath all gave up on me. they started saying that maybe it was psychosomatic.
i think that's ********.
after 7 years of having sex i decide to mentally make my labia swell up until i can't walk?
anyhow, my current boyfriend has a smaller penis and we use coconut oil as lube (no creepy chemicals, and it helps kill yeast!)
and i only get mild swelling and discomfort, most of the time.

so... like everyone else,
i hope someone figures this out for us :P

[crankypants]

oops!!! i didn't mean borax *duh*
i meant boric acid.
hahaha. sorry bout that

[babygurl90]

well i to have the same problem except this is the first time it ever happen to me.....after sex my labia became very swollen and red, when i touch it, its a little painful im so scared and dont knov what to do can some one help me please

[rainy_day]

I have been having the exact same problem for 2 years now. I have had the same boyfriend for 3 years and it makes me sad that we cant make love anymore without me feeling pain. I have been to too many doctors to count and I feel like giving up. I have even cried in the doctors office but they still cant figure out what it is. Please if anyone figures it out, let us know whats really wrong. I wish so badly to have sex again. I am only 22, there should be so many more years of good sex left for me! Help!!!!!

P.S. I usually either shower or put ice on myself afterwards and it makes the pain subside a little.

[killa603]

this just happened to me tonight not the first time but maybe third and its really bad i started freakin out because the guy was very! little very very little. and i didnt see a reason for it to have happened and this is the worst of all times. but i also wanted to let you guys know that i heard that it could have something to do with one of the glands that make you wet was damaged during sex so its gettin agervatated and not produsing enough Wettness for your labia to not get raw. and also if anyone has any idea why one would get boils on the outside labia. my doc is freakin stupid first she told me in was a gland and then an ingrown hair and then after it was boils and there was nothing anyone could do about it but to not shave and iv stopped shavein as much but their still comin and going as they please so if anyone has any idea let me know

[rainy_day]

Hi everyone, its me again. I think I may have figured it out!!!! There is no guarantee yet, but I think we may have a condition called vaginismus! I finally found a doctor that told me about this and I've been reading up on it........This is the closest Ive ever come to finding something with all the right symptoms! Aaaaand you can cure yourself!!!

I highly recommend looking up vaginismus on the internet and checking to see if you think that this might be what it is. Here is a good site that I liked, just copy and paste the link in:

http://chealth.canoe.ca/channel_section_details.asp?text_id=1804&channel_id=7&relation_id=25710

Let me know if you think this could be it.......I really hope it is and we can all go back to having good sex!!!! Good Luck

[rainy_day]

Oh no...... I didnt get the whole link in so maybe try this one instead:

www.vaginismus.com

Happy reading!

[terry757]

yeah i seem to be having to the same problem. it started out as an itchy irritation tha began swelling up one t\side then the other it started yeasterday and it seems to be getting worse i have a hard time walking and spend most of my time in the tub the swelling has not gone down can anybody help

[dolly_mixture]

Hi all, i have had this problem for the last few years, i have taken upto a year out of sex, left my partner, been tested for everything you possibly can and then i decide to attempt again only a week ago with an ex from 15 years ago and bob's your uncle, swollen, red, sore... sheer hell. i have seen gynae's galore, sex clinics, doctors and no-one seems to have any answers for me. I had a child 4 years ago after being told i wouldn't and then developed this issue when he was about 18 months when i regained a relationship. I put it down to his birth causing this as it was pretty traumatic down there.

I wish us all the luck out there to resolve this problem as i cannot face even seeing my ex again as 15 years ago i was a nymph and enjoying every second now i can't handle a second!

[miss48]

Reading this makes me really concerned about if this is fatal or life long. It happened to me for the first time last night and I'm only 17! I noticed pain because I wasn't as "wet" as usual so I wanted to stop, but then I went to see what was wrong and I noticed these same exact symptoms that everyone else is talking about. I'm really worried!!! Has anyone discovered a cure?

[monica219]

OMG this happened to me last night too! Im 26 and 8 weeks pregnant- Ive had the same sex partner for 3 years and all of a suddenly after sex my right labia swelled up like a balloon- i iced it and its back to normal- but im scared to have sex- because that freaked me out!! I think it might be because of some wetness gland- because it seemed like i couldnt get wet- but we had had intercourse anyway using natural lube- (saliva) lol
Never again! If anyone can come up with a cure- please share-

[starzc05]

wow guys it is amazing how many of us share the same symptoms and no one has figured out what it is yet! to be straightforward i have had alot of sex and this never happened to me until about a year ago and it completly freaked me out! it didnt happen again until about 2 weeks ago and then again last nite..it is really frustrating. The only difference in mine is that i never experience any pain, only severe swelling. Has anyone else had just swelling? and i also noticed that i am not as wet down there either so maybe it does have something to do with the glands..has anyone had that proven?

[balt345]

It's weird. I've had a lot of sex over the past couple of years. I was with the same partner for 1 1/2 years and never had this problem once. After we broke up I had another partner, never had the problem either. I had then slept with someone else and the swelling occurred and I freaked out., It ended up going away a couple days later. The next partner I had was for a while, and this never happened again. Then recently I had a new partner and two times this has occurred. I wish I knew what was going on.