Vulvodynia vs Pudendal Neuralgia: What to Track While Comparing

Updated 10 October 2026

Pain in the vulvar and pelvic area can have more than one possible name, and two that people often ask about are vulvodynia and pudendal neuralgia. The sources describe them in different terms, and they also overlap in the area of the body they mention, which is why a clinician may need a careful account of where and when you feel pain.

This guide gathers what ACOG, MedlinePlus, the NHS, the Cleveland Clinic, NICHD and the National Vulvodynia Association say about each condition, then offers a body-area record, a definition list, a trigger note, four steps and a comparison page. It records observations and questions only. A clinician decides which condition, if either, fits what you describe, and nothing here is meant to settle that.

What ACOG, MedlinePlus, the NHS, Cleveland Clinic and NICHD say about each condition

ACOG says vulvodynia is pain that lasts for 3 months or longer and is not caused by an infection, skin disorder or other medical condition. NICHD describes it as pain or discomfort in the vulva that lasts for at least 3 months, and MedlinePlus says vulvodynia causes severe pain, burning and stinging of the vulva. The National Vulvodynia Association adds that vulvodynia is not caused by an active infection or a sexually transmitted disease.

For the other condition, the NHS says pudendal neuralgia is nerve pain in the genitals, bottom, anus or pelvis, and the Cleveland Clinic describes it as chronic pelvic pain caused by an irritated or damaged pudendal nerve. The two descriptions differ in what they emphasize: vulvodynia is named for pain in the vulva with a time threshold, and pudendal neuralgia is named for a nerve and for a wider area.

Neither page sorts out one person's pain. They give you vocabulary: where the pain is, how long it has lasted, what it feels like. A clinician who hears those details can decide what to examine and what to consider. The record in this guide collects exactly those details, with dates, and leaves the comparison to the person trained to make it.

Where the pain sits and how long it has lasted can be entered in the Daily check-in of Vulvodynia Journey (by Health Journey Labs), with the date of the first day of pain kept in the history.

Where the pain sits and what it feels like: a two-column body-area record

When two conditions share an area of the body, the useful detail is exactly where, and what kind of sensation. A two-column record puts the area on the left and the sensation on the right, one row per entry, so patterns appear over several weeks.

Body-area table, by Vulvodynia Journey

Use your own words for the area and the sensation. MedlinePlus uses burning and stinging for vulvodynia, and the NHS places pudendal neuralgia pain in the genitals, bottom, anus or pelvis, so these areas and words are worth noting when they match what you feel. A clinician can ask more if needed.

Include clear days, since a pain-free day shows how often pain comes. Write down the date of the first entry as well, because the first row of the record shows how far back your notes go. Keep the entries brief and private, in a place you control. The guide to starting to track vulvodynia suggests a light way to begin.

Pain quality and what the day limited can be rated in the Daily check-in of Vulvodynia Journey, with a line in the Daily Journal for the area in your own words.

The words each source uses: a definition list for the two conditions

A short list of terms, drawn only from these pages, helps you follow a clinician's words and write them down as you heard them.

Definitions from each source

Vulvodynia Journey reviewed each source's definition.

• Vulvodynia: pain or discomfort in the vulva lasting at least 3 months, per NICHD, and pain that lasts 3 months or longer without a cause such as infection, per ACOG.
• Pudendal neuralgia: nerve pain in the genitals, bottom, anus or pelvis, according to the NHS.
• Pudendal nerve: the nerve the Cleveland Clinic names as irritated or damaged in this condition.
• Chronic pelvic pain: the Cleveland Clinic's phrase for the pain that results from that nerve problem.
• Vulva: the area where MedlinePlus places the severe pain, burning and stinging of vulvodynia.

Ask the clinician to say a term again if it is new, and write it with the date. Spelling it as you heard it is fine, since you can check it afterward. Words may change as the conversation moves on, and the list shows how the picture developed. A term on this page does not apply to you until a clinician says it does.

If a clinician uses a word that is not on the list, add it. Your list belongs to you, and it grows with each visit.

Terms you hear can go into the Daily Journal of Vulvodynia Journey in your own words with the date, so your list grows from real conversations.

What brought each episode on: situation notes beside a pain rating

For pain that comes and goes, the situation around it is part of the record. A note on what you were doing, wearing or sitting on when pain began gives a clinician something to ask about, and it may help show whether episodes share a pattern.

Table of situations and ratings, by Vulvodynia Journey

A rating from 0 to 10 is only your own scale, and nobody else's number needs to match it. What matters is whether the numbers rise and fall with the situations, and whether the same situation brings the same rating. Use the same scale each day so the numbers can be compared.

Leave any guess about the cause out of the note. "After a long drive" is a record, and "nerve pinched by the seat" is a guess. A clinician decides what the pattern means, and your plain notes give them the material.

If a situation is private, write it in whatever words you choose, or leave it out. The record serves you first. On hard days, one line is enough, and a gap in the record is fine.

Triggers such as sitting or clothing can be recorded in the Daily check-in of Vulvodynia Journey, and days that jump above your usual can be flagged in the Flare Tracker.

Four steps to prepare for a visit where a clinician compares the two

A clinician comparing two possible explanations asks about the details you have been collecting. Four steps get you ready.

Steps before comparing vulvodynia and pudendal neuralgia

Vulvodynia Journey sets out these steps for a visit where the clinician compares the two conditions.

1. Bring two to four weeks of the body-area record and the situation note, with the clearest days marked.
2. Write a three-line summary: where you feel pain, how long it has lasted and what tends to bring it on.
3. Add the date the pain started, since the sources use a time threshold of 3 months for vulvodynia.
4. Write two questions, such as which condition the clinician is considering and what would help tell them apart.

The ACOG and NICHD 3-month figure is a reason to know how long your pain has lasted. If you can give a start date, the clinician can place your history against that line without guessing.

From Vulvodynia Journey, we recommend carrying the summary and the record in one folder (Vulvodynia Journey checklist), because the summary opens the conversation and the record answers follow-up questions.

You can ask for time to finish your description if you feel rushed. The guide to preparing for a short vulvodynia doctor visit shows how to fit these steps into a brief appointment.

As the visit approaches, Vulvodynia Journey shows the start date of pain, recent entries and your questions in one view, so the summary is quick to write.

A comparison page for the clinician, with the questions you want answered

One page can carry both possibilities, and no choice between them is needed. The page below keeps what you observed apart from what anyone concluded.

Comparison page, by Vulvodynia Journey

• The start date of the pain and how many months it has lasted.
• Areas affected, in your words, with the sensations and how often each appears.
• Situations that bring it on or ease it, from the situation note.
• Anything a clinician has said so far, in their words, with dates.
• Two or three questions, such as which condition they are considering and how they would tell them apart.

Hand it over at the start and offer to go through it line by line, or let the clinician read it quietly first, whichever feels more comfortable to you. A clinician who has read the dates can use the visit for examination and discussion instead of reconstructing a history. Take a copy home and add the answers.

If a partner or friend supports you, share the page if you choose. The guide to explaining vulvodynia to family who cannot see it has words for that conversation.

A clinician decides which condition fits, and whether either does. Your page shows what you noticed, when and where, which is the most useful starting point for that decision.

Alongside the page you carry, Vulvodynia Journey can export a Doctor Report of dates, pain and triggers, and My Care Team holds what the clinician said.

How Vulvodynia Journey can help

A two-column record on paper is enough to begin. When you want pain, triggers and visit notes in one dated history, the best vulvodynia apps guide compares the options.

Vulvodynia Journey is a personal vulvodynia tracker from Health Journey Labs on the App Store and Google Play. Where, when and how long are three details that serve any clinician comparing similar pain conditions. A record made of plain words and dates leaves the naming of the condition where it belongs, with the clinician. Below is what you can use and how each part helps.

• Daily check-in — Logs physical symptoms, emotional state, nutrition, sleep, exercise, meds, external factors; app-specific items: pain quality, sitting or clothing triggers, intimacy or exam context when you choose to note it, how the day limited you; read together with the rest of the logged history.
• Daily Journal — Logs free-text notes, voice entry; app-specific items: what the day limited, tampon or pad choice, exam after-effects, partner talks, visit debriefs, leftover shame after a dismissive comment, a look-fine mismatch line; read together with scores and other logged history (adds context).
• Flare Tracker — Logs flag a day clearly worse than the usual hard week, onset, intensity, short note; app-specific items: pain, sitting intolerance, touch sensitivity; read together with history across weeks (one-off spike vs repeating pattern).
• My Meds — Logs medicine names, timing, dose; app-specific items: topical or oral options you already use as directed; read together with pain weeks, sleep, the rest of the tracked history.
• My Labs — Logs result dates; app-specific items: swabs, cultures, other tests; read together with ongoing pain and function.
• Weekly Goals — Logs one small aim, whether it held; read together with real check-ins.
• Learn — Logs short education topics, prompts; app-specific items: pain patterns, pacing, visit prep, why a clear swab can still be clinically relevant; read together with your own logged weeks.
• AI companions — Logs Clara (general chat), specialist companions; app-specific items: knowledge, fitness, nutrition, relationships; read together with your logged history (companions already see it); used for: visit wording; a calm partner script; a soft rain-check line; a listening ear after a hard pain day.
• My Care Team — Logs clinicians, short visit notes; app-specific items: tends to treat every visit as infection until proven otherwise; read together with logged history; used for: visit prep (what to ask and bring); notes during the visit; review afterward.
• Doctor Report — Logs one-page summary exported from logged history; app-specific items: dates, pain, triggers, function, what you tried; read together with the history already logged; visit type: gyn.
• My Assessments — Logs structured check-ins beyond daily scores, onboarding life and social context; read together with ongoing history.
• Food Tracker — Logs meal or drink lines.
• Period Tracker — Logs start and stop dates, flow, how heavy or light bleeding felt; read together with pain, sleep, flare, everything else logged.
• Weight Tracker — Logs scale or body notes; read together with the rest of the logged history.

Everything you log builds one history, and insights get stronger as it grows. Custom symptoms let you add your own labels.

Sources

• ACOG: Vulvodynia
• MedlinePlus: Vulvodynia
• NHS: Pudendal neuralgia
• Cleveland Clinic: Pudendal neuralgia
• NICHD: Vulvodynia
• National Vulvodynia Association: What causes vulvodynia

FAQ

The answers below draw on the sources cited in this guide, and the app they mention is Vulvodynia Journey (by Health Journey Labs).