It never occured to me

 I'm a year and two thirds post-GCS and I have been battling vulvodynia for a while. It's been worse in the few days after dilation and then usually starts to ease up. What was causing it, it seems, is what surprised me.

About a year ago I was having issues with hypergranulation, basically small areas in the vagina that were not properly healing and so would easily bleed. My doctor treated the issue with a combination of steroids and silver nitrate and she also had me switch to a 50/50 vinegar and water solution for post-dilation douching because it was drying and would help bring things under control.

That douching solution was super effective and it stopped any issues with discharge that I was having from using saline, so I kept with it. Turns out that it's too drying for long term use and so, after my most recent visit and describing my symptoms, she had me stop with the vinegar and switch to pure water.

Honestly, it never occured to me that would be the issue!

However, having done that, I feel so much better. It's night and day. The reason I never considered that as a culprit is that my discomfort felt exterior and I didn't think an interior problem would cause it like that. The more you know.

Anyways, hopefully this will help someone. I feel like I will soon be able to wear tight jeans again. 🤞