Causes of Vaginal Laxity and How Vaginal Rejuvenation Can Help
- By Serre Stick | June 03, 2018
- Filed under: feminine care, well-being
Vaginal laxity is a feeling of looseness of the vagina due to trauma and stretching, or normal aging. Symptoms include decreased sexual satisfaction and inability to orgasm due to loss of sensation. While a common health concern among women, reports show that vaginal laxity is under-reported to health practitioners.
Read on for more information on vaginal laxity and vaginal rejuvenation.
Aging
Aging is natural and just as your skin begins to show signs of this process by becoming thinner or developing wrinkles, aging is bound to take its toll on your vagina as well. Barring childbirth and breastfeeding, and surgeries or medical conditions, the vagina and vulva remain pretty much the same from puberty through to menopause. Once you hit menopause, it all boils down to hormones, in this case, estrogen.
Estrogen, the female sex hormone, is involved in the growth, maintenance, and repair of reproductive tissues. The natural decline in the body’s estrogen levels begins during perimenopause, which is the period of transition before hitting menopause and usually starts in the late 30s.
Low levels of estrogen cause a number of health issues in women like stroke, heart disease, and osteoporosis. Changes to the vagina include lesser secretion of natural lubricants, which in turn lead to dryness and itchiness, thinning of vaginal walls, and loss of elasticity, further contributing to vaginal looseness.
Childbirth
Childbirth brings about a number of changes in a woman’s body, irrespective of having a vaginal delivery or a C-section. When you’re growing a multi-pound baby inside you, your vagina is going to stretch and your pelvic floor muscles are going to take a beating! Also, estrogen levels in the body drop significantly post-childbirth, causing vaginal looseness as described in the previous point.
In the case of a vaginal delivery, the vagina is bound to stretch substantially to accommodate the infant’s head. That being said, the amount of vaginal stretching depends on a number of factors as below:
• Genetics
• Size of the infant
• Circumstances of the birth, for example, duration of labor, use of forceps or vacuum extraction, etc.
• Number of previous deliveries
• Vaginal muscle tone
It’s a myth that the vagina doesn’t become loose in the case of a C-section. However, the degree to which the vagina is affected depends on the circumstances. If you opt for a C-section without pushing beforehand, vaginal stretching is minimal. On the other hand, going through prolonged labor and pushing exerts pressure on the vagina, cervix, perineum, and pelvic floor muscles.
Medical Conditions and Surgeries
Pelvic surgeries, like hysterectomies, can cause pelvic floor muscles and vaginal muscles to become weak. Note that vaginal prolapse leads to displacement of pelvic organs like the bladder and rectum, causing them to push against the walls of the vagina. This condition is different to vaginal laxity, but vaginal vault prolapse can leave women with an enlarged and wide vaginal opening.
Wear and tear of vaginal walls can also be caused by intense physical activity and high levels of stress. In addition to this, women taking long-term medications that interfere with their hormone levels, particularly estrogen, are prone to feel lack of tightness in their vagina.
Vaginal Rejuvenation: Procedures
Vaginal rejuvenation is all about improving the health and vitality of the vaginal walls and muscles and can be done both surgically and non-surgically. Here’s a look at some procedures and methods.
Surgical
There are a number of cosmetic procedures such as revirgination or hymenoplasty, clitoral unhooding, and G-spot amplification that fall under the broad category of vaginal rejuvenation procedures. When it comes to the tightening of vaginal walls and muscles, invasive reconstructive surgery proves to be an effective option.
Surgery can help shorten or change the shape of the vaginal muscles and tissues. Enhancing the fullness of vaginal tissue is also made possible through fat transplantation.
Non-Surgical
Non-surgical vaginal rejuvenation can be in the form of laser treatments where heat is applied to the tissues to stimulate collagen formation, thus resulting in a taut vagina. Use of vaginal fillers and threads is also common to lift tissues and bring about a tightening effect.
A highly recommended non-invasive treatment for vaginal rejuvenation is pelvic floor physiotherapy. This exercise therapy strengthens pelvic floor muscles and is effective for a range of pelvic issues like pelvic prolapse and incontinence. For this reason, pelvic floor strengthening exercises like Kegels are recommended to patients facing vaginal laxity. While Kegel exercises do not tighten the vaginal wall muscles, they help pelvic floor muscles build strength, creating and increasing feelings of vaginal tightness.
Targeting the walls of the vagina is possible with the wide variety of vaginal rejuvenation products like creams, serums, and herbal soaps available in the market. These products not only work to make vaginal wall muscles taut, but also promote healing.
Vaginal Rejuvenation: Benefits
Improved Appearance
Reconstructive surgery or vaginoplasty can make a huge difference to the way your vagina looks. Through this procedure, excess skin and slack tissue can be removed to give patients a younger-looking and aesthetically-pleasing vagina.
Increased Confidence
Having a loose vagina can have a negative impact on a woman’s confidence. With vaginal rejuvenation, women can enjoy increased self-esteem without having to be embarrassed about their private parts. Weakened pelvic floor muscles can also lead to problems such as incontinence, which can be addressed with vaginal rejuvenation, thus improving quality of life.
Greater Satisfaction and Better Sex Life
Improvements in vaginal health can have a direct impact on sexual satisfaction. Vaginal rejuvenation can not only make intercourse more pleasurable for women but for their partners too! Not having to worry about your sexual performance or if you’re able to please your partner or not can take the strain off the relationship, allowing for more intimacy and strengthened bonding.
Conclusion
The vagina has tightly folded muscle tissues that are highly elastic in nature. Just as a rubber band returns to its normal shape after being pulled and released, so does your vagina. As discussed, aging, vaginal births, and pelvic floor trauma remain important risk factors for vaginal laxity.
Performing pelvic floor exercises during pregnancy can greatly help in restoring vitality and strength to vaginal walls and surrounding muscles post delivery. However, new moms need to be patient with their bodies, as recovering normal tightness can take up to 6-12 months. It is noteworthy that completely reversing vaginal laxity with physiotherapy might not be possible for women who have given multiple vaginal births or for women who bear children after 30 or 40, as this is when effects of aging on the vagina already begin to manifest.
On the brighter side, there are numerous vaginal laxity treatments available to women today, making it easy to find an option that suits individual needs.