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Hello Aunt Vadge,
I got the yeast thrush blend and the capsules to insert into my vagina. I do it before bed and try to hold the capsule in, but the liquid seems to come out pretty soon after putting it in. I’ve done the happy baby pose to try and prevent this, but I’m wondering if there’s another trick.
Thanks!
Fall Out Girl
Hi Fall Out Girl,
You shouldn’t have to hold it in at all. If a vaginal capsule or suppository keeps falling out, it’s almost always because it’s sitting too low – in the bottom third of your vagina, below your pelvic-floor muscle.
Get it up past that muscle and the muscle itself holds it in place, and you should be able to stand up and walk around without it budging. This is one of the most common reasons a treatment seems to ‘fail’ – the capsule is fine and your body is fine, it just hasn’t gone up high enough to stay put.
It’s a technique thing, and very fixable.
A few pointers: skip the happy-baby pose for inserting, because it relaxes and opens the pelvic floor, the opposite of what you want – you want that muscle toned and holding the capsule up.
Insert it much like a tampon: sit on the toilet or crouch, and use a clean, dry finger or thumb to push the capsule up as far as you comfortably can, aiming towards your tailbone, which is the natural angle of your vagina rather than straight up.
Once it’s in, stand up and squeeze your pelvic floor a few times – if it falls out, you haven’t gone high enough, so pop it back up higher, and if it stays, you’ve nailed it.
Once it’s sitting above the pelvic-floor muscle it’ll dissolve slowly and the liquid makes its way out gradually, ideally overnight while you’re asleep, which gives the longest contact time and the best result.
If you’ve really got it up high and it still won’t stay, or insertion is painful, that’s worth a proper look, since occasionally there’s a pelvic-floor or anatomy reason behind it. (Fall Out Girl wrote back, by the way: she got the capsule ‘way up there’, it disappeared, nothing leaked, and it worked – so it really does just take a bit of height.) If you’re working through stubborn yeast or BV, our free Killing BV guides for vaginas and for penises walk you through it step by step, and you can book an appointment if you’d like things tailored to you.
Warmly,
Aunt Vadge
This is general information based on our clinical experience, not a substitute for personalised medical advice. If something doesn’t feel right, check in with your practitioner.
