MonaLisa Touch - Maryland - Fairfax, VA

I am 42 yo and recently started to see my estrogen levels decline. In May 2016 I had a laparoscopic hysterectomy (keep ovaries) due to fibroids in uterus and very heavy and continual bleeding. Since my procedure, I noticed I had developed vaginal atrophy.

Some of my symptoms included, vaginal dryness, thin vaginal walls (rawish) feeling when and after sex and also recurring urgency to urinate. Additionally, I had two yeast infections, two UTIs and a bacteria infection due to my ph balance being completely out of wack.

I went to my surgical gyn, after diagnosing me with vaginal atrophy (I have never experienced any of these symptoms prior to my surgery), he prescribed me with Estrace and told me that my symptoms would improve in 8-12 weeks. I asked him about the MonaLisa Touch and surprisingly, he was very aware of the procedure. He also informed me that one of his colleagues does the procedure for trial studies. After contacting the office, I was informed that I was not a candidate for the study because the focus of the study was for menopausal and post menopausal women. The GYN also does the procedure outside of the trial for $1500.00.

I was skeptical of starting a estrogen cream and wanted to see what options were available to assist with the recurring nightmare that I was continuously going through. I came across the MonaLisa Touch. Once I found there were other options available to me (outside of the estrogen therapy), I started contacting providers in my area that offered the MonaLisa Touch. I also found these reviews very helpful in making my decision. I contacted more than 8 doctors in my area that performed the procedure and I asked each of them questions regarding the results and well has patients that the treatment had been unsuccessful. I was totally amazed at the range of information, pricing and lack of knowledge provided. Some of the information provided, was so vague it reminded me of getting a facial peeling from my laser center... sad but just selling a product.

I decided to narrow my search to only GYN doctors and came across a few that were really descriptive and provided me with a greater deal of information to assist me in making an informed decision. I had narrowed my options to the referred doctor and a Dr. that I found in Fairfax, VA.

I decided to go with the Fairfax, VA GYN (Dr. Joanne Hermman) because she had opening sooner that the referred GYN.

I went for my consultation and I left feeling confident that I was making the right choice on having the procedure. She was very detailed and explained everything to me so that I can clearly understand and make a informed decision. She reviewed my pathology report, my labs and also examined me before giving me the "all clear." She ran some additional test and wanted to wait until the results came back before I had my procedure. Turns out I had a bacteria infection (AGAIN) and she wanted to ensure that the treatment would be most effective (apparently the laser doesn't work well with water (liquid). I scheduled tentatively for the next week and she called in a prescription and told me to douche to get out the bacteria.

I went in the next day, she confirmed that I had followed all of the instructions, reconfirmed that I still wanted to have the procedure. The procedure was virtually painless. She does the inside and outside (standard on all patients). I think the procedure for the inside lasted about 4-5 minutes. The same for the outside. She then used Aquaphor and put an icepack on the area for about 10 minutes.

After the procedure, I returned to work. It was a little sore and itchy which was expected. I had an frozen water at my desk and used it as needed. By the evening when I got home, the itching was gone. Still some soreness, but I followed all of the instructions.

The next morning, I noticed the urgency to use the bathroom was completely gone. No leakage, no issues at all in that area. I also noticed that after the second day after I stopped using the Aquaphor that my outside was not dry and itchy at all. So now for the "doing the do"... lol! I had the procedure done on Tuesday and I was so nervous but I had sex on Saturday. When I had sex, there was no dryness (entire time) and I did not have the feeling of the rawness while having sex or after. I have had sex two more times since the procedure and I feel the same.

I totally feel about 85% better just after my first procedure. I know I can only get better from here :) (sorry I am so wordy but I find some of the reviews lack information that I needed to make an informed decision and therefore I decided if I posted that I would post in detail). I am excited to have some peace of mind in returning my vaginal health back to normal.