Why I started herlume

I remember sitting in a sterile doctor’s office for what felt like the hundredth time, hearing the same thing: “Everything looks normal.”

But nothing felt normal.

For years, I dealt with vaginal health issues from chronic UTIs, recurring BV and yeast infections, even cytolytic vaginosis. Eventually, those symptoms evolved into vulvodynia, a condition that still plagues me to this day.

I did everything the doctors told me to do. I took round after round of antibiotics, but the infections always came back. I tried baking soda baths for CV. Nothing worked.

What became disheartening wasn’t just the pain; it was the moment my diagnosis disappeared. My tests came back clean. “Nothing’s wrong,” they said.

But something was wrong. I was in the worst pain of my life.

The long haul

The pain didn’t stop after a few weeks or even a few months. It went on for a year. Then two. Now three.

It wasn’t until around year two that I truly decided to take matters into my own hands. I began researching obsessively, experimenting with supplements, changing my routines, scouring Reddit and niche forums for anything that might help.

That’s when I discovered the shocking truth: I wasn’t alone.

There were hundreds of other women sharing stories just like mine. For a moment, I felt relief. I wasn’t crazy. I wasn’t broken. But that relief quickly turned to anger as I read story after story of women being dismissed or misdiagnosed. Even the doctors didn’t know how to help us.

So, how do we heal if even the professionals don’t have the answers?

By that point, I was already living a fairly healthy lifestyle. But I started trusting my instincts more. I knew my body better than anyone, and I had to start acting like it. The deeper I dug, the more empowered I felt. I realized just how many women were suffering silently, and how desperately we need space to talk about these things, not just vaginal health, but our whole experience of wellness.

That’s why I started herlume. But I’ll get to that. First, let me back up a bit.

How I got here

The turning point came years ago when I decided to quit hormonal birth control. I had been on the pill for a couple of years. Then I started spotting. My mood plummeted. For the first time in my life, I felt waves of depression that didn’t make any sense. One quick Google search revealed what no doctor had ever told me: the pill can contribute to depression in women.

Why hadn’t anyone said that?

When I finally came off of it, I started to feel like myself again. I could feel my body again. I began noticing how deeply my health was impacted by what I ate, how I moved, how much I stressed, and what I surrounded myself with.

Opening my eyes

I dove headfirst into research, all about women’s cycles, hormone health, and root causes behind “normal” symptoms no one talks about. The more I learned, the more I realized how much we were never taught. We’re missing critical education. And real support.

Even after I ditched birth control, the journey wasn’t smooth. I faced hormonal acne, more UTIs, unexplained pain, and frustration after frustration. I wondered if I was broken. I questioned what I did wrong.

But through all of it, I kept digging. And slowly, I started to find my own answers.

Why I created herlume

I created herlume because the gap in women’s health is too big to ignore. Reddit is full of women crying out for answers. But everywhere else? Silence.

We need more research. More resources. More people willing to connect the dots and say, “This matters. You matter.”

herlume is my way of being one of those voice, to tell my story, share what I’ve learned, and create a space where women feel seen, supported, and empowered to take charge of their health.

Because we all deserve that.