# Female Dopers, have you ever douched? Why? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [August 27, 2010, 6:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/female-dopers-have-you-ever-douched-why/551700 "2010-08-27T18:13:27Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Freudian\_Slit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/5daacb/32.png) [@Freudian\_Slit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Freudian_Slit)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2010, 6:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/female-dopers-have-you-ever-douched-why/551700/1 "2010-08-27T18:13:27Z")
In the other thread on a [Summer’s Eve ad](http://www.dailykos.com/storyonly/2010/8/26/896386/-Want-a-raise-Wash-your-vagina), a couple of people mentioned how it was a bad idea to douche. Which is very true. The genitals should be cleaned in the shower with everything else but they don’t need extra care. If it’s smelling bad and a shower doesn’t help, you may have an infection…and douching doesn’t help with that. (It can bring on a yeast infection, though.) But apparently douches are still around (no idea why). Have you ever used a douche? Why? Did it help? ---
**Author:** ![Surly\_Chick](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ec9cab/32.png) [@Surly\_Chick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Surly_Chick)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2010, 6:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/female-dopers-have-you-ever-douched-why/551700/2 "2010-08-27T18:22:52Z")
Just once at the end of my period because I was planning on getting busy that night. Nothing chemical tho - just that standard vinegar and water. ---
**Author:** ![Dogzilla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e480ec/32.png) [@Dogzilla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dogzilla)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2010, 6:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/female-dopers-have-you-ever-douched-why/551700/3 "2010-08-27T18:29:27Z")
Never once. Can’t imagine why I would want to or need to. I once changed an OB tampon after cutting habanero peppers for several hours. That was a mistake. Even though I wore gloves, some of the hot pepper juice still soaked through the gloves… which I didn’t learn until after inserting a hot-pepper juice covered tampon into my hoo-ha. It occurred to me to try douching but I was afraid I’d push the hot pepper juice further up and burn my cervix. It turns out, my body did its job and flushed itself out in about 20 minutes. I had to just sit really, _really_ still. Then everything was fine. ---
**Author:** ![Freudian\_Slit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/5daacb/32.png) [@Freudian\_Slit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Freudian_Slit)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2010, 6:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/female-dopers-have-you-ever-douched-why/551700/4 "2010-08-27T18:35:16Z")
> [@Surly\_Chick](#): > > Just once at the end of my period because I was planning on getting busy that night. Nothing chemical tho - just that standard vinegar and water. What does that do, that just regular cleaning won’t? ---
**Author:** ![Sattua](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sattua/32/11906_2.png) [@Sattua](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sattua)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2010, 6:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/female-dopers-have-you-ever-douched-why/551700/5 "2010-08-27T18:59:40Z")
> [@Freudian\_Slit](#): > > What does that do, that just regular cleaning won’t? Regular cleaning with… a bottle brush? Once your period is over it can take about 24 hours for the stragglers to emerge. I haven’t ever. ---
**Author:** ![Freudian\_Slit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/5daacb/32.png) [@Freudian\_Slit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Freudian_Slit)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2010, 7:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/female-dopers-have-you-ever-douched-why/551700/6 "2010-08-27T19:16:16Z")
Oh. Yeah, sometimes I get a little bit of blood towards the end. If I’m gonna…get busy, as it were, I just figure, eh, at night, all secretions are dark. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![purplehorseshoe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/purplehorseshoe/32/2996_2.png) [@purplehorseshoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/purplehorseshoe)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2010, 7:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/female-dopers-have-you-ever-douched-why/551700/7 "2010-08-27T19:17:59Z")
I’ve passed those things in the aisle at the drugstore, and I think the same thing about them as I do about V!@gra spam: “Who the hell keeps spending the money to keep this enterprise worthwhile?” ---
**Author:** ![needscoffee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/needscoffee/32/1076_2.png) [@needscoffee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/needscoffee)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2010, 7:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/female-dopers-have-you-ever-douched-why/551700/8 "2010-08-27T19:45:39Z")
I’ve posted this before, but as late as 1979, I saw a bottle of Lysol at the variety store whose instructions included directions for douching. I almost bought it just for display purposes. ---
**Author:** ![Dung\_Beetle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dung_beetle/32/7945_2.png) [@Dung\_Beetle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dung_Beetle)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2010, 7:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/female-dopers-have-you-ever-douched-why/551700/9 "2010-08-27T19:47:38Z")
> [@purplehorseshoe](#): > > I’ve passed those things in the aisle at the drugstore, and I think the same thing about them as I do about V!@gra spam: “Who the hell keeps spending the money to keep this enterprise worthwhile?” My mom. She…has some hang-ups. ---
**Author:** ![BigBertha](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/d78d45/32.png) [@BigBertha](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigBertha)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2010, 9:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/female-dopers-have-you-ever-douched-why/551700/10 "2010-08-27T21:02:10Z")
Once, to see what it was like. Didn’t notice any difference. ---
**Author:** ![Sateryn76](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a88e4f/32.png) [@Sateryn76](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sateryn76)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2010, 9:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/female-dopers-have-you-ever-douched-why/551700/11 "2010-08-27T21:09:56Z")
I don’t see what the big deal is…I douche several times a month, usually after my period and after my ovulation. I use a Summer’s Eve douche nozzle (snerk!) and fill it with regular water. Then I just insert it and get any yuck that I can’t get to with my finger. I don’t know about you, but my vag isn’t a smooth inside tube. It has valleys along the sides, and I find it far easier to just spray it out than to root around with a finger. ---
**Author:** ![StusBlues](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/dc4da7/32.png) [@StusBlues](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/StusBlues)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2010, 9:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/female-dopers-have-you-ever-douched-why/551700/12 "2010-08-27T21:12:00Z")
> [@Freudian\_Slit](#): > > Oh. Yeah, sometimes I get a little bit of blood towards the end. If I’m gonna…get busy, as it were, I just figure, eh, at night, all secretions are dark. 🙂 Yeeaaaaaahhhhh. ---
**Author:** ![Heart\_of\_Dorkness](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/4bbf92/32.png) [@Heart\_of\_Dorkness](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Heart_of_Dorkness)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2010, 9:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/female-dopers-have-you-ever-douched-why/551700/13 "2010-08-27T21:20:00Z")
> [@Sateryn76](#): > > I don’t know about you, but my vag isn’t a smooth inside tube. It has valleys along the sides, and I find it far easier to just spray it out than to root around with a finger. But why go up in there at all? My understanding is that your vag is designed to be self-cleaning. I wash my labia, but I’ve never actually “washed” my vagina in any way. Like **Freudian Slit** said, if I felt a shower wasn’t cutting it, I’d hie me to a doctor right sharpish. ---
**Author:** ![Mama\_Zappa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/71e660/32.png) [@Mama\_Zappa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mama_Zappa)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2010, 10:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/female-dopers-have-you-ever-douched-why/551700/14 "2010-08-27T22:54:07Z")
Many years back, a doctor suggested vinegar/water as a way to prevent and/or relieve yeast infections. I did so perhaps twice, to relieve the discomfort before I could get to the doc (this was when the remedies were still prescription only and therefore required a trip to the doctor). It did help, temporarily. But even back then it was widely understood that routine douching was not necessary and might be harmful. ---
**Author:** ![Hello\_Again](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/85e7bf/32.png) [@Hello\_Again](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hello_Again)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2010, 11:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/female-dopers-have-you-ever-douched-why/551700/15 "2010-08-27T23:03:17Z")
The vag is a self-cleaning organ. It does not require cleaning. Certainly not rooting around in there with a finger! WTH? Douching actually can cause vaginal odors and yeast infections. ---
**Author:** ![WhyNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c77e96/32.png) [@WhyNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WhyNot)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2010, 11:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/female-dopers-have-you-ever-douched-why/551700/16 "2010-08-27T23:06:47Z")
Only time I’ve ever douched was with a (hold onto your hats, girls!) yogurt/buttermilk/garlic/goldenseal/thyme/wormwood homemade medicinal douche, to clear out a raging case of bacterial vaginosis that persisted over three years despite repeated antibiotic treatments. Worked with one dose. But oh, gods, what a smell (um, the douche, not me.) ---
**Author:** ![Sateryn76](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a88e4f/32.png) [@Sateryn76](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sateryn76)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2010, 11:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/female-dopers-have-you-ever-douched-why/551700/17 "2010-08-27T23:17:55Z")
> [@Hello\_Again](#): > > The vag is a self-cleaning organ. It does not require cleaning. Certainly not rooting around in there with a finger! WTH? > > Douching actually can cause vaginal odors and yeast infections. Gross Alert! So, my husband and I do it. He ejaculates in my vag. The next morning, after that protein has been busily growing bacteria overnight, we do it again. It smells bad. Even if we don’t do it again, and I wash my labia area well, anything that comes out of there is going to smell bad for a few days. Or, I just finished my period. We both know that, due to my heavy and clotty periods, I have bits of tissue rotting away in there. They make me smell bad. I understand that the vag, like your intestines, has a natural bacterial content and that said bacteria, when in balance, will “clean itself”. However, my definition of clean is different from my bacteria’s definition of clean. I prefer my vag to be completely smell-free, as does my husband. I will also say that I have not had a yeast infection in 17+ years, and since I only douche a few times a month, in between times, I have noticed no change in either the discharge or smell. I kinda think “WTF?” when I think of people not cleaning in there, at least occasionally. I would feel so yucky… ---
**Author:** ![joyfool](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/df788c/32.png) [@joyfool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/joyfool)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2010, 11:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/female-dopers-have-you-ever-douched-why/551700/18 "2010-08-27T23:19:17Z")
Like **Sateryn** , I don’t see what the big deal is. I don’t use them anymore, but when I was sexually active, I’d use them frequently to get anything missed after menustration and to smell extremely fresh before any play occured. ---
**Author:** ![Notchimine](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/bcef8e/32.png) [@Notchimine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Notchimine)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2010, 1:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/female-dopers-have-you-ever-douched-why/551700/19 "2010-08-28T01:00:11Z")
Yes and a few times per month. Been doing it for 30 years. I am an extremely clean person and can’t understand not wanting to be cleaned out after sex and my period. My gyn knows, says it is fine other than when pregnant and wouldn’t consider stopping feeling clean. Honestly, I find not douching after sex and menstruation gross. But that is my hang up and since I am not a lesbian and don’t have to deal with “normal female odors” other than my own, I don’t care what other people do. My vajayjay area has no scent. None and I will say it has always surprised and delighted by male partners not to smell anything until they cause the natural lub that comes with sexual stimulation. ---
**Author:** ![zweisamkeit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zweisamkeit/32/4360_2.png) [@zweisamkeit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zweisamkeit)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2010, 1:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/female-dopers-have-you-ever-douched-why/551700/20 "2010-08-28T01:36:42Z")
> [@Sateryn76](#): > > Gross Alert! > > So, my husband and I do it. He ejaculates in my vag. The next morning, after that protein has been busily growing bacteria overnight, we do it again. It smells bad. Even if we don’t do it again, and I wash my labia area well, anything that comes out of there is going to smell bad for a few days. > > Or, I just finished my period. We both know that, due to my heavy and clotty periods, I have bits of tissue rotting away in there. They make me smell bad. > > I understand that the vag, like your intestines, has a natural bacterial content and that said bacteria, when in balance, will “clean itself”. However, my definition of clean is different from my bacteria’s definition of clean. I prefer my vag to be completely smell-free, as does my husband. > > I will also say that I have not had a yeast infection in 17+ years, and since I only douche a few times a month, in between times, I have noticed no change in either the discharge or smell. > > I kinda think “WTF?” when I think of people not cleaning in there, at least occasionally. I would feel so yucky… … I gotta say, your hoot _should_ be smell free (or y’know, like actual fresh vag) just from showering. Are you sure you don’t have bacterial vaginosis? [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/female-dopers-have-you-ever-douched-why/551700.md?page=2)