Dilating is important because the vaginal cavity created during gender reassignment surgery is not supposed to be there, so your body would normally do what it would do with an open wound. It would tend to close it and this is why dilation is important for post operative girls.
Now having said that, after my surgery, I had packing in place of course for a week and I vaguely remember the packing coming out and being reminded not to distinctly about dilating. I was made aware of the the vagina collapsing, but again I only have vague memories of this.
As far as I can remember I was told I needed to dilate, however no hard or fast schedule as far as I can remember was ever laid down for me to follow. The following week after leaving the hospital I attempted to dilate to the best of my ability not withstanding my initial
troubles.
Now as to the dilating implements. I was not handed five different sizes or lengths to do the dilating. Basically all I had was a piece of soft rubber rolled up and a condom was put over the top, then tied. This was inserted into the vagina, come to think of it it was cumbersome to do so and remained my basic method of dilating. Sometimes it was left in overnight. I was also given or one was brought for me, a hard smooth dilator and this dilator was around 2.5cm (1 inch) in diameter and I also used this in the ensuing months and years.
As mentioned before in other posts I was back to work two weeks later after surgery and I said I was dilating once in the morning and once in the evening. However I'm reasonably sure that I was not even following this schedule precisely. There were times in the ensuing years, there were months on end, that I did not even dilate and there was no organic dilation either during those periods.
Currently I have two smooth dilators, both are roughly the same length one is 3.5cm (1 and 3/8") in diameter and the other is 2.5cm (1") and once or twice a week I will insert one for awhile then followed by the other. So at this stage of my life I have finally settled into a reasonable routine of dilating and if I happen to miss a session I am not going to worry about it in the least.
However, this obsession with the rigorous dilation and frequency that some of the surgeons are telling post operative girls is more than likely not warranted. Why? because I had my surgery over 19 years ago, my dilation schedule was virtually non existent to say in the least and currently I have 3.5cm (1 and 3/8 inch) opening and a depth of 16cm (6 and 1/4 inches). I would have to suggest that a research project come up with a more realistic dilation schedule for post operative girls, than the myriad of schedules that are currently being used.
Do I hate dilating no, when I dilate I do it for two reasons, one to err on the side of caution and the other for enjoyment. The only times when I do not dilate, I will let you guess as to why!
Kind regards
Sarah B
