Something else? Ask Aunt Vadge – bottom left of your screen!
Hey Aunt Vadge,
I just did my first water skiing! Was going well but came down fairly hard – pinched down there but only noticed a few hours later when I saw some blood after peeing.
Looked with a little mirror and there are two thin cuts next to each other – one an inch long, the other half an inch – just inside the inner labia. My concern is I’m on holiday: does that mean I shouldn’t go in the sea with an open wound?
Can I go in the pool? It’s hot and sweaty, so how often should I wash the area?
First Timer
Age 34, Barbados
Hey First Timer,
Congratulations on the water skiing, if not the landing! Two clean little cuts inside the inner labia (an inch and half an inch) from a hard pinch are exactly the kind of minor split that heals quickly on its own – the vulva has a great blood supply and knits these together fast.
The main job now is keeping them clean and not letting anything irritate or infect them while they close over, which usually only takes a few days.
On your holiday questions: hold off on the sea and the pool until the cuts have closed over, which generally means a few days with no open break in the skin. The sea carries bacteria you’d rather not introduce to an open wound, and pool chlorine will sting and irritate raw splits – neither is worth a possible infection on holiday.
For washing, you don’t need to do it often or vigorously: a plain-water rinse once or twice a day, and after you’ve sweated a lot, then pat (don’t rub) dry, is plenty – over-washing and scrubbing irritate more than they help.
Wear loose cotton, skip tight or synthetic swimwear against the area while it heals, and a plain barrier ointment can protect the cuts in the heat.
Keep an eye out for spreading redness, swelling, increasing pain, heat or any pus-like discharge, which would mean infection and a visit to a local doctor – but two small, clean cuts that are already scabbing should have you back in swimming weather within a few days.
Our full guide to cuts and tears down there covers the rest.
Warmest regards,
Aunt Vadge
This is general information, not a substitute for personalised medical advice.
