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Dear Aunt Vadge,
My partner was fingering me and his finger slipped and accidentally peeled the skin at my vaginal opening. It bled heavily right after, but stopped after an hour or so. It burns when I pee and when I wash it. I’m worried the peeled skin will get pus in it, and I don’t know how long it’ll take to heal.
Best,
Bleeding Flower
Age 20, India
Dear Bleeding Flower,
What’s happened is a skin graze — your partner’s finger scraped and peeled a patch of the delicate skin at the entrance, which bled a lot at first (that area has a rich blood supply, so even a shallow graze bleeds dramatically) and then stopped, which is exactly what you’d expect and a good sign.
The burning when you pee and wash is normal too, and not a sign of infection: urine is acidic and water disturbs raw skin, so anything touching an open graze stings until it heals over. It doesn’t mean anything is wrong — it’s just exposed skin doing what exposed skin does.
To heal it comfortably and avoid infection: keep the area clean and dry, rinsing gently with plain water once or twice a day and patting (not rubbing) dry.
To stop the sting when you pee, pour a cup of plain warm water over the area while you go — it dilutes the urine so it doesn’t burn, a simple trick that helps a lot. Wear loose cotton underwear, skip soap, scented products and sex until it’s healed, and a plain barrier ointment can protect the raw patch.
A graze like this usually heals within a few days to a week. The signs that would mean see a doctor are if it doesn’t start improving, or you notice spreading redness, swelling, increasing pain, heat, or yellow or green pus-like discharge — those point to infection and need treatment.
But a clean graze kept clean and dry almost always heals quickly on its own, so try not to worry. Our guide to cuts and tears down there has more.
Warmest regards,
Aunt Vadge
This is general information, not a substitute for personalised medical advice.
