Some women just smell bad down there. Hi! I'm one of them. There's literally nothing we can do about it. I get wet all the time too. You could douche, but that's really not healthy and can lead to infections.

Have you asked a gyno specifically about what things can cause this? I dislike my smell every day of the month - I don't even touch myself when I masturbate, I use a towel because I don't want my hand to smell! It may be that you do too, and that right after your period is a time when your body produces more discharge so you smell it more.

A scented panti-liner may help. I've found they sometimes increase my confidence

dammit, I just want it to GO AWAY!

Its nasty and I hate it and I don't even want to have sex bc of it!

I HATE pads and panty-liners. I ONLY wear panty-liners when I am heavy on my period and I don't even WEAR underwear when I am not on the rag.

I could wear tampons just for the wetness, but thats really not good for you.

I just want it GONE! it makes me so mad I HATE being a woman we get the hard end of EVERYTHING!

It could possibly be Bacterial Vaginosis as that can cause a bad smell, particularly when you use soap -it's an acid/ alkali thing and not an STD. Other than the smell, there may be no symptoms. A course of the antibiotic, Metronidazole, will knock it on the head and you won't believe how excellent you feel afterwards!

Maybe thats it, because I just use regular irish spring soap bars down there, and here lately I have been using an aromatherapy bath and body works wash.

could that cause it? what SHOULD I use? This smell has been fairly recent (I mean, I think every woman experiences some odor down there especially after her period but usually washing made it go away for me) its really sour-smelling....like vinegar.

until recently I had been using dove soap, which is really mild. maybe switching to irish spring and now this aromatherapy stuff caused this.

could that be? do I need to go out and buy summers eve feminine wash to use just for that area?

Well, I use Femfresh soap-free wash but I do think you should ask your doctor to check for BV. Don't use any soap with fragrance down there!

If she gets it after every single period, then it sounds like it's just something her body does. If she was smelly all the time then I'd say yes, it could be an infection. But it's the timing that makes me think it's not.

But if this is a recent thing and you recently changed soaps then perhaps that is it? I wish *I* could change soaps and make it go away

Sue Johanson of Talk Sex with Sue Johanson talks about diet affecting the taste of men's ejaculate. Maybe the theory works regarding a female's odor. Her website references a book called Great Food Great Sex. Couldn't hurt...

The other suggestion may sound gross: don't wash your vaginal area with lots of soap and don't wash vigorously. I got this info years ago when I was trying to stop frequent vaginal infections. It really works. The only time I give a thorough cleaning is during my period.

I would definitely stay away from fragrance soaps. Also, although it may smell bad to you it might smell great to him. Has he ever specifically mentioned it smelling bad to you? It's something relatively normal that many women unfortunately have to deal with. If you are worried, you should see your doctor and see if its an infection but if not there isn't too much you can do.

You may want to try something called Diflucan for vaginal odor,
See a Doc too as you could have some type of Fungus infection that is usually very smelly during and after the period
I agree with Galaxy dont use anything scented down there
Goodluck
Fairysue

wait, so if i didnt use any fragranted soaps after i already had and got an odor, would it go away?

My gyno told me never to wash with soap down there except for maybe on the outside. She said to use water only because soap can cause all sorts of problems. If you feel you need to use soap, ivory is a good clean soap that doesn't have a lot of crap in it and it is good for sensitive skin, which I have.

I know you've said its usually just after your period, but as the other women have said, definitely have your doctor check for BV. I had it for a while actulaly and thought it was a yeast infection, then a bacterial one, then an STD. But it was BV and I didn't smell it all the time, just sometimes and worse after my period. Good luck!

I always wash well but make sure I don't over-soap it down there.
Also, just an idea, use cotton underwear, NOT polyester or lycra pants and I notice you say you don't wear underwear usually, well, maybe you should...

Also, what type of sanitary protection are you using?
I used to get too dry with a certain towel, which literally sucked up all my moisture, altering the natural balance down there. Sometimes tampons can irritate you in there too.

It might be any of these things...

theres special soap you can get. i dont know what it is called..its a feminine wash. but you can find it next to the pregnancy tests and lube at the store lol.

oh i also loooove those feminine wipes. i like those too. espeically when you are on the rag..it helps you smell better!

I never really liked those wipes (you are talking about the ones that come packaged with some pads, right)? I don't like the smell of them. They are great for cleaning up though if you really need it

yea. they sell the wipes separate too. i buy the store brand one and they smell better than the always ones.

I had vaginal odor all of the sudden a few months after dating this guy I really liked. I knew that he had to notice during sex, so I was so nervous to have sex. I got tested for std's, and I didn't have any. I tried to think about eating habits, medications, vitamins and one day I smelled the same smell when I opened the bottle of CLA i was taking. It is supposed to help you lose weight. I stopped taking it, and bingo! No odor! I can't find any articles on it, but it did happen to me. Maybe your multivitamin has it in there, or are you possibly taking CLA?

I have had this for about two years. I had an abortion and then requested that I had an IDU, which the nurse gave me. I was told that my periods may alter, but not about anything else. I know how excruciating it is and also went for tests because I thought that I had got an STI. I was given a gel called metronzindale or something, it worked temporarily but I also discovered that it was a really powerful antibiotic, which was meant to rebalance the bacteria, and using it more that once is not recommended.

And I was given a big list of do's and don't's to try and control it. Here are some of them.

Don't wash with soap, only use water - the soap irritates.

Don't wear tights

Do clean your vibrator - if you have one

Do wear cotton knickers

Do eat less sugar - this can affect the ph balance which in turn affects the smell.

Do bath once a month (but no more) in water that has a little (table spoon or two) of vinegar in it, it helps to restore the ph in your vagina.

I found that I had it really badly for about a year and it was awful. Since then I notice that I do still have it but not as badly. You can try different natural products, you must remember that it is to do with yeast, and bacteria and a way to control that can be through your diet, if you eat a lot of rich foods and things this can affect it. Don't give up, hopefully it'll just go. And you would be surprised about how many women suffer the same thing, you are no alone.