tumblr staff doesn’t want you to know this, but a great way to treat small amounts of granulation tissue to prevent it from becoming hypergranulation inside the canal of your neovagina is to make a hypersaline solution (more in tense version of regular saline) and soak a tampon in it, and then insert that tampon into your vaginal canal
now I’m sure if you are dealing with granulation tissue during early recovery from bottom surgery you’re probably thinking gosh fuck I’m a trans girl i’ve never had to put a tampon in in my life how do I do this…and I’d love to show you but
ITS THE POST THAT GOT ME BLURRED HIII
love how much tumblr hates women lol
anyways, if you're a trans girl and have never used a tampon before, here's some tips
- you shouldn't be able to really feel it, if you do it isn't tilted correctly or it's not far enough in. in my experience the easiest way to put in a tampon is squatting and tilting slightly forward but experiment and see what feels best for you
- it's completely normal to take a few attempts to get in correctly , that's what the string is for (easy removal)
- if you lose the string you can just Go Up There and pull it out, it's just more messy
- even though you don't bleed, do not leave it in for long. i'm serious. you can still get toxic shock syndrome, it's not pretty and you will need serious medical intervention. change tampons at least every 8 hours
- probably common sense but ill add anyways, tampons expand when absorbing fluid! do not worry if it's a little struggle to get out that's normal (but if you're having a REALLY hard time that is not, probably size down your tampon)
hope any of this helps!
From the replies:
What is granulation tissue?
[Cyprozombiegirl] Granulation tissue is a normal tissue that forms underneath where the skin will form, its bright red and shiny (and painful to the touch). Unfortunately when the injured/cut area is consistently wet often too much of this tissue forms and prevents skin from growing over it. When this happens it’s called hypergranulation and needs to be chemically burned away. If you’ve got some but not a lot though, not enough to technically be hypergranulation but on the way there, you can use hypersaline to treat it.
It can’t stop anything once you’ve fully got hypergranulation, but if it’s only granulation it seems to help a lot. I found out about this from a friend whose special interest is bottom surgery
To Make The HyperSaline Solution
[Cyprozombiegirl] mix 2 teaspoons of table salt with 1 cup of warm water (which you’ve boiled for at least 20min) in a clean container until the salt dissolves. soak tampon in it. Insert tampon (this can be tricky because it will rapidly expand, so I suggest getting one for light flow).
[Dilsdoes] hi! just a note: make sure the salt youre using is non iodized! generally for saline solutions used internally like this you want to avoid iodized salt. it tends to irritate mucous membranes
Further information on Tampons can be searched online or on the Tampon box.
ID: Censored image for "breaking Tumblr guidelines".
A diagram for how to apply a tampon in a (neo)vagina.
1. Tampon inside a tampon applicator, with tampon chord (a string used to pull the tampon out).
2. Hand with the tampon itself pointed towards the palm and body. Index finger over the Tampon applicator plunger.
3. Spreading vaginal opening with the other hand, and placing the tampon with tampon applicator towards the vaginal entrance. Legs spread apart.
4. Push tampon applicator plunger with index finger, with tampon inside, to push it further inside.
5. Take out tampon applicator. The tampon should be secured inside the vaginal canal, with tampon chord hanging outside of the vagina.
End ID.
make sure you are doing this using a tampon with a plastic applicator. This is for a number of reasons: firstly, they are easier to use than other options, but secondly and more crucially, theyre actually compatible with the whole "putting in a tampon soaked in liquid" thing. If you use an applicatorless tampon like OB, it'll just fully expand and good fucking luck getting that in. If you use a tampon with a cardboard applicator, its harder to put in and also the cardboard will just get soggy.
you want something that looks like this:
Make sure to soak the tampon while it is in the applicator. do not remove it from the plastic casing (blue in this picture) or you will be unable to put it in.
I would also highly recommend avoiding tampax pearl tampons or anything similar. This means anything that advertises itself as having a thicker string or "leak protection". Firstly, if youre not bleeding or otherwise oversaturating the tampon with liquid you wont need it (yet again a reason to soak the tampon while its in the applicator). Secondly, that thicker string can be massively uncomfortable even for people used to wearing tampons (which can also be an issue if you dont yet know how to differentiate between "is this tampon not in properly?" and "the string on this brand fucking sucks eggs".) If youve never worn one, save yourself the trouble. A thin tampon string you shouldnt be able to feel is best.
If the tampon string breaks (which, if youre worried about this, dont be. It's extremely unlikely, I've had it happen once in my many years of wearing exclusively tampons) bear down like youre taking a shit and it should start to come out on its own. This can also help if youre having trouble taking it out or are just nervous. Like mentioned above, this can be even easier if youre in something of a squatting position, such as by putting a stool under your feet.
It's worth mentioning that tampons come in different sizes. From smallest to largest they go: light/junior/slim, regular, super, super plus, and ultra. Light/junior/slim and ultra can be hard to find. Your best bet is regular. The larger a tampon, the more likely you will struggle to remove it, not because it is physically large, but because it can absorb more liquid and will thus be dryer. Just go with a smaller one and you should be fine
Here's a non-Tumblr source on hypergranulation and its treatment in neovaginas in case anyone would like that. (I wanted to find something more before reblogging medical advice.) It doesn't bring up the preventive solution OP is talking about but it does give some context for it.
Take care of yourselves, especially after surgery. I love you.
