It doesn't hurt like wound pain. But the dilators are hard plastic and feel kind of pointy. Like, you won't feel like you're stabbing yourself in an open wound or anything, but I wouldn't have been putting one of these things in my butt, either. I'm on day 16. The worst of it is sometimes you can feel yourself kind of stretching the *outside* stuff, but once again think "uncomfortable," not "painful."
Edit: Also just to be clear, *obviously* you're going to be on pain meds at first. I'm inconsistently taking tylenol at this point, but up till day 10 or so I had oxycodone as well as tylenol and ibuprofen. But those pains are constant, dilation didn't make them worse.
I'm aiming for robotic assisted peritoneal vaginoplasty so to me I wonder if there is a difference. The one I'm interested in says there is less dilation / douching.
That's what I had performed. My dilation schedule is 2x/day for the first three months -> 1/day for the next three months -> every other day for the final three months -> once a week. Douching is currently recommended at twice a week, but that's because my surgery was on the 11th and I'm still healing.
My regime was 3 x a day for first twelve weeks then twice for the next 12 weeks then drops off to two or three times a week. Currently on week 14 š¤¦š»āāļø
And to answer the question
Only if you donāt use enough lubricant and if your healing goes well but all the pains from the surgery can and should be controlled by pain medication.
Really? I just had my ppt surgery on 6/17. Iām donating 3x/day for 30 minutes for 3 months. Then to 2x/day for a bit. Douching currently 1/day.
As far as painfulā¦not really. It just feelsā¦weird. Takes a little getting used to. But after the first free days out has just become tedious is all.
Damn, reading these comments, I'm like, fuck why were my recommendations so strong? Like, my surgeons recommends 3x daily for 1yr, 2x daily for another 6 months, then 1x daily til yr 2 and then finally less frequent. Though, around month 5 I dropped to 2x daily and haven't had any loss, so ?
Iām at 2 months post op. The way I see it I was suffering with the longer I went the more suffering would accumulate. After surgery it was hard and fairly painful at times but it has been fairly temporary, while most healing and complications may take a year give or take it has only gotten easier as time moves forward. Itās hard but I can start living now which has made life so much better.
TLDR: yes it hurts but not as bad as dysphoria
It doesn't for me, but one thing that I did try out was using compression underwear and putting the dilator in, putting the underwear over the dilator. And pull it up enough behind me to where the dilator is held in place and it's hands free.
i didn't experience direct pain from surgery; it was less painful than breast augmentation or orchiectomy for me. the only pain i really went through was bloating from gas and backed up stool before i was able to clear my bowels for the first time after surgery. recovery is intense when it's not painful - it's messy and sometimes bloody and uncomfortable, and getting back to something like your baseline fitness and wellness can take months. it's worth it.
dilation can sometimes be painful - the first 3-4 weeks especially for me. and now, about 9 months post-op, i'm dealing with granulation tissue, so there are times when it feels tender or sore or painful because of a raw spot in my canal. it's usually manageable, and sometimes it feels a little more intense than i can bear.
i don't really enjoy penetration in general so i can't speak to whether it feels good to masturbate with a dildo, etc., but the couple times i've had penetrative sex have been fun, and my sexual response overall is MUCH better than before surgery.
Iāve had several laparoscopic abdominal surgeries (not bottom surgery yet, thatās a couple months away), and the worst part of the recovery in every case has been the bloating from the gas that the surgeons use to inflate the abdominal cavity so that they can see
i've heard this from friends who had PPT! i had PI, so my bloating wasn't from gas injected in my abdomen, but rather that the wound packing in my vaginal canal was compressing everything so stool and gas couldn't pass through my system, which wasn't helped by how gassy the hospital food made me
I'm 175 days post op. Dilation doesn't hurt necessarily, but it isn't comfortable either. I moved up dilators as soon as I could. Or as I told the PA at my last follow-up, if the dilator was stretching things out, I figured it wasn't doing its job. I'm maxed out on orange and I've been there for at least the last three months. I got 7 inches in surgery and as far as I can tell, I still have all 7 inches of depth.
As for the feelings inside,, it feels good. I can only speak to the experience of dildo play, but it feels satisfying. I imagine the feelings will be the same with a partner. Will I orgasm with internal stimulation only? Probably not, but I can foresee penetrative sex being satisfying and definitely worth it.
How long did it take u to get to get to the orange one? I canāt seem to get past the green one (the orange one would be next)ā¦ but then again I donāt dilate as frequently as I should ā¦maybe because I think Iāll never be able to get to the orange one š
For sure, the orange was intimidating until the first time I shoved it in my vagina as well. It's pretty girthy, ngl, and you're gonna feel every bit of it until you get stretched out.
I had surgery on January 4th. I was on orange by my three month follow-up in mid-April. If I were you, I'd increase the frequency and duration of my dialations. But, green should stretch you enough to accommodate most partners, so it's your call.
To answer your question of if healing is scary, i will say that for me, at first yes it definitely was. I had a dehiscence, and had a complication that meant i needed to get a catheter reinserted after returning home. And no matter how much reassurance i got from my nurses that my dehiscence didnt look bad, and that it would heal with time, it was definitely scary just having to trust the process.
Im 1 month post op on saturday though, and i now feel so much better. It did heal, everything was fine, and i was able to get through it. And you will be able to get through it too!
As for dilation, its never been painful for me. Mildly uncomfortable for the first minute of the first dilation of the day, but then other than that its mostly just boring!
Yes, the healing can be scary and there can/will be pain after surgery. It isn't 10/10 pain, more like 6-7/10 for the first couple of days and the pain medication typically works well. It's amazing what Tylenol and Ibuprofen can keep on top of when taken before the pain gets intolerable. For breakthrough pain, oxycodone really works too.
Wound separation can be scary, but if you've been on here long enough, you've probably seen what it looks like and how folks heal into absolutely amazing results. It can feel like a step backwards which is scary, but it truly is a "trust the process" journey. It does get much much better, and easier.
Dilating can be expected to be uncomfortable at times especially in the beginning, or when increasing the size. But it's also rewarding. A lot of us tend to get very comfortable with discomfort, and if anything dilation has taught me to listen to my body more, relaxing, and taking things slow instead of trying to push past discomfort.
The feeling of fullness when sizing up is incredible. It makes me melt and my heart grows warm and fuzzy just thinking about it.
No girl! It's not a wound like some ignorant people say. it's a legit canal. that being said, it just feels like pressure. I thought it would hurt too, but it doesn't. sometimes it's a little uncomfortable at first just because of the tightness and how hard the dilator is, but it doesn't hurt. If thats the only thing holding you back, trust me you will not regret it.
It kind of hurt but thatās why they prescribe painkillers. Definitely less painful than I was expecting, too - after about the first month I was managing it with ibuprofen. If you make sure youāre dilating often enough and long enough it stops being painful after a few months, especially once youāre using the biggest one.
After healing up enough it takes more time and effort to get off but IME itās a lot more fun.
I'm 5 weeks postop
The first 2 weeks was a little painful if done without pain relief
Next 2 weeks was more uncomfortable if anything
And week 5 has been masturbation galore.
I have gone a little overboard a few times. Missed one dilation opportunity because I was already masturbating from the last season.
That's 5 hours of straight masturbation.
I've been told off to not masturbate for longer than 1 hour/3 times a day.
It's the first time in my life I have something I don't feel bad about and I am enjoying every second of it. Given, I am kinda sore.
Trying to stop myself.
Honestly, it's like a free pass to masturbate 3 times+ a day. š„š„°
Ordinated by a doctor. Back to the 1950's
It's difficult to just walk. Moving makes me horny.
I have to move to a different mindset just to not be horny all the frickin time.
I have no idea if this is normal or not.
Also, I'm European so I don't know what orange size is..
I have a beige soft silicone staff of about 3 cm/diameter
Sweden, my surgeon was Antti.
Stockholm.
Like, full kudos.
I'm intersex and had a micropenis. Got a fair bit of depth.
Between 10-12 cm.
Depending on how relaxed I am.
Expected outcome was 4-6 cm. So very happy with the result.
I mean, apart from the omg.
I've been dilating for a week now and it ain't comfortable, but you can kinda tailor the size of dilator you use to your pain tolerance. I'm pushing through to maintain orange because of all the horror stories I've heard trying to size up later.
To answer your question of if healing is scary, i will say that for me, at first yes it definitely was. I had a dehiscence, and had a complication that meant i needed to get a catheter reinserted after returning home. And no matter how much reassurance i got from my nurses that my dehiscence didnt look bad, and that it would heal with time, it was definitely scary just having to trust the process.
Im 1 month post op on saturday though, and i now feel so much better. It did heal, everything was fine, and i was able to get through it. And you will be able to get through it too!
As for dilation, its never been painful for me. Mildly uncomfortable for the first minute of the first dilation of the day, but then other than that its mostly just boring!
It really depends. For me it hurts the longer I sit, and taking it out is pretty painful. But the worst part is getting up after. Itās definitely worth it, though.
healing is kinda scary but ultimately absolutely worth it. and you may want to keep in mind revisions are fairly common. i had a revision and even before my revision i still was happy with my decision.
dilating is uncomfortable. i donāt remember it being too painful except for when i raised sizes. but it was manageable and not too bad.
masturbating the inside feels good and masturbating in general even the outside is much better than before.
Itās gonna be grody as hell for a while, and it can definitely hurt while thereās nerves reconnecting and stitches poking in weird places, but most of the time itās pretty dull, Iād say it feels sore more than anything. Dilating itself will feel very uncomfortable at first, I donāt even know how to describe the feeling but very tight and very weird. Once the dilator is in though, itās mainly just waiting for it to come out and then waiting until the next dilation. It can take a while per dilation because getting ready for it and cleanup also takes time (Iām at about 45 minutes for a full session rn), so it really runs your life for a while. But anything Iāve experienced after surgery has been a whole lot better than the dysphoria I felt before.
After my revision, it's been pretty straightforward. I can feel the pressure, but no pain. And it can even be slightly pleasurable if the timing is right.
For my original GCS, the technique employed back then left a narrowed point about 5cm in. Plus the dilators were straight, so the insertion technique was important. As long as I kept up my dilations, it was fine.
I never really thought dilating hurt (except maybe the orange monster) but it could be really uncomfortable. Once I figured out what lube I liked and the amount to use, dilating became easier.
Sometimes for me it's a little sore, kinda like pressing a bruise lightly, for the first 30 seconds, but then there's no pain. And it's only sore like that maybe 1 out of every five or six times.
For me the worst part about healing was not knowing for sure if I was doing it right. They said "stay as inactive as possible," and I did, but I wasn't sure if I was inactive enough. But in the end I was, and everything was fine. In retrospect it was pretty easy
Definitely doesnāt hurt but I wouldnāt use it if i didnāt have to, its rock solid so your muscles cant contract around it, plus it is cold and it feels weird. One time i was doing the kinky with my bf and we were feeling like trying something new so he put that thing in my butt and it was horrible
My op is next month, ive not seen or read when I'm meant to start going up in dilator sizes.
I have read that scar tissue, the longer it's has healed for the stronger it is, so dilatoring is harder.
My partner is 3.5 years post op, and I went through it all with her. Dilation was our life in the beginning, it felt like we did nothing else for a few weeks, but after that it was no big deal. Mostly boring. She LOVES penetration now, it feels really good to her. Currently dilating once a week, usually before sex.
I had pi with tunica graft last October. Iām going to be honest in my personal experience it was painful the first 3 months . But it was 10000000% worth it . Research surgeons , make sure they have consistently good results. I wish you the best !
Does it hurt? Sometimes. Is it unbearable? No.
It's like stretching any other muscle. If you go too fast it will hurt but if you go slow and learn to relax the muscles it's not too bad.
How long it takes to feel pleasurable depends for each person. Not all cis women orgasm from penetration alone. For me feeling came back pretty quick. After a few weeks certain places started to feel good.
It doesn't hurt like wound pain. But the dilators are hard plastic and feel kind of pointy. Like, you won't feel like you're stabbing yourself in an open wound or anything, but I wouldn't have been putting one of these things in my butt, either. I'm on day 16. The worst of it is sometimes you can feel yourself kind of stretching the *outside* stuff, but once again think "uncomfortable," not "painful." Edit: Also just to be clear, *obviously* you're going to be on pain meds at first. I'm inconsistently taking tylenol at this point, but up till day 10 or so I had oxycodone as well as tylenol and ibuprofen. But those pains are constant, dilation didn't make them worse.
I'm aiming for robotic assisted peritoneal vaginoplasty so to me I wonder if there is a difference. The one I'm interested in says there is less dilation / douching.
That's what I had performed. My dilation schedule is 2x/day for the first three months -> 1/day for the next three months -> every other day for the final three months -> once a week. Douching is currently recommended at twice a week, but that's because my surgery was on the 11th and I'm still healing.
Ty
My regime was 3 x a day for first twelve weeks then twice for the next 12 weeks then drops off to two or three times a week. Currently on week 14 š¤¦š»āāļø And to answer the question Only if you donāt use enough lubricant and if your healing goes well but all the pains from the surgery can and should be controlled by pain medication.
Yeah, I should have mentioned the pain meds. Still, despite the discomfort I feel like dilation doesn't really make the *pain* worse in my experience.
Really? I just had my ppt surgery on 6/17. Iām donating 3x/day for 30 minutes for 3 months. Then to 2x/day for a bit. Douching currently 1/day. As far as painfulā¦not really. It just feelsā¦weird. Takes a little getting used to. But after the first free days out has just become tedious is all.
Damn, reading these comments, I'm like, fuck why were my recommendations so strong? Like, my surgeons recommends 3x daily for 1yr, 2x daily for another 6 months, then 1x daily til yr 2 and then finally less frequent. Though, around month 5 I dropped to 2x daily and haven't had any loss, so ?
Could depend on their methods. Also from what I understand with penile inversions that first year of dilation is a lot more important.
Iām at 2 months post op. The way I see it I was suffering with the longer I went the more suffering would accumulate. After surgery it was hard and fairly painful at times but it has been fairly temporary, while most healing and complications may take a year give or take it has only gotten easier as time moves forward. Itās hard but I can start living now which has made life so much better. TLDR: yes it hurts but not as bad as dysphoria
It doesn't for me, but one thing that I did try out was using compression underwear and putting the dilator in, putting the underwear over the dilator. And pull it up enough behind me to where the dilator is held in place and it's hands free.
My partner uses the heel of her foot to hold it while we play video games
I'm taking notes....
off topic but love you guys for that
i didn't experience direct pain from surgery; it was less painful than breast augmentation or orchiectomy for me. the only pain i really went through was bloating from gas and backed up stool before i was able to clear my bowels for the first time after surgery. recovery is intense when it's not painful - it's messy and sometimes bloody and uncomfortable, and getting back to something like your baseline fitness and wellness can take months. it's worth it. dilation can sometimes be painful - the first 3-4 weeks especially for me. and now, about 9 months post-op, i'm dealing with granulation tissue, so there are times when it feels tender or sore or painful because of a raw spot in my canal. it's usually manageable, and sometimes it feels a little more intense than i can bear. i don't really enjoy penetration in general so i can't speak to whether it feels good to masturbate with a dildo, etc., but the couple times i've had penetrative sex have been fun, and my sexual response overall is MUCH better than before surgery.
Iāve had several laparoscopic abdominal surgeries (not bottom surgery yet, thatās a couple months away), and the worst part of the recovery in every case has been the bloating from the gas that the surgeons use to inflate the abdominal cavity so that they can see
i've heard this from friends who had PPT! i had PI, so my bloating wasn't from gas injected in my abdomen, but rather that the wound packing in my vaginal canal was compressing everything so stool and gas couldn't pass through my system, which wasn't helped by how gassy the hospital food made me
Yeah that sounds rough!
I'm 175 days post op. Dilation doesn't hurt necessarily, but it isn't comfortable either. I moved up dilators as soon as I could. Or as I told the PA at my last follow-up, if the dilator was stretching things out, I figured it wasn't doing its job. I'm maxed out on orange and I've been there for at least the last three months. I got 7 inches in surgery and as far as I can tell, I still have all 7 inches of depth. As for the feelings inside,, it feels good. I can only speak to the experience of dildo play, but it feels satisfying. I imagine the feelings will be the same with a partner. Will I orgasm with internal stimulation only? Probably not, but I can foresee penetrative sex being satisfying and definitely worth it.
How long did it take u to get to get to the orange one? I canāt seem to get past the green one (the orange one would be next)ā¦ but then again I donāt dilate as frequently as I should ā¦maybe because I think Iāll never be able to get to the orange one š
For sure, the orange was intimidating until the first time I shoved it in my vagina as well. It's pretty girthy, ngl, and you're gonna feel every bit of it until you get stretched out. I had surgery on January 4th. I was on orange by my three month follow-up in mid-April. If I were you, I'd increase the frequency and duration of my dialations. But, green should stretch you enough to accommodate most partners, so it's your call.
Thanks sis š
Follow your surgeons dilation schedule! Frequency is very very important.
To answer your question of if healing is scary, i will say that for me, at first yes it definitely was. I had a dehiscence, and had a complication that meant i needed to get a catheter reinserted after returning home. And no matter how much reassurance i got from my nurses that my dehiscence didnt look bad, and that it would heal with time, it was definitely scary just having to trust the process. Im 1 month post op on saturday though, and i now feel so much better. It did heal, everything was fine, and i was able to get through it. And you will be able to get through it too! As for dilation, its never been painful for me. Mildly uncomfortable for the first minute of the first dilation of the day, but then other than that its mostly just boring!
Yes, the healing can be scary and there can/will be pain after surgery. It isn't 10/10 pain, more like 6-7/10 for the first couple of days and the pain medication typically works well. It's amazing what Tylenol and Ibuprofen can keep on top of when taken before the pain gets intolerable. For breakthrough pain, oxycodone really works too. Wound separation can be scary, but if you've been on here long enough, you've probably seen what it looks like and how folks heal into absolutely amazing results. It can feel like a step backwards which is scary, but it truly is a "trust the process" journey. It does get much much better, and easier. Dilating can be expected to be uncomfortable at times especially in the beginning, or when increasing the size. But it's also rewarding. A lot of us tend to get very comfortable with discomfort, and if anything dilation has taught me to listen to my body more, relaxing, and taking things slow instead of trying to push past discomfort. The feeling of fullness when sizing up is incredible. It makes me melt and my heart grows warm and fuzzy just thinking about it.
No girl! It's not a wound like some ignorant people say. it's a legit canal. that being said, it just feels like pressure. I thought it would hurt too, but it doesn't. sometimes it's a little uncomfortable at first just because of the tightness and how hard the dilator is, but it doesn't hurt. If thats the only thing holding you back, trust me you will not regret it.
It kind of hurt but thatās why they prescribe painkillers. Definitely less painful than I was expecting, too - after about the first month I was managing it with ibuprofen. If you make sure youāre dilating often enough and long enough it stops being painful after a few months, especially once youāre using the biggest one. After healing up enough it takes more time and effort to get off but IME itās a lot more fun.
I'm 5 weeks postop The first 2 weeks was a little painful if done without pain relief Next 2 weeks was more uncomfortable if anything And week 5 has been masturbation galore. I have gone a little overboard a few times. Missed one dilation opportunity because I was already masturbating from the last season. That's 5 hours of straight masturbation. I've been told off to not masturbate for longer than 1 hour/3 times a day. It's the first time in my life I have something I don't feel bad about and I am enjoying every second of it. Given, I am kinda sore. Trying to stop myself. Honestly, it's like a free pass to masturbate 3 times+ a day. š„š„° Ordinated by a doctor. Back to the 1950's It's difficult to just walk. Moving makes me horny. I have to move to a different mindset just to not be horny all the frickin time. I have no idea if this is normal or not. Also, I'm European so I don't know what orange size is.. I have a beige soft silicone staff of about 3 cm/diameter
Where in Europe did you have the surgery?
Sweden, my surgeon was Antti. Stockholm. Like, full kudos. I'm intersex and had a micropenis. Got a fair bit of depth. Between 10-12 cm. Depending on how relaxed I am. Expected outcome was 4-6 cm. So very happy with the result. I mean, apart from the omg.
I've been dilating for a week now and it ain't comfortable, but you can kinda tailor the size of dilator you use to your pain tolerance. I'm pushing through to maintain orange because of all the horror stories I've heard trying to size up later.
To answer your question of if healing is scary, i will say that for me, at first yes it definitely was. I had a dehiscence, and had a complication that meant i needed to get a catheter reinserted after returning home. And no matter how much reassurance i got from my nurses that my dehiscence didnt look bad, and that it would heal with time, it was definitely scary just having to trust the process. Im 1 month post op on saturday though, and i now feel so much better. It did heal, everything was fine, and i was able to get through it. And you will be able to get through it too! As for dilation, its never been painful for me. Mildly uncomfortable for the first minute of the first dilation of the day, but then other than that its mostly just boring!
It does hurt a bit yes, it hurts a lot to start with, you won't die though, just power through.
It really depends. For me it hurts the longer I sit, and taking it out is pretty painful. But the worst part is getting up after. Itās definitely worth it, though.
im at 2 yrs and it hurts really bad for me but not everyone. the inside doesnt feel good either for me but thats probably correlated
Never had pain from it.
The first month it's not comfortable or fun.
I got mine in 2016, dilating only hurts if I skip a week. Because it's been so long I only dilate weekly or before I know I'm going to have sex.
Itās uncomfortable, but it shouldnāt be painful. If itās too painful, you stop and go a size down.
healing is kinda scary but ultimately absolutely worth it. and you may want to keep in mind revisions are fairly common. i had a revision and even before my revision i still was happy with my decision. dilating is uncomfortable. i donāt remember it being too painful except for when i raised sizes. but it was manageable and not too bad. masturbating the inside feels good and masturbating in general even the outside is much better than before.
Itās gonna be grody as hell for a while, and it can definitely hurt while thereās nerves reconnecting and stitches poking in weird places, but most of the time itās pretty dull, Iād say it feels sore more than anything. Dilating itself will feel very uncomfortable at first, I donāt even know how to describe the feeling but very tight and very weird. Once the dilator is in though, itās mainly just waiting for it to come out and then waiting until the next dilation. It can take a while per dilation because getting ready for it and cleanup also takes time (Iām at about 45 minutes for a full session rn), so it really runs your life for a while. But anything Iāve experienced after surgery has been a whole lot better than the dysphoria I felt before.
After my revision, it's been pretty straightforward. I can feel the pressure, but no pain. And it can even be slightly pleasurable if the timing is right. For my original GCS, the technique employed back then left a narrowed point about 5cm in. Plus the dilators were straight, so the insertion technique was important. As long as I kept up my dilations, it was fine.
I never really thought dilating hurt (except maybe the orange monster) but it could be really uncomfortable. Once I figured out what lube I liked and the amount to use, dilating became easier.
Sometimes for me it's a little sore, kinda like pressing a bruise lightly, for the first 30 seconds, but then there's no pain. And it's only sore like that maybe 1 out of every five or six times. For me the worst part about healing was not knowing for sure if I was doing it right. They said "stay as inactive as possible," and I did, but I wasn't sure if I was inactive enough. But in the end I was, and everything was fine. In retrospect it was pretty easy
Nothing hurts as much as living in a body i couldn't stand, so all and all the pains worth it 100% Its not that bad though.
Definitely doesnāt hurt but I wouldnāt use it if i didnāt have to, its rock solid so your muscles cant contract around it, plus it is cold and it feels weird. One time i was doing the kinky with my bf and we were feeling like trying something new so he put that thing in my butt and it was horrible
My op is next month, ive not seen or read when I'm meant to start going up in dilator sizes. I have read that scar tissue, the longer it's has healed for the stronger it is, so dilatoring is harder.
Yes, you're stretching lotsa scar tissue and training muscles you've not used much prior. I'll go away over the years of course
My partner is 3.5 years post op, and I went through it all with her. Dilation was our life in the beginning, it felt like we did nothing else for a few weeks, but after that it was no big deal. Mostly boring. She LOVES penetration now, it feels really good to her. Currently dilating once a week, usually before sex.
I had pi with tunica graft last October. Iām going to be honest in my personal experience it was painful the first 3 months . But it was 10000000% worth it . Research surgeons , make sure they have consistently good results. I wish you the best !
Does it hurt? Sometimes. Is it unbearable? No. It's like stretching any other muscle. If you go too fast it will hurt but if you go slow and learn to relax the muscles it's not too bad. How long it takes to feel pleasurable depends for each person. Not all cis women orgasm from penetration alone. For me feeling came back pretty quick. After a few weeks certain places started to feel good.