Vaginal Steaming has crept into the mainstream awareness through advocates like Gwyneth Paltrow and Chrissy Teagan. But, it’s a practice that has and continues to be utilized by many cultures around the globe.

Each time it appears in the media, it’s met by raucous resistance typically on the part of the medical establishment where it is criticized as being pseudo-science and downright dangerous. But, then again, what thing of any value has not initially been met with skepticism?

Vaginal steaming has served as an indispensable remedy in our clinical practice for decades. Among many things related to women’s reproductive health, it is useful in supporting natural fertility and has helped countless women who were told they could not conceive do so naturally.

What follows is an explanation of what vaginal steaming is and how it works with the reproductive organs to create the conditions necessary for successful conception and full-term pregnancy. Please read on if you’re interested in non-invasive, low-cost fertility solutions.

Check out our Don’t Worry V-Happy Vaginal Steam. The organic herbs support fertility, clearing the uterus before and after periods, treating infections; and promoting postpartum healing.

Wildish Vaginal Steam Don't Worry V-Happy

What is Vaginal Steaming?

Vaginal steaming is the act of sitting over a steaming pot of herbs while the vapors from the herbs heat your pelvic floor, increasing circulation to your uterus and other reproductive organs and delivering nutrients necessary for restoring and maintaining homeostasis. The herbs in a vaginal steam are chosen to nourish the reproductive organs while cleansing them of any pathologies. Think of vaginal steaming as a facial for your entire pelvic area including the reproductive system.

Restoring Homeostasis to the Uterus

Let’s start with some basic anatomy: the uterus or womb, is a hormone responsive organ in the female reproductive system. The uterus is one organ but often is described in sections. The fundus is the top section with the fallopian tubes attached laterally. The cervix is at the bottom section of the uterus and opens to the vagina.

During ovulation the ovaries release an ovum that travels through the fallopian tubes where it is fertilized by the male sperm, before nesting itself in the wall of the uterus as a zygote. When this occurs, the uterus transitions into the womb as it expands into the abdomen to hold the fetus. If the egg goes unfertilized it passes through the uterus and out of the body during menstruation.

The uterus is not in a fixed position but rather held in place by several ligaments, so it moves in your body as you move. As a result, it can tilt or twist away in any number of different directions. The most widely discussed is the tipped or retroverted uterus (estimated to exist in 20% of women), which can result in symptoms like painful intercourse, back aches, cramps during menstruation and urinary tract infections.

The uterus can be out of position for any number of reasons. Activities in which your pelvis is bouncing up and down, like running, horseback riding or other strenuous sports, as well as various forms of trauma, like car accidents or falls, can all affect its positioning.

When this occurs, it can restrict blood flow, impact hormonal responses, inhibit neural connections and put pressure on the fallopian tubes impeding the movement of the egg into the uterus. All of the above can create challenges with fertility.

The heat from vaginal steaming helps to warm your entire pelvic region, increasing circulation and blood flow. This helps to relax the uterus and ligaments that support the uterus assisting it in returning to a normal position and homeostasis. In our clinical practice, steaming is often paired with a form of abdominal massage that further supports the repositioning of the organs. Other than surgery, there are no other remedies in western medicine to address these challenges.

Endometrium & Egg Fertilization

Endometrium is the inner lining of your uterus. It renews and sheds with each menstrual cycle. It builds up to ovulation preparing your uterus to receive the fertilized egg, and if pregnancy does not occur, the endometrium sheds with menstruation. Think of endometrium as the nest that the fertilized egg sticks to in the uterus.

In some women, the uterus fails to completely empty residual endometrium from period to period, creating an unhealthy buildup that actually prevents the egg from adhering to the wall of the uterus. This is why some women will start their periods with dark brown blood instead of bright red blood. This dark discharge can be endometrium from a previous cycle.

Through the using of heat and the increased blood flow that accompanies it, vaginal steaming gently clears the uterus of residual endometrium from past menstrual cycles that may be preventing the egg from properly attaching itself to the wall of the uterus and receiving the crucial nutrients needed to grow a baby. If endometrium is the nest for the egg, steaming helps to make that nest more hospitable.

The Role of Healing Herbs

The herbs in our Don’t Worry V-Happy Vaginal Steam are carefully chosen to nourish the reproductive organs while increasing circulation and blood flow that helps to purge your pelvic floor of pathologies or infections. When you steam with strong aromatic herbs, the plant oils are carried via the steam into the pelvic floor where their anti-fungal and anti-bacterial properties gently cleanse the uterus without eliminating any of the good bacteria and microflora, unlike over-the-counter and prescription antibiotic medications that remove all forms of bacteria (good and bad).

When to Steam for Optimal Fertility

If conception is your goal, we recommend steaming at two points throughout your cycle. First should occur at the beginning, during menstruation, ideally, on one of the last few days, to encourage a complete emptying of the uterus. This would generally fall on days one through five of your cycle. The second time would be during one of the days just before ovulation when you’ll be having the most sex. So, day 12 or 13 of your cycle. This will increase circulation to your pelvic floor, hydrate your tissue and relax the uterus ligaments. You can steam as many times as you want before ovulation. For days during ovulation when you are not steaming, warming up your body with a shower or bath just before sex is also useful. Some women steam on the full or new moon as a regular self-care ritual.

If you get your period, start the steaming pattern again. Discontinue steaming once conception has occurred. This is a self-care ritual that supports fertility and postpartum recovery but is not recommended during pregnancy.

CNY Fertility, is one of the top fertility clinics in New York, and they recommend vaginal steaming as a complimentary treatment to IVF and IUI. Check out their blog post for additional information on how this practice applies to fertility.

Critics of Vaginal Steaming

One common criticism of vaginal steaming is that it alters the pH of the vagina. This is puzzling because all sorts of things alter the vagina’s pH including your period, condoms, antibiotics, douching, spermicide, and even penises! A healthy uterus, just like any other organ, can continuously restore balance to the reproductive system, but only to a point. The act of steaming works to create the blood flow necessary for the reproductive system to restore its own healthy pH.

The second critique that we’ve seen is that the “vagina is a self-cleaning oven.” Again, every day we introduce potential pathogens to the vulva and vagina through tampons, condoms, lubes, pads, thong underwear, waxing, you name it. When the system is functioning properly, yes, it is a self-cleaning oven just like every other part of the body. But, occasionally that system gets out of balance to a point where it can no longer fix itself, hence UTI’s, STIs, yeast infections and all of the medications and antibiotics designed to treat them. Steaming provides a healthy self-care alternative that supports your body’s natural response to pathogens without killing off all the good ones.

The final concern we often hear is that you can burn your external genital organs while sitting over the steam. If your steam is too hot, you will know immediately. Hover over the pan of herbs to see if it is too warm and move away until it cools a little and you can safely sit over the herbal water. It’s just like drinking a cup of tea or sitting in a hot bath. If it’s too hot, just wait a few minutes.

In Closing

We advocate for science, for evidence and for health solutions that empower women. But, there’s exponentially more money being put into research on pharmaceutical medications and treatments than on natural therapies, making natural solutions easy to dismiss. This does not mean they do not work, and our clinical experience suggests the opposite. Invasive fertility treatments like IVF and IUI take a significant physical and mental toll and cost tens of thousands of dollars. We need low-cost, low-impact treatments that are accessible to the masses.

If you have any further questions, please check out our Beginners Guide to Vaginal Steaming where we provide in depth instructions on how to vaginal steam simply and comfortably. Or, send us an email (hello@wildish.co) and we’ll help to answer any questions you might have.

Vaginal Steaming is One of the Simplest Ways to Support Fertility