My six year old daughter adjusts her vagina constantly, especially after she goes to the bathroom. After she goes to the bathroom, she also wipes and wipes and wipes to make sure it is really dry and that her vagina feels good. She has described the feeling in her vagina as a bubble. I have taken her to the doctor and she did a thorough exam and could not figure it out. We have discussed thoroughly to make sure that no one has touched her or anything like that. It seems now that it is maybe just a habit but I don't know and now I'm wondering if I should talk to a counselor about it. Sometimes it really bothers her and one boy at school said something to her and it really embarrassed her. Anyway, has anyone ever experienced that with their daughter or have any suggestions? Thank you!
Hi Tammy,
I have had this too. With me it was yeast related and felt like a bubble, tickle, or itchy feeling. My naturopath is treating mine, but the regular MD ignored it for years.
Blessings,
K.S.
I agree w/the other mamasourcer. It sounds like yeast and unless it's really bad in a child so young the doctor probably didn't even look for it.
Most Naturopath's have a pharmacy and you don't need to be a patient to shop from them. (Though if you are and they recommend a product there's no tax on it). Try to get your DD on some high quality probiotics to fight the yeast. Even if it's not yeast it will help her digestive system. During this time eliminate all processed foods, breads, sugars, starchy foods with simple sugars. Focus on a more whole food approach to help the process. You can also find probiotics at Whole Foods or PCC in the cold case of the health/supplement department.
You may also want to consider taking your DD to see an ND, LM (naturopathic physician who also is a licensed midwife). Your DD will likely be more comfortable w/such a person and they'll have the experience and skills needed to treat the issue w/o strong prescription drugs that may be too much for a child so young.
I'm not sure where you live but if you're near a PCC go in and ask to speak to someone in that health department. They're all goldmines of information and can introduce you to foods in the store too that will keep eating fun for your DD without complicating the issue at hand if it is yeast.
Cynthia-WAHM to 4 y/o virtual twins, ND patient for 11+ years,
Owner:BeHappierAtHome.com
Ask her if it happens after she passes gas. I've heared someone once say that occationally when they pass gas the air will go foreward instead of back and it makes a little bubble as it passes by the vagina.
I have 7 year old girl. She talks about the bubbles sometime coming out of her bottem. I asked here where the bubbles come from and she says from my bottem. So I was asuming it was from her passing gass and getting traped. Im not shure what it is. I have not made a big deal about it. I just know that she has it to and leve it at that.
Thanks
As a little girl and still today I was very sensitive to soaps. Anything scented made me burn or itch. I remember no dr ever figured it out. My mom was the one who finally put 2 and 2 together. You never know kids have the strangest ways of describing things.
Hi Tammy,
We had something similar happen with our oldest daughter. We did the same steps, talked to her, talked with her teacher, took her to the doctors, etc. Our doctor at the time said this was normal for little girls at this age. According to our doctor he said she was starting to develope the hormones needed for puberty and this causes a sensation in girls ages five and up. So......because pants bothered her so much and caused the sensation to be worse we chose to move to leggings, overalls, and dresses with legging shorts under it - no jeans, these seemed to cause problems for us. We explained to her that it would be better if she learned to fix any problems she is having in private - ask to be excused is she needed to adjust herself (we spoke to the teacher about this so there weren't any problems in school). Just talking to her about it helped a lot. We reassured her that there was nothing wrong with her, made her feel as though it was natural to be curious about that area of your body and the issues really were gone before she turned six. I will mention that bathroom tissue was a culprit for a lot of it as well, it flakes off causing some irritation so we moved to a wipe for sensitive skin or even a damp and dry baby washcloth that could be rinsed and thrown in the wash right away, we made this her responsibility and she was fine with it. I hope this helps you. Anna
My daughter 5 going 6 soon has said those same words and is always adjusting herself. She grabs her crotch like a boy would do. It seemed bizarre until my friend said her 9 year old daughter did the same thing at six. She did it for a while and stopped. She said many other moms in the same class said their daughter did too. The bubble thing my daughter has said too. She used to say it often and I thought maybe her body was just doing it's thing. Now she doesn't mention it very much. My daughter is very conscious about keeping herself clean after pooping. So, I finally bought the flushable wipes at Costco. It makes her feel better and now she's cleaner. I will definitely keep and ear out for the bubble in the vagina. I will make a post if it reoccurs.
I just read Anna's post and it makes sense. Thanks. We too moved to leggings months ago because jeans bother our daughter. Dresses and leggings my daughter prefers.
I would go to a homeopath or a Naturopathic Doctor. They often know things MDs do not. I don't think this is a "counseling" issue. She is uncomfortable in some way that needs to be explored.
Hi-
I have not personally experience this type of issue with either of my girls (11 and 6), but my girlfriend has with her 5 year old. Her daughter would wipe herself until she was "raw" and she told her mother that she always felt "wet". I'm not sure if this is similiar to your daughter's experience, but they did end up taking her to counseling and have had great results. (They too had her examined by a doctor whom couldn't find a physical problem).
Best wishes,
Laurie
Hi Tammy,
I'm not sure about your particular dilemma, but I do know my niece was doing something sort of similar for a while. When she was four or five, she would go to the bathroom, then wipe forever. Sometimes she would leave the bathroom and go back in and wipe again, over and over. She would cry and always say it was "wet down there," no matter how dry it was. My SIL talked to her pediatrician and had her examined for the exact same things you did--rashes, any sort of abuse, etc. She was totally fine. The ped actually said it's fairly common for kids (especially girls) to go through phases where they are obsessed with cleanliness and any dampness or wetness could upset them.
Luckily, my niece grew out of it in a couple of months. Not sure if this relates to your daughter, but it sounded similar enough that I thought I'd offer some reassurance that maybe she'll just grow out of it in time.
Good luck!
~Jenessa
I am guessing that your daughter has soap sensitivities. I have soap sensitivities "down there," (nowhere else, just there) so if I use any scented soaps, it's VERY uncomfortable for me. I use baby wash that is unscented and for sensitive skin, and that works well for me. Some baby washes have unsafe ingredients, though, so here is a reference link to see which products are safer for you and your family:
http://www.cosmeticsdatabase.com/
Both my girls are fanatics about cleanliness down there. I buy flushable wipes from Target they are $1.27 a pack.
Don't use bubble bath or perfumes in soaps. Use baby soap or glycerin soap. Educate her on rinsing very well down there, and drying.
Lastly, it may be air, just what she's been saying all along, tell her to try to gently push the air out, but not to strain, something as simple as a cough may get it out.
Hi Tammy,
I just wanted to add another voice. My girl went through it too. She got to where she was constantly touching herself and making it raw down there. So with a couple of doctors visits, and a lot of talking, we finally got to where she would leave herself alone in public and sure nuf, the redness went away. We stressed that it was OK too but just not in public. And I do think it is gas from her bowels going forward through her labia. Seems to be just another fun stage!
Hi Tammy,
Try putting a panty liner in her panties. This may give her the dry feeling she is needing for whatever reason right now. I do not think since you had her checked that it is more to do with her feeling comfortable than anything else.
let me know
Good luck
Christa
It sounds like it could be yeast. See Cynthia T's response on that, I agree with her.
Also, if you use scneted laundry soap, fabric softner or dryer sheets this could be irritating her. I know Tide makes my elbows itch.
Hope this helps.
I dont know how your daughter sits on the toilet, but when my daughter sits, her legs are spread which is going to cause air to possibly get trapped inside her vagina. I have felt this feeling before and yes it is very uncomfortable at times.. I also do daycare and have one little girl who is always saying that she needs to "pop the bubble"
I dont know how to prevent it from happening, it just does sometimes... but maybe what you need to do is just explain to your daughter that if she needs to "adjust" herself, to try and remember to do it in the bathroom instead of in front of everyone so they wont have grounds to make fun of her... Kids can be cruel so I can imagine what she must have felt!! Good luck!!!
Sky
Believe it or not at the age of 33 I have this too. My gyn has told me to do the kegal excersice to strengthen that area ( I've had kids} but it doesn't seem to help and it is quite annoying! I know the whole bubble feeling. I'm not sure what to do since all ive been told is that excersice. If you get some concrete ideas let me know =] Its not always gas but that will cause it too. It just happens. maybe yeast but I don't have the itchy feelings. Rather embarrassing for a woman my age as well.
I feel for her!
I have a friend who told me that when her daughter was young her urinating hole wasn't big enough. So when her daughter would urinate she still had some urine in her bladder and she would go to the bathroom often. Sometimes, some of the urine would drizzle out because she could never really empty her bladder. I don't remember what it was medically called. But, maybe your daughter keeps wiping to try to make sure that she is dry because she always feels a little damp. Maybe she can feel that her bladder isn't really empty. Just an idea.
Wow I am relieved to hear that. My daughter fills the toilet with toilet paper everytime she goes potty. She says it's not dry and sometimes during the day she will go wipe because she says it's not dry. But, I have talked to some adults that say they are still like that. I just think some people are more sensitve than others.