Yoni Steaming Part 2 - Why You Don’t Steam At Home

Why You Don’t Yoni Steam At Home

We’ve officially seen yoni steaming sets being sold on Urban Outfitters.com, which must mean it is officially a new trend. It’s no surprise that it’s gaining in popularity, as we talked about in our previous post, yoni steaming can provide numerous benefits to women’s health. Our western culture is certainly catching on to several traditional medicine techniques that have survived the test of time and are very beneficial, especially for our girly bits.

While the benefits of Yoni steaming can be life-changing for women- ie. relieving severe and chronic period pain, or alleviating dryness or infections, etc. we cannot ignore the fact that as with most medicinal techniques- they are not for everyone. To be sustainable and truly therapeutic, medicine has to be especially suited to the individual. Before our steaming service, we always sit down and get a health intake to ensure that yoni steaming will be safe for you. There are several contraindications and cautions for yoni steaming- and we never suggest playing around with herbs if you are not a licensed herbalist with lots of education and training.

It is important to note that the differences in herbal training can be quite vast. Western herbology certifications can be done online, usually in a few short months. However, in Chinese herbology herbal medicine usually encompasses several years of the standard 4 year Master’s program needed to become an acupuncturist. We then also need to sit for a national board exam to be certified in herbal medicine. Asking someone working at a health food store for herbal advice, versus sitting down and doing a full health history intake with an acupuncturist and herbalist is quite different.

Sourcing herbs from high-quality companies that are third-party lab tested is also an important part of ensuring safety. Herbs can contain heavy metals, pesticides, or residues and we are always sure to source them from companies that employ third-party lab testing. 

There are also several contraindications and cautions that should always be examined in regards to vaginal steaming. Below are 4 situations in which vaginal steaming is unsafe and contra-indicated.

1. If a woman is pregnant, vaginal steaming is an absolute NO.

2. If a woman is trying to conceive and is in the two week wait period of her luteal phase, or after an IVF transfer

3. If a woman is currently menstruating, as it can cause heavier bleeding.

4. If a woman is prone to spontaneous bleeding and often has 2 periods in a month in the past 3 months.

There are also situations in which steaming is not necessarily contraindicated, but can make things worse. 

Symptoms such as a “burning itch” could be aggravated by hot steam and potentially make the condition worse. Certain types of birth control could potentially become less effective from yoni steaming. Nexplanon, hormonal birth control that gets surgically inserted into the arm, works by creating a thick mucous in the uterus that helps to prevent implantation. Theoretically, yoni steaming could clear out the thick mucous and make contraception more likely. If you had the Essure permanent birth control coil inserted or tubal ligation done, it is also advised not to steam. If you had a uterine ablation to stop bleeding, steaming could potentially clear out scar tissue and make pregnancy more likely. 

As far as cautions go, this is where reviewing the patient’s health history and presentation will become extremely important. There are certain situations and conditions in which the steam session would be modified so that is safer or more effective for the patient. For example, we might adjust the length of time we would let someone steam, the temperature of the steam, or which herbs would be avoided or added. Certain conditions in which there is inflammation present may benefit from a much shorter steam time and a much lower temperature.

If you are interested in trying yoni steaming and would like to know if you are a candidate, you can book a session here.

This blog post was written by Samantha Kloss, L.Ac.