Painful intercourse is a taboo topic

[Heather34]

Hi ladies. I came across an excellent article, The Menopausal Symptom Women Don’t Tell Friends About.

http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/stress-and-sex/201107/the-menopausal-symptom-women-don-t-tell-friends-about

Excerpts from this article include:

“According to a study, published in the Journal of the American Medical Association in 1999, 25% of post-menopausal women have some degree of dyspareunia. A more recent study found that 49% of menopausal women suffer from painful intercourse. This same study found painful intercourse to be a taboo topic; few discussed it with friends. No wonder my own confidants never mentioned this when bemoaning their night sweats and hot flashes.

Sadly, according to the Mayo Clinic website, many women also never mention this to their doctors. As Joan Price explains in her book, Naked at Our Age, “…many kinds of vulvar and vaginal pain are medical issues with a cause that requires a medical intervention.” Joan therefore recommends that women see a doctor if they are experiencing genital pain. I concur. Reading this brief bog is unlikely to resolve your problem if you have genital pain. I hope, however, that this blog does let you know that you are not alone and that effective treatment exists. Seek it.”

Dr. Pacik has written an important blog on Menopausal Vaginismus.

http://www.vaginismusmd.com/menopausal-vaginismus/

Excerpts from the Blog include: “Menopausal Vaginismus, which is a common cause of painful sex at midlife and beyond, is initially caused by the dryness and thinning of the vagina due to a drop in estrogen. When a woman has less estrogen, there is less vaginal lubrication; the vagina is less stretchable and more prone to tearing. This results in the menopausal woman feeling vaginal tightness during sex with pain, burning and/or soreness. In many cases, the problem starts with small tears called microtears that cause inflammation and irritation leading to more discomfort and bleeding of the tissues with any penetration of the vagina. During this time, intercourse is possible but often results in pain and burning after, which is called dyspareunia. Artificial lubricants seem to do a poor job replacing natural lubrication. As the condition gets worse, the patient appears to develop vaginismus, and when examined, appears to have the same spasm of the entry muscle as seen in the primary vaginismus patients.The spasm can be treated with the Botox program, which includes Botox vaginal injections and progressive dilation under anesthesia together with post procedure counseling as is done in our primary vaginismus patients.”

I would love to hear from any of Dr. Pacik’s treated patients regarding their experiences with post-menopausal vaginismus? Was it difficult to speak to your friends/family and doctors about this condition once it developed? What have been your experiences pre, during, and post-procedure with Dr. Pacik? Would you recommend that other women with menopausal vaginismus have this treatment?