Vaginal atrophy and painful intercourse: What helps?

Hello .....

I am new to this group but am a member of the Breast Cancer Group (survivor 7 years) and a member of the Lung Cancer group (husband is still battling).

Anyone heard of the Viveve Treatment:??????
I have had vaginal atrophy for around 5 years. I first noticed when I had a terrible burning sensation one day and found that I have a cystocele (a drop of my urethra/bladder into my vaginal canal due to vaginal atrophy). I have been using estrogen and Replens for years. Then one day I got a massive, terrible, on-going fungal/yeast infection that took weeks to clear up. I'm 65 now and on Medicare (thank goodness) and finally able to get some care for several issues. Overall, I'm as dry as the Sarhara Desert everywhere (eyes, mouth, skin, hair, vagina) and am on a quest to get some answers.
One option that has been presented to me is an intravaginal treatment called Viveve. It's a laser treatment, inside your vagina that creates an environment that makes new cells grow (similar to the action that intercourse might have I guess, but that's in layman terms). The results create new cells that keep the vagina from atrophy for either one year, five years or perhaps a lifetime....different for everyone. Has anyone else heard of this or something similar?
I would really like to try this, as the constant creams I have to use (multiple times per day) and as an estrogen positive breast cancer survivor - who uses vaginal estradiol cream carefully- I'd like a more permanent solution. If I don't stop the march of time with my vagina I will have to get a pessary (an item that holds my bladder in place to keep it out of my vagina).

The drawback is that the procedure is FDA approved but Medicare and Health Insurance won't pay for it and it's pricey (about $2,500). My Urogynecologist believes it's safe and was very frank about how angry she is that health insurance and Medicare consider the treatment 'cosmetic'. Not sure about you gals but how the inside of my vagina 'looks' isn't a big factor for me, ha ha. How it feels and the subsequent problems and distress vaginal atrophy and dryness can cause...that's more of a concern to me.
Hugs to all...........would appreciate any input.

I have had the same problem needing to correct atrophy-related symptoms, and I have none of those. My reasons are purely selfish. I am 57 now, but was maybe 54 when Vaginal Atrophy hit me. I say "hit me" because it happened overnight. My husband and I have always enjoyed a very active sex life, and one night it was great as always, and the next, it felt like he was wearing a condom made of tiny knives slicing me up. All at once, fine one day, and you can never have great sex again the next. I just cried and cried because my husband has turned to younger women a few times now to satisfy his needs because I simply could not do it anymore. It is ruining my marriage. Like someone else said I first talked to my primary who had nothing relevant to say at all and then a nurse practitioner/gyn that is a sex/menopause specialist. My primary ridiculously told me to try lubricants. There does not exist a lubricant that can help this kind of pain unless it has the stuff they use at the dentist in it, then maybe. The specialist told me it was vaginal atrophy, and prescribed estradiol vaginal cream. As I began to use it, it did help a little, but not that much, and a side effect I noticed was my hair began to fall out. Numerous professionals have told me that is not possible, that estrogen helps hair regrow, not the opposite but when I read the entire paper that came with it, in the fine print, hair loss was listed as a possible side effect. So then I had to choose between my hair falling out in patches or a better sex life but still not perfect. So I stopped taking it. Now when we want to be intimate, I take 6 or 8 Ibuprofins and have 3 shots of Tequila, and I can get through it and sometimes actually enjoy it for a little while. In the end, I am still so sad because vaginal atrophy literally ruined my life. Now I've gained some weight, and I feel like I am not a real woman anymore. I feel unattractive and now I have trust issues with my husband who says "you didn't just expect me to never have sex again just because you can't, did you? " Yep, that's my man, I can't believe more people in their 50's don't off themselves. Everything you care about is gone, including good sex, slim body, kids have all moved out, I have no friends near me anymore, and now my husband cheats occasionally and I'm supposed to be ok with that because I guess it's my fault. I need help with this issue. Real help before it's too late for me. Any suggestions at all would be welcomed appreciatively. I sound like a baby. With so many of you having way more serious things going on like cancers, endometriosis, and urology issues, I am so sorry I feel ridiculous even bringing this up.

I also had to stop using estradiol when I got ER+ breast cancer. My doctor recommended using a cream with hyaluronic acid when the moisturizers and lubricants were not helpful.
When I started Tamoxifen I got a surprise. Hormone therapies can reduce estrogen so low that makes vaginal atrophy worse. But for me, 18 years postmenopausal, Tamoxifen is acting as an agonist in body parts other than my breasts. That means it promotes an estrogenic like response - so my vaginal atrophy is gone. It’s a little unnerving and it makes me worry - but evidently it is an expected response for someone like me who had really low estrogen levels before starting hormone therapy.
It also makes me wonder if the estradiol that I was using on a regular basis prior to BC diagnosis really was part of the reason the cancer started growing when it did.

One thing I wanted to mention, since we’re on this topic 🙂
Warning, warning, graphic topic following!!
Would it make any sense that part of the problem with vaginal atrophy and sex is that the clitoris goes limp? Do you also have that problem? That the clitoris won’t/can’t get aroused? It’s not just that the vaginal skin is thin and dry.
Would increasing the blood flow to the clitoris make a difference? For men, if they have sexual dysfunction, they are more likely to get a little blue pill that is a type of vasodilator and allows more blood flow to the penis. Increasing testosterone alone does not fix the problem.
So we’re looking at female issues and only thinking that estrogen is the answer? (Besides just masking the problem with lubricants). Low estrogen is definitely driving the loss of skin quality and moisture. But maybe a little extra blood flow to the area would not only improve the skin but also help the clitoris to stiffen and become aroused. If they can manufacture a little blue pill for men, maybe they should look into creating the same function for women.
I know there is supposed to be a female viagra but “both available drugs boost the activity of chemical messengers in your brain, called neurotransmitters, that are key to helping you feel aroused.” (Cleveland Clinic)
But vaginal atrophy is not a problem that can be solved in my head. I’d like to see them really find a solution to boosting blood flow to the clitoris. Maybe that along with moisturizers, hyaluronic acid, and lubricants will bring sex back again.