Read My Other Lips

By: Red Hot Mamas

Published: January 12, 2021

Written By Gerianne DiPiano-Guest Contributor

Perhaps you remember the “Sex in the City” episode where Charlotte believes she has a depressed vagina. While our vaginas are not depressed, vaginal pain, itching, and burning may take a toll on all aspects of our health, including mental well-being. Did you know that over 50% of women over the age of 40 begin to experience painful intercourse? And according to a FemmePharma market research study of over 200 women, only 10.9% of women are satisfied with their sex lives as a consequence of vaginal and vulvar dryness, a leading cause of painful sex.

As Charlotte learned in that episode, a look with a mirror can help you see areas that often cause problems during sex. Read your lips – your vaginal lips (aka the labia). Inside them is the highly sensitive vulva and entrance to the vagina, where most of our sexual pleasure is located. Vaginal lips (labia) can become dry and irritated from a variety of factors like clothing rubbing against those tender bits, friction while riding a bike, or wiping with toilet tissue. You may experience itching, burning, and pain. Women will therefore avoid sexual activity, and this may wreak havoc on relationships and health.

Before sex with your partner or yourself “flatlines,” some regular moisturization can help. If you haven’t thought about it before, now is a good time to start. First there is a difference between moisturization and lubrication. There is no point in lubricating your vagina for sex if all the surrounding tissues are dry, sore, and don’t like being rubbed.

Let’s start with the labia and vulva. Regular moisturizing can turn those lips from a potential no-go area to one of pleasure. That is why we recommend moisturizing daily with a vulvar moisturizer. You only need a little bit on a cotton swab (bud) or the tip of your finger to rub gently from the top of the hood, inside the lips, and around the entrance to your vagina. Remember to wash your hands first of course.

Once your lower lips and vaginal entrance are feeling in top shape (it can take up to a month of daily use), you can work on your vagina with a vaginal moisturizer. Daily hydration can have the same effect to plump and moisturize your internal vaginal tissues. If the entry to your vagina is a bit tender, you might want to spread a vulvar moisturizer on the applicator containing the vaginal moisturizer. Following this regimen can lead to a healthier and happier vagina!

Gerianne DiPiano is the Founder and CEO of FemmePharma, a Company that has been involved in research and development in women’s health for two decades. She reveals, “In founding the Company, we conducted extensive market research to better understand what women wanted and needed in products. I would ask myself the question: is the product we are developing worse than the condition? If the answer was ‘yes’ we changed course. As a result, FemmePharma’s products reflect the input of thousands of women who have been involved in clinical and market research. Women asked and we delivered the difference! Our motto is Relief Without the Grief.”