Menopause, thin vaginal wall - hole?

Submitted by louiseds on February 16, 2007 - 12:30am
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Hi all

A Member posted recently that she was worried that her vaginal walls might get so thin from menopause that she could end up with a hole in it. It sounds pretty horrible, but I wonder if was even possible.

Have any of our Members has ever had a vaginal wall break down during or after menopause? I don't mean irritated, or abraded, even to the point of bleeding. I mean a hole (and potential destruction of underlying tissue with consequent worsening of prolapse), simply caused by menopausal thinning of the vaginal walls?

After my comments about another Member's questions on menopause it may seem strange that I am now asking a menopause question. The good thing about asking on this site is that I have reasonable faith that women who post here have no cause to lie on this site, as it is not corporately sponsored or censored in any way.

I am happy to ask the same question on another site if somebody can suggest one that they have found reasonably objective.

Are there any objective menopause sites out there?

Cheers

Louise

howdidthishappen

February 16, 2007 - 4:06am

hey louise:

i am not yet menopausal (though might be perimenopausal but hey! it's just a word!) and do not have an answer to your very interesting question. however, there is a site that might have it called powersurge. here's the link:

http://www.power-surge.com/sitemap.htm

i do think they are reasonably objective, as you put it, though many women there do end up doing hrt therapy and things. there is a very big forum on their site where you might post this. also, possibly susun weed's web site. very very hands off approach to handling things, using gentle measures rather than "heroic measures" as they refer to agressive intervention, herbs but very very smart women who might know.

curious to hear the response on this. interesting interesting, louise.

xxsusan

Christine

February 16, 2007 - 10:14am

A childhood friend of mine’s elderly mother developed a rectovaginal fistula out of the blue – but she was several decades post-hysterectomy. I think this is an unwarranted fear. Endopelvic fascia is extremely tough. I know at least one surgeon has lifted a woman off the surgical table by her uterosacral ligaments (he wrote a paper about it) just to prove how tough that tissue is – it’s stretchy too. Those “ligaments” are formed by the same stuff that surrounds the organs and vaginal walls. Fistula is another long-term outcome of obliterating the fascia through posterior repair.

There is no doubt estrogen has anabolic (building) properties in women. So does testosterone, yet body builders and scientists alike have long known how risky exogenous steroids are. Btw, they’re being prescribed more and more for men as ANYTHING is preferable to losing your youth these days.

Judy M

February 17, 2007 - 6:13pm

Hi Louise,

I have been on a lot of menopause sites, read a lot of books on menopause, but none have given any solid advice on prolapse issues--they talk about estrogen in general, thinning of the vaginal wall etc. but not the specific consequences except to "expect it" and do Kegels.

I think this site is great because it tracks our pelvic prolapse problems through all phases of a woman's life--and how each stage affects our concerns on this issue. So as long as it relates to how certain things help us, hurt us, or give us information we can use in dealing with our problem, I think all questions around the subject are legitimate. Hopefully, you will get a response from someone who has learned through books, website or experience about thinning/holes in vaginal wall.

I just got Christine's book--it really explains a lot. No surgery for me!

Judy M