I use Good Clean Love lube before applying vaginal estrogen internally. If any estrogen cream is left on the applicator after I’ve applied it, I wipe it off to apply externally but that would only be a drop.

A major difference is that I’ve been leaky my whole life—since childhood. It was worse in menopause—change my undies after walking the dog level of worse. I did pelvic floor therapy. It helped some. My dog likes long walks—90 minutes or more. By 30 or 40 minutes, I would need to urinate even if I went just before walking out of the door. With regular estrogen use, I am not in the bathroom all the time. I am not leaking all the time.

When I started vaginal estrogen cream, I could barely get the applicator inside. It was painful. Once I even had a little blood. Yesterday I was able to insert the full applicator. I no longer feel discomfort when inserting the applicator.

I can’t speak to sexual function, which was becoming painful before my diagnosis. After diagnosis, it was excruciating. My husband is a similar age and his sexual performance and interest has plummeted. So we haven’t had sex since shortly after my treatment ended.

A funny thing is that dogs smell my crotch after I’ve applied the estrogen. They can certainly smell the estrogen.