Well I wished I had visited this page a long time ago... I had a labia minora reduction September 2010, within 3 days there was a hole in the left labia and the right side had come away completely. There was also a smell and it was so very itchy. After a complete panic and not being able to get through to anyone that would help or even let me speak to my surgeon I went to A & E where I sat for 9 hrs only to be told they would not be fixing it and sending me home with antibiotics and a gaping open wound. When I eventualy managed to speak to the surgeon he told me he wouldnt even look at it for 3 months!! I was so angry and upset and thought I must have the worst luck ever. When the 3 month post appointment came round I couldnt bring myself to go, I just resigned myself to the fact I had been butchered. Then earlier this year I decided to go back and see the surgeon, I just thought I'm only 29 and I'm single and I do not want to live with this mess!! So I went in for my revision on the 13th may (9 days ago) and when I came out I resigned myself to the sofa and didn't move for 3 days for fear of busting a stitch, I also demanded antibiotics to prevent any infection. 6 days later I was over the moon, still in one piece and hardly any pain.. I was so excited, it had worked?? NOT!!! Bring on day 7 and i feel pain in my left labia, panic sets in, and by the end of the day the left side has completely come away and I'm in agony... As its now the weekend I cant do anything other than go to A & E, which I know from experience is pointless.. I've cried for 48 hrs and cant stop, how can it come away after so long!!! I did everything to prevent this, antibiotics, keeping the area clean and dry and not moving!!! aaaggghhhh.... Can I go thru this again? the pain? the time off work? my son having to stay at my mams because I can hardly walk enough to look after him? So much for the 5 day recovery eh!! And as for the aftercare, well... Its shocking!!! Dont do it, given the cahnce again I doubt I would... I had mine done on the NHS and I wonder if I had paid to go private, would it have worked? would the surgeon have taken more care? who knows...
i had my labiaplasty in 2003 and it was the worst decision of my life. I have been in pain since the day I had this done. My labia was not actually too bad just slightly longer on the left hand side. When I woke from the operation I actually gasped I was in that much pain. I had a third degree tear having my son years earlier and it was much worse than that. My sex life is completely ruined and being in constant pain is so depressing. If someone offered my £1,000,000.00 to have this done I would not. My labia, instead of having a little trim, was completely amputed! My marriage has been under so much strain as I do not want sex as it hurts so bably. I have been back to this man on numerous occasions and he does not know why I am having so much pain as I have healed fine. I now am having botox injections in my vulva by another gyn/ob and this helps somewhat but very painful having them done. Dont know where to go or what to do. Am so damm miserable.
I can only begin to imagine the horror that you poor women have suffered through negligent and entirely illogical surgery. The injustice of what has been done to you makes me feel physically sick. I read far too much on the internet, a read a lot of books, I am also a therapist so I hear a lot of sad stories, but yours affected me deeply.
I know the shame that you felt about your vulvas (before your surgery), I know how it can become a complete obsessions at times, and no matter how confident/attractive you feel in other areas of your life, this secret of having 'large' or 'deformed' or 'enlarged' (as they said on Channel 4 'Embarrassing Bodies' a while ago) labia is always lurking at the back of your mind.
It is a terrible way to feel - that you are simply not good enough the way you are, that the most sacred most unbelievably powerful part of your body is the part that you despise, the part that disgusts you. But this part is you, it is who you are.
I have had this issue of believing entirely incorrectly that my inner lips are in some way wrong, or not normal, and on top of that hideously ugly. After all even the very name suggests that something is wrong 'inner labia' - well mine and roughly 50% of all the women on the planet have inner labia that is in actual fact very much 'out'.
At school diagrams of vulvas in text books always showed them entirely unlike mine with very small practically non-existent inner labia, we heard all about boy's penises and how they lengthen and thicken and their testicles grow and drop....i don't ever remember being told that effectively the exact same thing happens to a girls external genitalia. I read way too may magazines as a teenager More, Just 17, Mizz etc etc... I'd even steal my Mum's Company or Cosmopolitan, which was full of articles about sex or having the best orgasm of your life or giving him the best oral sex he has ever had....but I don't remember this issue ever being brought up. We don't often have to share showers at school as boys often do, we don't urinate in front of other women as boys do, and we tend not to buy pornographic magazines or watch 'real' porn, (by real i mean unairbrushed, uncensored, that show the massive amount of variation in this part of the body) unlike most boys/men.
As girls we have no point of reference and the media is entiely misleading.
Thank god for the internet is all I can say! When i was a teenager there was no one to talk to about this sort of thing - now we can reach out to the whole world. From my hours and hours of research on the internet over the years, these are some of the things that I have found which are undeniable, they have helped me to realise my vulva is perfect, that I owe it so much as - it gives me unparallelled pleasure, it gave me two beautiful children, it really is the essence of who i am as a woman, and for most of my adult life I rejected it. Well not anymore
1. Having inner labia that protrude out, or a lopsided, or are different colours is completely NORMAL. Wrinkly, frilly, long and flat, short and plump, thicker at the ends, or in the middle, small, medium or large clitoris, the possible variations on a theme are probably endless. it is ALL NORMAL. Please search the internet for pictures of labia - a good cross section of labia and it is plain to see that this is NORMAL. Type in 'vulva'. Or 'large inner labia'. I cant stress this enough.
2. It would seem a great deal - a majority - of men PREFER larger labia, for obvious reasons I guess - their usual response is something like "more to play with and suck and lick, it is so sexy and feminine and beautiful". If they don't prefer larger labia then they generally just don't care, they don't have a preference, they understand how varied lips can be, they are just happy to be down there in the first place.
3. But, as with ALL things in life there are some men who do not prefer larger inner labia, but again I have found they are most definitely in the minority and most of the time appear to be young, inexperienced and misguided believing that age and how sexually active you are has some bearing on the size of your lips - it does not. Your lips are GENETIC, like your nose or your face or your eyes, or legs or your colon or liver! this is JUST another part of your body. So do not get surgery on the basis of what men think, as not only is this irrelevant, you would also be deadly wrong.
4. The way you feel about your vulva is really the way you feel about YOU. This IS about low self esteem. So having the operation is not going to guarantee your happiness and confidence. When something about yourself actually repulses you, when you are so ashamed you want to cry ,then you need to be looking INSIDE.
For anybody suffering with this issue - either a crippling embarrassment of their vulva, or dealing with the devastating physical, emotional and mental repercussions of surgery, i Just want you you to know that you CAN get past this. That you must stop with the guilt you feel, and the self hatred you feel. I know how hard it can seem how insurmountable, but you MUST try to start loving yourself, and your precious body. Blaming yourself is just a continuation of the emotional abuse you inflicted on yourself when you told yourself again and again and again; 'I am ugly' 'No one will want me', 'I am unlovable' 'I am alone' 'I'm disgusting', 'God, I hate myself'.
If you have had the operation then now is the time to start taking care of yourself, being kind to yourself, using that inner voice we all have to say comforting and empowering things to yourself, rather than thinking thoughts of hatred and anger towards yourself.
You can heal yourself. If anybody is interested in taking back control of their life, in starting a new journey, enjoying a new relationship with themselves then I would so recommend a book by a fantastic woman; Louise Hay called You can Heal Your Life. If you let this book in, it will change your life.
For those of you suffering from these terrible feelings, and thoughts, and regrets about decisions you have made. You have effectively suffered a trauma, not only physical but emotional too. You can release this hurt and these self destructive emotions through a therapy called Emotional Freedom Techniques. It is similar to acupuncture but with no needles, and the results are incredibly rapid compared to other therapies such as counselling or CBT. It is used successfully for issues such as post traumatic stress disorder suffered by war veterans, or rape/abuse victims, it also incredibly effective for low self esteem and feelings of guilt, helplessness, self-hatred.
It is so easy you can learn how to apply it yourself in a couple of minutes, there are loads of youtube videos out there which demonstrate how to use EFT. You can get the manual for FREE which is all you need to get started working on removing some of these negative emotions and beliefs. Gary Craig who developed EFT has always handed out the manual as a free download so that everybody could have access to this simple, yet so so powerful therapy. Go to EFT Universe.com for the free manual, plus hundreds of case studies. There are also a lot of books on Amazon and more and more EFT therapists are being trained. You can even do EFT over the phone so if you did want the help fo a professional you wouldnt even have to leave the comfort of your home.
It is a relatively new therapy (last 20 years or so) but I know it is used in hospitals with patients or relatives of patients who have gone through some emotional trauma, and various psychotherapeutic settings. I myself have had many many clients display amazing u-turns thanks to EFT - moving from feeling their life holds no hope or meaning into feeling a sense of peace, and 'oneness' and a knowing that they are 'ok' that everything will be 'ok', that there is hope.
EFT is also incredibly effective and again rapid in dealing with physical pain, especially chronic pain as is described on here from the after effects of surgery.
It makes me feel incredibly sad and entirely helpless to think of the emotional and mental pain that women on here are suffering. Please just know that you are still beautiful, you are still you, don't continue to hide such a special part of you away in shame, your body deserves nothing but your love, respect and gratitude. It is never too late to start really loving your body, it is a simple case of changes the thoughts you think, and it is simple, anyone can learn to be more aware of the thoughts they are thinking. This over time changes your beliefs, which in turn changes how you feel about your vulva, yourself, your life, the world in general. You can make a difference in your life.
I know the shame that you felt about your vulvas (before your surgery), I know how it can become a complete obsessions at times, and no matter how confident/attractive you feel in other areas of your life, this secret of having 'large' or 'deformed' or 'enlarged' (as they said on Channel 4 'Embarrassing Bodies' a while ago) labia is always lurking at the back of your mind.
It is a terrible way to feel - that you are simply not good enough the way you are, that the most sacred most unbelievably powerful part of your body is the part that you despise, the part that disgusts you. But this part is you, it is who you are.
I have had this issue of believing entirely incorrectly that my inner lips are in some way wrong, or not normal, and on top of that hideously ugly. After all even the very name suggests that something is wrong 'inner labia' - well mine and roughly 50% of all the women on the planet have inner labia that is in actual fact very much 'out'.
At school diagrams of vulvas in text books always showed them entirely unlike mine with very small practically non-existent inner labia, we heard all about boy's penises and how they lengthen and thicken and their testicles grow and drop....i don't ever remember being told that effectively the exact same thing happens to a girls external genitalia. I read way too may magazines as a teenager More, Just 17, Mizz etc etc... I'd even steal my Mum's Company or Cosmopolitan, which was full of articles about sex or having the best orgasm of your life or giving him the best oral sex he has ever had....but I don't remember this issue ever being brought up. We don't often have to share showers at school as boys often do, we don't urinate in front of other women as boys do, and we tend not to buy pornographic magazines or watch 'real' porn, (by real i mean unairbrushed, uncensored, that show the massive amount of variation in this part of the body) unlike most boys/men.
As girls we have no point of reference and the media is entiely misleading.
Thank god for the internet is all I can say! When i was a teenager there was no one to talk to about this sort of thing - now we can reach out to the whole world. From my hours and hours of research on the internet over the years, these are some of the things that I have found which are undeniable, they have helped me to realise my vulva is perfect, that I owe it so much as - it gives me unparallelled pleasure, it gave me two beautiful children, it really is the essence of who i am as a woman, and for most of my adult life I rejected it. Well not anymore
1. Having inner labia that protrude out, or a lopsided, or are different colours is completely NORMAL. Wrinkly, frilly, long and flat, short and plump, thicker at the ends, or in the middle, small, medium or large clitoris, the possible variations on a theme are probably endless. it is ALL NORMAL. Please search the internet for pictures of labia - a good cross section of labia and it is plain to see that this is NORMAL. Type in 'vulva'. Or 'large inner labia'. I cant stress this enough.
2. It would seem a great deal - a majority - of men PREFER larger labia, for obvious reasons I guess - their usual response is something like "more to play with and suck and lick, it is so sexy and feminine and beautiful". If they don't prefer larger labia then they generally just don't care, they don't have a preference, they understand how varied lips can be, they are just happy to be down there in the first place.
3. But, as with ALL things in life there are some men who do not prefer larger inner labia, but again I have found they are most definitely in the minority and most of the time appear to be young, inexperienced and misguided believing that age and how sexually active you are has some bearing on the size of your lips - it does not. Your lips are GENETIC, like your nose or your face or your eyes, or legs or your colon or liver! this is JUST another part of your body. So do not get surgery on the basis of what men think, as not only is this irrelevant, you would also be deadly wrong.
4. The way you feel about your vulva is really the way you feel about YOU. This IS about low self esteem. So having the operation is not going to guarantee your happiness and confidence. When something about yourself actually repulses you, when you are so ashamed you want to cry ,then you need to be looking INSIDE.
For anybody suffering with this issue - either a crippling embarrassment of their vulva, or dealing with the devastating physical, emotional and mental repercussions of surgery, i Just want you you to know that you CAN get past this. That you must stop with the guilt you feel, and the self hatred you feel. I know how hard it can seem how insurmountable, but you MUST try to start loving yourself, and your precious body. Blaming yourself is just a continuation of the emotional abuse you inflicted on yourself when you told yourself again and again and again; 'I am ugly' 'No one will want me', 'I am unlovable' 'I am alone' 'I'm disgusting', 'God, I hate myself'.
If you have had the operation then now is the time to start taking care of yourself, being kind to yourself, using that inner voice we all have to say comforting and empowering things to yourself, rather than thinking thoughts of hatred and anger towards yourself.
You can heal yourself. If anybody is interested in taking back control of their life, in starting a new journey, enjoying a new relationship with themselves then I would so recommend a book by a fantastic woman; Louise Hay called You can Heal Your Life. If you let this book in, it will change your life.
For those of you suffering from these terrible feelings, and thoughts, and regrets about decisions you have made. You have effectively suffered a trauma, not only physical but emotional too. You can release this hurt and these self destructive emotions through a therapy called Emotional Freedom Techniques. It is similar to acupuncture but with no needles, and the results are incredibly rapid compared to other therapies such as counselling or CBT. It is used successfully for issues such as post traumatic stress disorder suffered by war veterans, or rape/abuse victims, it also incredibly effective for low self esteem and feelings of guilt, helplessness, self-hatred.
It is so easy you can learn how to apply it yourself in a couple of minutes, there are loads of youtube videos out there which demonstrate how to use EFT. You can get the manual for FREE which is all you need to get started working on removing some of these negative emotions and beliefs. Gary Craig who developed EFT has always handed out the manual as a free download so that everybody could have access to this simple, yet so so powerful therapy. Go to EFT Universe.com for the free manual, plus hundreds of case studies. There are also a lot of books on Amazon and more and more EFT therapists are being trained. You can even do EFT over the phone so if you did want the help fo a professional you wouldnt even have to leave the comfort of your home.
It is a relatively new therapy (last 20 years or so) but I know it is used in hospitals with patients or relatives of patients who have gone through some emotional trauma, and various psychotherapeutic settings. I myself have had many many clients display amazing u-turns thanks to EFT - moving from feeling their life holds no hope or meaning into feeling a sense of peace, and 'oneness' and a knowing that they are 'ok' that everything will be 'ok', that there is hope.
EFT is also incredibly effective and again rapid in dealing with physical pain, especially chronic pain as is described on here from the after effects of surgery.
It makes me feel incredibly sad and entirely helpless to think of the emotional and mental pain that women on here are suffering. Please just know that you are still beautiful, you are still you, don't continue to hide such a special part of you away in shame, your body deserves nothing but your love, respect and gratitude. It is never too late to start really loving your body, it is a simple case of changes the thoughts you think, and it is simple, anyone can learn to be more aware of the thoughts they are thinking. This over time changes your beliefs, which in turn changes how you feel about your vulva, yourself, your life, the world in general. You can make a difference in your life.
Hi, did you ever go through with a lawsuit? I'm thinking about it right now. I contacted a lawyer and am meeting with anothe doctor in a couple weeks. It's horrible and I have a panic attick almost every single time I look at it down there. He basically removed them completely. then went up to the top of my vagina, leaving clumps of skin, even though he was supposed to stay away from the top and just do the lips that hung down. Then he said he'd be no where near my clitoris when it is swolen and the bottom is now attached to where the labia used to be. (that is the worst part-it's PAINFUL). Then, he did the opening and that's filled with scar tissue and is very very painful. I cannot do much.
Can you update me on yours? Sorry to be so specific. But, this is insane and I NEVER in a million years thought I'd be here in this position. I don't even want to think about sex or showing anyone ever ever again. Horrible.
Hi there. I know this thread is old but I have just found it. I am hoping someone is still reading and responding. I had my labiaplasty four weeks ago and I cannot walk or even roll over in bed! The first week I was on so many pain killers I don't even remember the whole week. Week 2, I was absolutely perfect but still in minor pain. I took Aleve instead of prescription pills. At the end of week 2/ beginning of week 3, my stitches started spliting and I started swelling. It looked like a hotdog then a stitch, hotdog then a stitch. I called my doctor (I'm in Texas) and she said it was fine since it didn't smell, ooze, or I wasn't having a temp. This whole time I stayed in bed, not even going into my kitchen to make meals. Yesterday, even though I have been getting steadily worse, I went to get my hair done, I was so tired of having dark roots. I didn't thnk it was a big deal since I would be sitting the whole time. I sat at an angle as to not put pressure on my labia. Today I am so swollen. I cannot move, literally. If I lie on my stomach the swelling is so much it presses against the bed. Even my butt hurts which has never been an issue. My husband is a doctor (but not in this field) and he says it doesn't look infected just insanely swollen. I am in bed with one leg on the bed and one leg up knee bent. I've been religious about applying Neosporin with pain relief. Has anyone ever been good and then started to get worse day by day? I have had four children and surgery before, I think I am pretty tough as far as pain. I'm 29 and in really great health so I thought I would heal quickly. When I look in the mirror it is a mangled mess. I can't tell where one part ends and the other starts. It is disgusting looking and burns like crazy. Does anyone have any thoughts?
Hi nonstopmrs,
How are you doing today? I feel horrible for you.
My story is this... I'm the post before you.
I got it done August 24th. Worst pain I have ever felt for an entire week straight. I could not function and nearly passed out countless times. Like you, I could not physicially move from bed for anything but the bathroom and in order to go to the doctor I was completely sideways with a pillow between my legs. Of course, I needed to be drugged in order to do that.
I had the old fashioned stitches... talk about the worst pain you will ever feel.... I have been scarred for life after that experience. She tugged and ripped out almost twenty stitches and I thought honest to God that my heart was going to jump through my chest or I was going to have some sort of severe panic attack. I cannot describe or emphasize enough the pain I felt...
Now the only good part of going through that pain... was that the pain I felt for the first week straight had diminished significantly. The stitches were my first problem.
However, now that I am able to walk and run small a little, I have different pain.
I have one bit of advice to give you if you have not already... TAKE PICTURES! And take different angles and distances.
I am persuing a lawsuit as we speak because of the anxiety that he has caused me, the unecessary pain, and he also did it incorrectly, which I have discussed with another doctor and he has confirmed it. I know having a husband as a doctor probably makes you not want to ever go in that direction, but if there is something wrong here, you need to know and you need to document and you need to get it fixed for your safety and health, both mentally and physically.
My perineum was cut, when you say your butt, do you mean cheeks or inside? I still cannot have sex after 8 weeks. I tried two times and the perineum split open. I NEVER should have had that touched.
He completely removed my labia, leaving me with nothing, and they actually are pertruding inward now... you seem to have a different problem though right? Yours are there... but they are badly swollen?
My third problem is... my clitoris has been somewhat permantly altered considering he chopped off everything except the two tips of the labia, that connect to the clitoris area and hood area. It's painful and extremely sensitive in a negative way, and I'm having more anxiety attacks now because I do not think my orgasm is ever going to be the same because of what he did. It's the most scary and horrific thought when it comes to my body, bc that's the one area you were given and I chose to go mess with it... but I feel we should not have to worry about that because we are supposed to be able to trust the doctor.
And also... how far up did your doctor go? I know it's weird but I can send a picture of mine... I'm so used to it now after sending pictures to other people. I just use a fake email that I made up. So, let me know.
I kind of want an opinion for myself as well.
He went up past my clitoris up towards the top of my vagina, leaving scar tissue there.
I thought I was literally getting a labia REDUCTION... not perineum... not REMOVAL... not affecting my clitoris... not leaving me with pain.
After 8 weeks I still cannot wipe, I dap and use the bottle
I cannot have sex
I cannot do anything like biking or regular aerobic exercises
I cannot even look at my vagina without having an anxiety attack. He is causing my so much mental anguish I cannot even describe it.
I'm sorry you are going through this. It sounds scary.
Mine is a nightmare and yours sound like quite the nightmare as well.
We don't deserve to be going through this.
I think you should definitely see a doctor or I have a woman's name who has been helping me through this whole ordeal that I met through a website concerning the surgery, she can help you as well.
How are you doing today? I feel horrible for you.
My story is this... I'm the post before you.
I got it done August 24th. Worst pain I have ever felt for an entire week straight. I could not function and nearly passed out countless times. Like you, I could not physicially move from bed for anything but the bathroom and in order to go to the doctor I was completely sideways with a pillow between my legs. Of course, I needed to be drugged in order to do that.
I had the old fashioned stitches... talk about the worst pain you will ever feel.... I have been scarred for life after that experience. She tugged and ripped out almost twenty stitches and I thought honest to God that my heart was going to jump through my chest or I was going to have some sort of severe panic attack. I cannot describe or emphasize enough the pain I felt...
Now the only good part of going through that pain... was that the pain I felt for the first week straight had diminished significantly. The stitches were my first problem.
However, now that I am able to walk and run small a little, I have different pain.
I have one bit of advice to give you if you have not already... TAKE PICTURES! And take different angles and distances.
I am persuing a lawsuit as we speak because of the anxiety that he has caused me, the unecessary pain, and he also did it incorrectly, which I have discussed with another doctor and he has confirmed it. I know having a husband as a doctor probably makes you not want to ever go in that direction, but if there is something wrong here, you need to know and you need to document and you need to get it fixed for your safety and health, both mentally and physically.
My perineum was cut, when you say your butt, do you mean cheeks or inside? I still cannot have sex after 8 weeks. I tried two times and the perineum split open. I NEVER should have had that touched.
He completely removed my labia, leaving me with nothing, and they actually are pertruding inward now... you seem to have a different problem though right? Yours are there... but they are badly swollen?
My third problem is... my clitoris has been somewhat permantly altered considering he chopped off everything except the two tips of the labia, that connect to the clitoris area and hood area. It's painful and extremely sensitive in a negative way, and I'm having more anxiety attacks now because I do not think my orgasm is ever going to be the same because of what he did. It's the most scary and horrific thought when it comes to my body, bc that's the one area you were given and I chose to go mess with it... but I feel we should not have to worry about that because we are supposed to be able to trust the doctor.
And also... how far up did your doctor go? I know it's weird but I can send a picture of mine... I'm so used to it now after sending pictures to other people. I just use a fake email that I made up. So, let me know.
I kind of want an opinion for myself as well.
He went up past my clitoris up towards the top of my vagina, leaving scar tissue there.
I thought I was literally getting a labia REDUCTION... not perineum... not REMOVAL... not affecting my clitoris... not leaving me with pain.
After 8 weeks I still cannot wipe, I dap and use the bottle
I cannot have sex
I cannot do anything like biking or regular aerobic exercises
I cannot even look at my vagina without having an anxiety attack. He is causing my so much mental anguish I cannot even describe it.
I'm sorry you are going through this. It sounds scary.
Mine is a nightmare and yours sound like quite the nightmare as well.
We don't deserve to be going through this.
I think you should definitely see a doctor or I have a woman's name who has been helping me through this whole ordeal that I met through a website concerning the surgery, she can help you as well.
Hi, did you ever persue a lawsuit? I'm in the process now. They mentioned the mental anguish is a part of it.
I was completely botched. It's horrible. Sex is torture, and I've only been able to try twice.
Anyone you ever hear for about it?
Quote:
I had my labioplasty four days ago, and I can't tell you how sorry I'am... the surgeon removed all od my inner labia! all! all it's left is clitoris.. and it looks terrible now... so unatrual! I don't feel much pain, but there's a bit discomfort... and I don't know what to do.. big labia was problem for whole my life, and i was so happy to get this done... who would known that it is gone end up like this.Is there any help now? what can I do? I read on the net, that some doctor in america is doing labioplasty revisions, but that expensive, and I'm afraid that there no tissue lest to do that... what is my sex life going to look like... I have wonderfull boyfriend, and I am so afraid to lose my life... I'm desperate :(
You said you have a monderfull boyfriend so where's the problem?
He's going to love your little patch of heaven, no matter what.
I just think it's a shame that professionals like doctors and surgeons do such a poor job of communicating with their patients before doing potentially life changing alterations. This isn't the 50s when you got what the doctor gave you and liked it. There are choices in most procedures now and the victim should be made aware of them.
He's going to love your little patch of heaven, no matter what.
I just think it's a shame that professionals like doctors and surgeons do such a poor job of communicating with their patients before doing potentially life changing alterations. This isn't the 50s when you got what the doctor gave you and liked it. There are choices in most procedures now and the victim should be made aware of them.
i'm aware of everything now... but it didn't even cross my mind that this can happen... i went on this surgery thinking it couldn't be much worse that it's already is.. that was complex for many years... and then this... doctor that preformed operation is supposedly one of the best plastic surgeon(what a mistake!) i never could think that it can go wrong... is there a way out... or is it water under bridge? try to live with this now...
I feel that should have been discussed with you before doing anything. He/she should have talked to you about how much to take off and what you expected to look like when it was done.
I don't know if they can do much now to reconstruct some lips or if they can, if it would be worth it to you. If you are not in any discomfort it might be good to leave it alone. No lips are good licking for your boy friend, smooth is nice too. My wife was born without lips and I like that fine. So it may not be as unnatural as you think. Some people are born without lips. She has no discernable clitoris either but it's hiding under the skin there somewhere, I can still make her wriggle and moan. At least you have your clitoris. Did he mess with the hood over that too?
Have you shared with your BF yet? How does he feel about the new look? I bet he's going to love you any way.
I don't know if they can do much now to reconstruct some lips or if they can, if it would be worth it to you. If you are not in any discomfort it might be good to leave it alone. No lips are good licking for your boy friend, smooth is nice too. My wife was born without lips and I like that fine. So it may not be as unnatural as you think. Some people are born without lips. She has no discernable clitoris either but it's hiding under the skin there somewhere, I can still make her wriggle and moan. At least you have your clitoris. Did he mess with the hood over that too?
Have you shared with your BF yet? How does he feel about the new look? I bet he's going to love you any way.
Thank you for your words.. I told my BF that it isn't came out quite as i expect it would.. he said that I'm over reacting... but I'm not, am I? and the doctor should definitly talk to me about outcome of this surgery... on the internet there a lot of different ways to to this procedure, but total amputation!? I hope I'm going to be better after a while, but right now I just want to turn clock back... and I'm scared how would it affect my further life... beacuse i don't see a way out of here.. damage is done :(
Just FYI total amputation of the labia minora is never okay. If your labia are totally amputated, your surgery has been botched. Report to your state medical board, surgery center or hospital where surgery was done, and pursue a lawsuit while you still have a chance. Ob-gyn and plastic surgery residencies do not provide the adequate training, education and experience required to perform these procedures. Professional societies have failed to establish standards and there is no adequate process for surgical privileging when it comes to these procedures. These surgeries have been around since the mid seventies and reasonably about 50000 are performed per year in the u.s. By now. Unless people get educated and start speaking up when they are hurt it is not going to get better. And please do your research on anatomy and sexual function. There is a recent article by c.c. Yang called "innervation of the labia minora: more than just skin folds." there is another study in the BMOG "clinical characteristics of women seeking labia surgery" (or something like that) that shows the labial dimensions of women seeking surgery under the NHS are not statistically differentiable from those of normal women. They do not say that but they show the distribution, and you can do a t-test to compare the data with another study, published by the same group "female genital appearance: normality unfolds" also the classic text human sexual response by masters and Johnson published in 1966 adequately addresses the role of the labia moors and clitoral hood in sexual function. So far studies have neglected to address the biomechanical function of the labia minora and clitoral hood in facilitating clitoral stimulation, but m&j, hite, and sherfey highlighted this point. If you've got a mechanical engineer or physicist boyfriend he will get it. So there's not just nerve loss there's also functional loss due to distortion of structural dynamics especially when the normal bifurcation of labia into clitoral hood and frenulum are disrupted. I am currently working on a paper. I may eventually find a way to post it somewhere. I maybe could also use other accounts of complete amputation to demonstrate the prevalence of the problem, especially if in Texas. I'm the girl who posted the ridiculously long post from June. I studied biomedical engineering at wash u so I'm pretty smart and I plan on making people listen to me no matter what it takes. I was also took all premed requirements with a 4.0 science gpa. Obviously I don't want to be a doctor anymore and generally think the healthcare system is a complete trainwreck. Currently I'm trying to contact head of patient safety at Baylor hospital. So far I've been pretty chicken sh*t about this but hopefully I'm getting better. Though recently when I explained to my ob gyn that according to the AMA she has an ethical obligation to report errors of incompetent colleagues and that suggesting sexual problems will resolve when someone falls in love isn't medically sound, she kicked me out of her office, despite every effort on my part to remain tactful. Anyway, do not rely on other doctors to adequately diagnose your problem. Also if you ate looking into the possibility of repair, go to doctor alter in L.A. At this point I personally wouldn't trust anyone based on the content the medical literature but he would be your best bet. Especially if your clitoral hood is still intact, reconstruction of completely amputated labia is still possible. Personally though, 7 years later I care nothing about aesthetics and everything about function, and having reviewed his published technique think it too risky considering my clitoral hood was already reduced in such a way that seems to have lead to injury of the right branch of the dorsal nerve of the clitoris. Anyway, there are a lot of things that can and must be done to make these surgeries safer. I'm writing a sort of case study, causal analysis, and proposal for patient safety strategies to ensure adequate informed consent, more responsible privileging, and increased education and training in female vulvar anatomy and function for ob gyn residents and any plastic surgeons performing these surgeries. Just FYI my dad has been listed as one of the best plastic surgeons in Dallas for years and top docs in Texas or whatever, but he doesn't know the first thing about vulvar anatomy and wouldn't know how to perform a labiaplasty. Yet he could easily get permissions to do so at any surgery center or hospital. So get a good lawyer and take no prisoners. There is no nice way to get people to listen. Trust me I've been trying. This has been going on for years and nothing has been done about it. Unqualified surgeons should not be performing labiaplasties. It's very simple. My surgeon is supposed to be one of the best on guns at Baylor. He amputated ALL of my labia and some of my clitoral hood by accident without even realizing it until one year later when he examined me. He still denies performing a clitoral hood reduction despite visible scars and confirmation from other surgeons. He is currently teaching residents at Baylor hospital despite clearly having non understanding of female anatomy and sexual function. He did not discuss any risks specific to labiaplasty before my sugary. I was barely 18 and a virgin at the time. Tell me that's not screwed up. Oh he's also on the board at aetna. My point is standard ob gyn surgical skills do not translate to proficiency in labiaplasty technique. In addition, none of the ob guns I have seen have been able to identify scarring or distortion without me pointing it out. That is concerning. For this reason if you think your surgery was botched consult an expert or seriously just sit in front of a magnifying mirror and male sure you can describe exactly what was done. In my experience, you can rely on doctors to do that. All you have to do is review the ob gym literature, like textbooks, and the green journal to get an idea of how vague an understanding many ob gyns have of that anatomy. I really wish I was kidding but I'm not. Also the average labia is 2.2 cm long according to a recent study by the bmog and only quantitative data of labia dimensions compiled since the 19th century. There is no excuse for removing all of someones labia. That's like a 2 cm error. WTF. Getting your labia completely amputated when you have only consented to a labia reductions like getting a mastectomy when you have only consented to a breast reduction. Loss of some functional tissue does not result in loss of function, loss of all tissue does. Obviously. Tell that to your lawyer. In the meantime I'm working on this paper. It's really hard cus I get emotional. And this issue is so complicated I've already written 57 pages. But there's also a whole lot of ways it could be easily prevented. I think I might try contacting someone we know in the Texas legislature or a friends dad whose been district chair for acog. The problem is this gets seriously embarrassing and few people appreciate the devastating nature of harm occurred. Part of my paper addresses differences in treatment of male sexual function versus treatment in medical literature. It's pretty terrible. Newsflash female sexual response is a normal physiological process, vital to womens health and quality of life. It is every bit as observable, objectively measurable, and quantitative as male sexual function. And every bit as important. But how many vulvas have you seen in an ob gyn's office? This problem is so big it makes my brain hurt. I also don't know about other people but I got surfery because I thought I was abnormal (like more than 3 standard deviations above the mean) even though I wasn't. I knew absolutely nothing about what other women general looked like because my ob gyn refused to tell me even after direct questioning. Personal I think saying "there is a wide range of normal" is not an adequate response as it gives no real information. What does that mean. Range is defines as the difference between the minimum and maximum. So then what is the maximum of normal? And what percent I'd women are considered abnormal? that was not revealed. Frankly any discussion of function would have averted my request for surgery. Ugh this was supposed to be a short post from my iPhone. Sorry for the typos.
I'm better now... It's been three weeks since my surgery. And every day i'm working on convincing myself that it is okay. I'm still scared how my future sex life gonna look like. There are days when I think about it more, and there are days when I think about it less. I went to my surgeon a week after op. He said that i have to give it some time. That is suppose to look like that. I tried to explain him that I have internet, I even said that today there is few way to do this procedure, and amputation should be last of them. He said that considering my anatomy it was impossible to do anything else?!? So, now I'm left without any lips, with clitoris still protruding out. And constant fear of what my life's gonna look like. :( my life should get started with this. Our next move was to try get pregnant. Someone could think this stupid, but "big labia" was a huge problem for me... and now everything is gone...
Hey Inez, your doctor is lying to you and just trying to avoid a lawsuit. Either that or he is such an id**t he doesn't understand the standard of care. There is no excuse for ever removing all of someone's labia. Even if your doctor was aiming for a 1 cm result, putting you in like the 10th percentile according to the data published in the BJOG, it would take a 1 cm surgical error to result in no labia. Having Internet is not enough, due to the amount of straight up BS published in the public domain. Get your hands on some scientific research articles. There is no justification for removing all of someones labia. The adverse symptoms that result are well documented. The problem of inadequately trained or educated surgeons completely over-excising labia is also documented. Please do not let your denial get in the way of pursuing justice or it will be too late. Read dr. Alters article on reconstruction of labia minora from clitoral hood flaps published in the American journal of plastic surgery. There are other doctors you could trust for a consultation but be careful who you trust and go with doctors who are published and who perform these surgeries on a regular basis.Most surgeons performing labiaplasties have no idea what they are doing, aren't adequately educated about the anatomy, and aren't adequately trained on surgical technique.