Let’s Talk About Sex, Baby!
Pain with intercourse: Dyspareunia, Vulvodynia, Vestibulodynia, Vaginismus.
Have you ever heard of these? Maybe not, unless you are currently on the internet searching desperately after your doctor gave you one of these diagnoses.
Or you deal with pain during sex and have never been diagnosed.
I have seen many people in my office for pain with intercourse. Whether it’s after having a baby, after beginning a new birth control, years after sexual abuse, or after menopause, it’s common. Though I am addressing women in the blog post, men can have pain during or after intercourse as well.
One lady was seeing me for leaking urine with coughing and sneezing and frequency (running to the bathroom all the time). Though she mentioned pain with intercourse at her first visit, it wasn’t why she was here. After her second or third visit, she told me with a twinkle in her eye, “I can’t wait to tell you what has changed!” After starting her therapy, not only was she now not running to the bathroom every 30 minutes, she was able to have pain-free intimacy with her husband! What a triumph for her and her husband. And I’ll give you a little secret, it wasn’t kegels that helped! (Many people think this is all I do at Innova!)
Though it’s a challenge to spread the word about pelvic PT helping urinary incontinence, this topic is even more difficult! Many people suffer in silence and may even be too shy to discuss sex with their doctor, though there are many ways to address this kind of pain in physical therapy.
At Innova, I like to tell people as they sit down for their first visit, that the office is a no-judgment zone. I talk about pee, poop, and sex all day with my pelvic patients! At first people think they are giving me TMI, but honestly, it’s what I do and the more info they can provide, the more I can help.
Please share if you know someone suffering and has nowhere to turn. There is help! Call 518-632-4944 today or contact Innova Physical Therapy online to schedule your free consultation.
Related Posts:
- Pelvic Physical Therapy: Urinary Incontinence After Childbirth
- Pelvic Organ Prolapse (POP)
- What is Vulvodynia?
