A 21-year-old woman learns that she has a “double” vagina while being treated for constant sexual arousal

After living in “pain” for most of her life due to persistent genital arousal disorder, a 21-year-old art student says doctors have discovered her condition

A Barrington, Rhode Island, woman discovered she had a “double” vagina after seeking treatment for a rare condition that caused her to live in a constant state of arousal most of her life.

Scarlet Kaitlin Wallen, 21, says she feels a constant “tingling” sensation in her genitals, and the persistent feeling is so painful that it prevents her from working or studying full-time, according to Southwest News Service New York Post.

“I have been in pain for as long as I can remember,” the part-time art student told the outlet. “My vulva was constantly on fire – it was like I was naturally aroused but I didn’t want it.”

Her disorder, Persistent Genital Arousal Disorder (PGAD), is an “extremely rare” disorder, affecting an estimated 1% of women, according to the Cleveland Clinic.

It’s characterized by “unpredictable, uncontrollable physical sensations associated with sexual arousal – but without desire.” And these symptoms don’t go away with orgasms, notes the Cleveland Clinic, adding: “PGAD doesn’t feel as good as sexual ones Excitement.”

Wallen compared the feeling to “burning insects under your skin” and said: “There is nerve pain, it is unwanted – and there is no pleasure. “I hope to have a pain-free sexual relationship in my life.”

The Cleveland Clinic says the disorder, which was only recognized in 2001, “is so new that researchers are still learning what treatments and coping strategies work best,” pointing to medication, physical therapy and behavioral therapies as ways to cope.

Related: A vaginal ring may protect women from HIV, new studies say

Wallen said she was so desperate for relief from her condition that she applied Vapor Rub, a menthol-infused topical ointment commonly used to open the airways during bouts of chest congestion, to her genitals and told SWNS that the pain was better are as the PGAD.

“At least if it didn’t treat me, the pain I would get from it would be distracting,” she said. “I wanted my genitals to burn from this and not from the PGAD.”

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Wallen shared that a doctor diagnosed her with hypersensitive pelvic nerves, which is believed to be the cause of her PGAD. She was scheduled to have a vestibulectomy – surgery to remove the painful tissue – but during that exam her doctor made a shocking discovery.

“They found out I had a duplicate (vagina),” she told SWNS.

What she had was a septate vaginal wall, which, according to the Cleveland Clinic, is a “tissue wall” that divides the vagina into two parts.

Therefore, in February 2023, Wallen underwent surgery to remove the septal wall and seven months later she underwent the vestibulectomy.

Related: Ala. Woman with double uterus is pregnant and expecting a baby in both cases: This is “very, very rare”

However, she shared that she only had parts of the painful tissue removed because she was also diagnosed with post-SSRI sexual dysfunction, a “numbing” effect in the genitals that can be caused by some antidepressants in selective serotonin, according to the National Library of Medicine they belong to the class of reuptake inhibitors.

“I was told that if I removed everything, there was a significant chance that I would no longer be able to experience natural sexual arousal due to my sexual dysfunction following SSRIs.”

“I still want to have a sexual relationship,” Wallen told SWNS, “but my current choice is to live with PGAD or be completely deaf.”

“I just hope that one day I can live a normal life.”

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