Hello, my name is Rosario Olivares. I am 65 years old, I did it in October 2023. I wanted to tell you how I started with this disease (which I did not know existed) called ‘vulvar scleroatrophic lichen’.

I started urinating every 5 minutes and my doctor sent me to the urologist and he put me on a treatment for 1 year and 3 months. The treatment consisted of putting me in waves but at no time did they find what was really wrong with me. When I finished I went to the nurse because my private parts itched a lot and she told me to make an appointment with the doctor and tell him, so I did and he sent me a cream but it did nothing, each time it got worse and itched more.

I went again and then he sent me to the gynecologist and I will never forget that day. I was waiting in the room for the gynecologist to call me, when he showed me in he laid me down on the table and looked at my private parts and as soon as he saw me he told me ⤽what a fucking lichen you have.â I was scared because I had never seen it before. I got scared because I had never heard of it and I asked him “What is that?”, and he replied that it was a skin disease that had no cure or operation and that I had to assume it. I started to cry and asked myself why me.

I ended 2013 with the onset of this disease. It was such a delicate area, it was very itchy, I had fissures, I drew blood from scratching it⦠They sent me creams, Vaseline, clovate and I don�t know how many other things, but I was getting worse and worse. I could not even have sex with my husband, it hurt so much. I did not even want to look at him, until one day I noticed that I had no clitoris. Scared I went to the emergency room and they confirmed it, my clitoris had disappeared. All this was in 2015.

I also noticed that I was losing my labia, it was swollen and with red spots, it was raw, I could not even put on panties, everything rubbed me. In 2018 it was worse, I had itching, pain, wounds, I did not know what to do. One day I took the âNiveaâ cream (the one with the blue lid) and I gave it to myself in fistfuls and it was the only one that relieved me and took away the redness I was getting.

In October 2019 I had a biopsy done in case there was something wrong. The results were ⤽goodâ¤, it was just the lichen that was progressing more and more. In 2020 I got white spots and they sent me to the hospital and gave me 3 sessions of photodynamic therapy. It was horrible, they put me on a stretcher with a spotlight burning my parts and at the same time they poured saline solution on me for 8 minutes. Each session took about 3 hours, they had to stop and continue once or twice because it burned me. Then I had to stay 1 month with antibiotic ointment. The pandemic arrived and they did not give me any more sessions, I used the ⤽nivea⤠which was the only thing that calmed me down when I had it in the flesh.

In 2022 the dermatologist sent me to the gynecologist (I don�t know what he did to me or what he put in me that made me bleed, horrible pain). She wanted to do a cytology and I told her it was impossible, not even my little finger would fit. I arrived home with my panties stuck together, full of blood. While I was there I asked him how he saw it and he told me that it was very advanced but that with stem cells it would get better, but that it had to be done privately, that it was not covered by social security.

I started to look on the internet and I found my savior, Dr. Patricia Gutiérrez. I contacted her and went to her office in Valencia on July 24, 2023. I loved how she treated me, she looked at me without hurting me with great affection, she gave me confidence. He told me that I had to have surgery, that I had no clitoris, that I had phimosis, half of my parts covered with flesh grown from the anus upwards and 22% of carcinoma. I left the consultation, I told my children and my husband and they supported me and told me to go ahead. On September 14, 2023 I was operated on by ‘my savior’.

I will be 6 months and I have no wounds, no burning, no inflammation, no itching, a normal color and when I see it I can not believe it, what a change. I just wish that someday this will be cured. But today, I thank God for leaving my fears behind and finding me and putting me in the hands of Dr. Patricia, she is wonderful in every way and in her work the best. I want to say that in the operation I was treated super well and every time I go to my reviews I am treated like a family, super affectionate all. I am 8 days away from 6 months after the operation and I can already have sex with my husband and I can�t believe it. I was a little scared but little by little I saw that it did not hurt a bit and the third time and much better because before I could not even touch me, horrible. I wanted to point out that I have had this disease for 10 years and if the gynecologist did not tell me that with stem cells I could have a better quality of life I do not know how I would have ended up.

When I went to the dermatologist who was treating me she was amazed at the change and I told her that she never told me about this. I do everything my savior Patricia tells me and she sent me the repairing elixir, the soothing dermnix and clovate. THANK YOU, THANK YOU AND THANK YOU PATRICIA.

Rosario Olivares

I was diagnosed with Lichen Sclerosus at age 27 after an insufferable battle in which no doctor knew what was wrong with me. Finally, the doctor who diagnosed me, did it without any tact, making a lot of emphasis on the fact that this disease was for premenopausal women. I remember thinking: what a bitch life has done to me.

At first, I became obsessed with this disease and its long-term consequences. I imagined my life without being able to have sexual intercourse, or with my vagina disconfigured by the passage of lichen and time in it. So much so, that I had to stop reading to keep from torturing myself.

The lichen became a nightmare in which simple things like putting on a tight pair of pants, sitting on a chair, going for a run (this was very important for me, as I was starting to prepare for ultra distances), sleeping (nighttime itching prevented me from doing so), urinating and even having sex, were impossible to do without pain or discomfort.

With the help of my mother we visited many gynecologists in search of a solution. I tried everything; creams of all types and with different formulations, diets, cO2 laser, infiltrations of platelet-rich plasma (these last two greatly relieved my symptoms) with which I improved, but it was still annoying.

When I gave up the search for a cure and started to get used to the idea that this was my new life, supermom did it again, she found Dr. Ontalvilla and her Liquenia treatment! And she gave me life for the second time in her life. From the very first moment, she reassured me and helped me to understand my disease. Having the Liquenia treatment was the best thing I have ever done in my life. It has now been 1 year since I had the treatment and the symptoms are almost completely gone, I have the quality of life I had before I was diagnosed with Lichen Sclerosus. I can now wear tight jeans, ride a bike without pain, I have done 3 ultra trails (and more to come!) and I sleep like a dream.

Laura.

My life took a 360 degree turn when I was diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis, divorced, with two young children and 38 years old.Â

I did not know what that was, you think it is for old people, I was a regular gym goer, I did everything, weights, bike, run⦠I was not lazy at all, I have always taken care of myself in every way

A year after getting divorced, I began to notice pain in my wrists, knees, every day something hurt me, but totally bearable, my divorce was by mutual agreement, nothing painful, in fact we get along better now than when we were together, so it was not at all traumatic

The pain came and went, I thought it was from the gym, nothing important, until a family friend, a doctor, told me to have an analysis of rheumatic markers and, there came out everything altered. Some markers went through the roof!

I got really scared and I contacted a rheumatologist to explain to me what I had, because I went on the Internet and I only saw ⤽chronic and degenerative disease…â, I think I lost 5 kg that summer because of the shock, how could a sportswoman who takes care of herself have a chronic, degenerative, inflammatory and autoimmune disease?

Over the months I managed to come to terms with the disease, with the help of my family and my doctor, I believe that first you have to admit what you have and then you start to get to know the disease, but the psychological role is fundamental, to accept what you have and, above all, that it is forever

They started to prescribe corticoids and methotrexate (an immunomodulator) and that is when my nightmare began, with the corticoids I obviously swelled up, the full moon effect arrived. My family and my friends told me that I looked beautiful, but I did not recognize myself in the photos, the only thing that consoled me was that I knew it was something temporary; that is, in my case the corticoids were not going to be forever, they would be lowered little by little and everything would return to normal, that consoled me and that was really the case. I also thought that first I had to feel well and fight the disease; physical activity would have to be put aside for a while

The methotrexate was not bad for me at all. My hair was falling out a lot and, being an immunosuppressant, I had to take more care of myself since I was more exposed to contracting any virus or disease. But my tests came back great, so in 6 months I had the disease more or less under control. And I say 6 months because 6 months after I was diagnosed with arthritis and on medication I started having horrible itching in the intimate area

It was desperate, I think there is no cream, ovule or gel that I have not used. It was a mixture of itching, burning and stinging that did not let me do absolutely nothing: walking, walking, wearing pants, standing, sitting, there was that damn itching that came and went

Of course, I told my rheumatologist and my lifelong gynecologist and they both told me the same thing: it was a lowering of my defenses due to the methotrexate. I had to take probiotics and some eggs for the candidiasis and little else

I spent an enormous amount on probiotics, creams, intimate gels, etc. And there was the nasty itch that came and went; when it seemed to be gone, it would reappear a few days later

Then my journey began, because I knew I had something and it was not exactly candid because my crops were perfect. I was there for two years. Two horrible years of doctor after doctor saying that I was itching and that I knew it was not fungus or any STD or anything. I went to midwives and social security doctors, private, recommended, in person, by video call, I was desperate and I started to fall into depression too

Those were two very hard years, I would get up in the morning listless. I would go for a walk with my children and I would stop on a bench halfway to sit down for a while because of the damn itching. There were days when I would get up so itchy that I would talk bad to them, poor things; that’s what I carry the worst: having been grumpy with the people who love me

I did not want to leave the house because nobody understood me. It is clear that not even I knew what I had and, of course, my mother and my partner at the time, who played a fundamental role in all this, so I would like to dedicate a section to him later. Nobody else knew what was happening to me, I locked myself in my world and stopped going out and doing the things I liked. Until one day my mother got me out of bed and told me that I could not be like this, that I had two children and that I had to get back on my feet, so she booked an appointment with a psychiatrist

What she did was to send me an antidepressant, the minimum dose to cope with what I told her. I told her I had rheumatoid arthritis and that I had a horrible itch down there that the doctors couldn’t diagnose. He didnâ¤?t know what to tell me, only that in a month it would start to work and I would handle things differently

Well, I did not rule out taking medication for depression as well, I was aware that my mood was on the floor. I continued my medical journey to find a name for what was happening to me. If there was something (a medication) that would at least make me carry it as dignified as possible and be kinder to the people around me, I wanted to try it

It was funny, but rheumatoid arthritis had taken a back seat, I told my partner almost daily: ⤽I prefer the pain, not the itchingâ¤. I have repeated this phrase a thousand times

They started to take me off the corticosteroids and lower my methotrexate because I had my arthritis almost under control, but why didn�t the itching go away? That is when my partner became much more involved and started to give me ideas, the ones that are right in front of us and sometimes we don�t even see them ourselves.

I have always thought that I have been very lucky with my partner. Two months after we started dating I was diagnosed with arthritis, so he has known ‘the worst of me’. I always tell him jokingly that he has met me at the worst moment of my life, but I think I am super lucky to have him by my side because he has bothered to listen to me, to know the disease/s I have and to know how to deal with them

I am the one who sets the pace of the relationship; when I want to cry, he sits next to me; when I am upbeat, we go out to celebrate; when I want to have sex, the same thing. It is not easy for him, that is why I assume how lucky I am. He is a guy my age, also divorced and with two children, to complicate his life like that and take care of me, he has to love me a lot. And I love him

I am not much of a social networker and I didnÂ’t want to see how happy people were on Instagram or Facebook, but it was my partner who told me to use the networks as support groups. Â I discovered that there is an infinite world of support groups! I started with arthritis which, although it did not worry me as much as itching, it is always good to ask some questions about food or sports (never medical). I can say that, to this day, I keep this group and it works phenomenal

I kept searching. And I found the vulvodynia group, which is not exactly a pathology, but a consequence of some pathology in the vulvar area. I started to pull the thread of this group and I found women with different vulvar pathologies, but all of them had in common with me, whatever the disease was, the beginning. All of them had gone like me, years of doctor to doctor, dermatologists, gynecologists, pelvic floor physios, urologists, etc.. Each one with their own disease, but all with years or months searching for a diagnosis.

I started talking to some girls from Valencia, being from Valencia I thought it would be easier to find the doctor who could treat me and they told me about a gynecologist specializing in vulvar pathology, Dr. Silvana Aniorte. I called her right away and she saw me right away too. I remember when I was on my way to her office, discouraged, thinking that she was going to tell me what all the doctors had told me so far, that I had nothing and to take probioticsâ¦

I sat there and he started asking me questions. I thought: ⤽I am going to give her the same old crap again, the arthritis, the itching, etc.â She just listened to me, she did not say anything, when I finished telling her my life story she said: ⤽Ithink I know what you have, but I want to see you first.â She recognized me, she said to me: ⤽I think I know what you have, but I want to see you firstâ¤. She recognized me, she told me to sit down, she told me that she already knew what it was. He said, ‘You havelichen, a chronic inflammatory autoimmune skin disease

I had heard about this disease in the Facebook group, but in my case, I dismissed it because I do not have the typical white plaques that characterize the disease, or, at least, I did not see them with the naked eye with my magnifying mirror with which I looked for things almost daily

The doctor told me that I had to use corticoid cream during the times of outbreak (itching) and the rest of the time and for life vitamin E in oil or cream, that is to say, a lot of hydration. And in 15 days I would tell her how it was going.

I already had a diagnosis! That was very important for me, to know what I have, to name it, to treat it and, as I did with the arthritis, to start to assimilate it. I immediately got down to work with the cream that the gynecologist prescribed and with vitamin E, I noticed a lot of improvement, I was not 100% but everything was much lighter, which also made me feel better anally, with more strength, enthusiasm and desire to do things

After 15 days I wrote to Dr. Aniorte as she asked me, I told her that I was doing much better but there was still some discomfort some days. Then she told me about the Liquenia treatment of Dr. Patricia Gutierrez Ontalvilla, she told me that surely the remaining discomfort could go away with this treatment

As soon as I spoke with Silvana I looked for Patricia and made an appointment; two days after calling she was there, in her wonderful waiting room surrounded by a very loving team, all of them looking out for me. The doctor saw me, recognized me, talked to me and explained to me what her treatment consisted of; I unburdened myself to her

I remember leaving there and telling my mother and my partner, only they knew what I had been through and only they knew that I wanted to be 100% and I was going to try everything. I also remember that the next day I called the doctor to ask for a slot in the operating room, I was sure, I wanted to try and I wanted to be well. My partner talked to me a lot until the day of the surgery, he told me that if it did not work I should not fall into depression again, he knew perfectly well that I had put all my hopes in the Liquenia treatment and that it had to work, I did not consider any other option. I had complete confidence in Patricia and her team

I remember perfectly the day of the treatment, Tamara in the room talking to me, I was super calm, I knew it was going to be fine, after all it is something natural in your body what the doctor injects. I just asked her to take away the itching and I went to sleep. When I woke up I had itching, it was the only thing I noticed, quite a lot of itching, but I thought: ⤽I preferthe itching to the itching I had.â

The itching lasted more or less 2 days, then it became painful when I walked or got up from the sofa, I had 3 days of absolute rest, I complied strictly with what the doctor told me in terms of creams, washes and so on. The nurses called me every day very affectionate, until a week later the doctor saw me. Everything was great. Until a month or so I did not have a normal life (sports) and it took me 3 months to have sex again, I was very afraid

Three months after the treatment I could say that I was perfectly fine! I could not believe it. I started to do sports, to wear tight pants, to go out of the house without having to stop at a bench, to have joy and enthusiasm for things, in short, I was myself again, as a woman, as a mother, as a partner

I have never again felt the slightest discomfort, itching, burning or burning. My life changed thanks to Patricia and her team. Now it has been 1 year since the operation, I am waiting for the results of the biopsy, which I am sure will be good. And, if I had to go through Patricia’s hands again, because it is a chronic skin disease, I will go through it again without thinking, but I hope it will be in the near future

I hope this story will help those women who, like me, are looking for a diagnosis, a treatment and a good doctor

Almudena GarcÃa Marco.Â

Valencia, July 25, 2022.

I am a nurse and yet, until it was my turn, I had not heard that this disease existed; even my health professional friends don’t know very well what it is.

The only notion I had about algae was the definition they gave in biology classes: it was the symbiosis of fungus and algae. Evidently it was not that.

The only true thing was the itching, stinging and pain I had in my genitals that was getting worse and that appeared with just the rubbing of my panties; let alone with more rubbing…Â I avoided peeing as much as possible because my own urine produced the same as if I put alcohol on a wound.

At the age of 40 and a few years I had a prolapsed cervix and my gynecologist proposed hysterectomy as the best solution, vaginally so that the recovery would be faster. At 45 I went to the operating room and they removed my uterus without ovaries, so although I did not menstruate, I still had my ovaries functioning.

Since the operation, things have been a little weird, but at 50 I started menopause and it got worse andworse.

I went through several gynecologists and no one gave me solutions until I got to dermatology and the doctor diagnosed me with lichen, but without giving me many solutions.

Later, I entered a program that was supposed to be new with a gynecologist. This treatment was with growth factor, but there were no favorable results.

Time passed and everything went from bad to worse.

One day ,talking to a doctor friend of mine, she told me that they were performing cosmetic surgery on the vulva and that I could do some research on the internet and see what I could find.

That was the beginning of the end of my journey.

I found Patricia, an expert in lichen and called her immediately. I made an appointment the same day and she gave me the solution. I underwent surgery in June 2021. The treatment was with stem cells and since then my life has turned around not 180º, but 360º.

Patricia explained everything to me with simple, understandable words and with a gentleness that gives you the peace of mind of knowing that you are in the hands of the best, that you have already won a lot because the surgeonâ¤?s hands are wonderful. She also gave me a book written by her that I can read every time I want to consult something, it’s great.

I have no more itching, stinging and everything else, now I have recovered my sex life that was nonexistent just a year ago and I am happy.

Thank you very much for everything, I hope that life gives you back all the sweetness and happiness that you emanate.

Carmen.Â

My thanks to Patricia and her team for the loving, welcoming, and brotherly treatment of this disease that we hardly dare to talk about

Thank you also for this technique to improve the symptoms of this disease that in principle does not have many solutions for improvement.

In my case, after several years suffering and looking for solutions to be able to have a normal life, I discovered stem cells and I did not think twice when it could be I operated; since then, already two years, I am very happy. My life is like before, my discomfort disappeared, my intimate relationships have improved, I have no discomfort of any kind and I feel like I did before the disease

Patricia’s work with stem cells and the proposed diet eliminating oxalates, works very well for me

From my own observation, with these foods I can say that it is important not to eat them because when I do, I get the symptoms

Â

A thousand thanks to you and your teamÂ

C.A.P.

One day they called me from Hospital La Fe to ask me if I wanted to participate in an experimental study they are going to conduct to treat vulvar lichen with their own fat and PRP. Oh my God! I could not believe it. Of course I wanted to!

Arriving at La Fe and seeing Patricia took away all my nerves in one fell swoop. She explained to me what the treatment consisted of. Seeing the passion she puts into doing this and the love she transmits makes it more bearable. And, above all, seeing the light at the end of the tunnel.

Elvira

A friend of mine had an intimate problem and after visiting several specialists none of them convinced her, she went to Dr. Patricia’s clinic and from minute one she was fascinated with her, her way of explaining her problem and her way of solving it, finally she underwent an intervention, she was wonderful, not only did she solve her problem, but because of them her self-esteem improved and today she is a new person. Thank you Patricia!

Emilio.