By 2020, more than 50 million women in the United States will be past the age of 51, which is the average age of natural menopause. While most women go into menopause expecting to experience familiar symptoms like hot flashes, lower energy levels, and a slower metabolism, many women are surprised by just how much the “change of life” can impact their vaginal and urinary health.
Up to 60% of menopausal women develop some degree of vaginal atrophy, a chronic condition that can causes a variety of uncomfortable symptoms, including persistent vaginal dryness. But whereas hot flashes, night sweats, and mood swings typically disappear once the transition into menopause is complete, vaginal and urinary symptoms tend to linger without treatment.
Here at Rodeo Drive Women’s Health Center, we’ve helped many women restore their vaginal and urinary health after menopause with MonaLisa Touch®, a groundbreaking treatment that uses laser energy to restore and revitalize your vaginal tissues safely, effectively, and without surgery.
Here’s why MonaLisa Touch may be an ideal solution for you.
It’s estimated that more than half of all postmenopausal women live with persistent vaginal dryness, an irritating problem that’s often accompanied by noticeable itching, burning, or ongoing discomfort.
Although chronic vaginal dryness affects women of all ages, it occurs most often after menopause, when estrogen levels are at an all-time low. Because estrogen plays a vital role in maintaining normal lubrication and tissue elasticity, low estrogen levels can leave your vaginal wall drier, thinner, less elastic, and more delicate.
To reverse vaginal dryness and restore normal moisture and lubrication, MonaLisa Touch uses fractional CO2 laser energy to create painless microchannels in the tissues that line your vaginal canal.
These tiny microchannels reawaken the cells in the treatment area, prompting them to actively restore collagen, elastin, glycogen, hyaluronic acid, and other normal elements of healthy vaginal tissue.
For the majority of women who try it, MonaLisa Touch laser therapy successfully eliminates vaginal dryness and reverses its effects.
Menopause-induced vaginal dryness is also connected to less effective lubrication during sexual arousal, which can make intercourse uncomfortable or even painful. When intercourse is no longer comfortable, it can have a domino effect that leads to diminished libido and a loss of intimacy with your partner.
By restoring proper balance to your vaginal tissues, MonaLisa Touch supports your body’s normal lubrication response and helps revive complete sexual function.
Besides being quick, easy, and painless, MonaLisa Touch laser therapy doesn’t require any recovery time, meaning you can jump back into your normal routine right after your session. To give your vaginal tissues ample time to respond to the treatment, however, you should postpone having sex for two or three days.
Once you’re ready to be intimate once again, you can expect a noticeable improvement in your body’s natural lubrication response. The average woman needs three MonaLisa Touch treatments, spaced six weeks apart, to achieve optimal results.
Whether you can’t always hold it in before you get it to the bathroom or a forceful cough leaves you crossing your legs, you’re not alone. Urinary leakage, also known as urinary incontinence (UI), is a common problem that affects millions of women at any given time.
Women are more susceptible than men to developing UI, mostly because of the physical stresses and hormonal changes caused by pregnancy, childbirth, and menopause.
Urinary control issues that arise during or after menopause may be triggered by depleted estrogen levels, which can leave your urethral tissues weaker and less toned than normal.
Luckily, MonaLisa Touch laser therapy is a simple and effective solution for many women with mild-to-moderate UI. That’s because the treatment doesn’t simply restore vaginal tissues — it also stimulates new collagen, elastin, and vascularization in your urethral tissues to promote improved urinary control.
After just three quick MonaLisa Touch treatments, up to 75% of women find complete relief from their UI problem. It can also help resolve chronic urinary tract infections (UTIs) and persistent vaginal infections.
Although hormone replacement therapy (HRT) was once considered the go-to treatment for women living with disruptive menopause symptoms — including estrogen-related vaginal and urinary effects — it’s a short-term solution that isn’t necessarily suitable for all women.
Just as HRT isn’t an option for younger, premenopausal women, it isn’t an option for women with certain health problems, including a history of breast, ovarian, or uterine cancer.
But for the younger women who experience vaginal dryness and other menopause-like symptoms following cancer treatment, MonaLisa Touch laser therapy offers a safe and effective way to alleviate symptoms and restore vaginal health and function. It’s also a viable option for young women who experience long-term vaginal dryness following childbirth.
To find out how MonaLisa Touch laser therapy can benefit you, call our office in Beverly Hills, California, to schedule a consultation.
