Vaginismus is one reason for painful intercourse in women. It is a condition that causes the muscles to spasm and tense up, creating pain for a woman during penetration. It is also a very treatable condition.
Vaginismus Help
Vaginismus.com offers a resource center dedicated to helping women understand why and how intercourse is painful and what they can do about it. The website is comprehensive, with information on the symptoms of vaginismus, diagrams to help a woman understand better what is happening when the muscles spasm, and even a treatment program which they sell on their website for $99.95 for the entire kit (though some items in the kit are available separately).
Treating Vaginismus
The kit is also comprehensive. It includes a step-by-step book offering the woman further information about her condition and help with dealing with the physical and psychological aspects of her problem. There is a workbook included with the book that allows her to record her progress throughout the entire program. The book and workbook are available for $34.95.
The kit also includes a set a vaginal dilators which are used in conjunction with later steps in the book to aid in control over the muscle spasms. These are available for $44.95.
There is also a DVD (though it is rather outdated), which is only included in the kit and not sold separately. It follows a couple visiting a therapist to discover what the problem is. Some women have described the DVD as being somewhat graphic and disturbing while others had little problem with it (other than how outdated it is).
There is also a private forum available for women suffering from this problem. It is an excellent resource for women with questions and concerns regarding certain steps in the program.
Vaginismus Cure
Is this self help kit really worth the cost and will it really cure vaginismus? One woman (who wishes to remain anonymous) has this to say about the program:
“I’m currently on Step 8 of the 10 step program. Before I ordered the kit I hesitated spending that much on something that I honestly didn’t think would work. But my husband encouraged me and now we’re so close to transitioning to intercourse and it’s only been a couple of months. Nurses I spoke with couldn’t tell me what was wrong but Vaginismus.com told me what was wrong and gave me a way to fix it. I’ve worn tampons comfortably for the first time in my life since I ordered this program and I’m about to have pain free sex for the first time as well.”
The first step in the program helps a woman understand what this condition is and how it’s caused. Much of this information can also be found on the website.
Steps 2 and 3 focus on discovering and dealing with emotional blocks that could be affecting sexual activity. It is very thorough and much of what is included won’t apply. The authors have included as much information as possible, though, to help as many women as possible. It also helps a woman become comfortable and educated about her own body and its natural functions.
Step 4 begins a woman on training her muscles to learn control over the spasms, so that in the future she will be able to prevent those spasms. It does this using Kegel exercises to gain strength and muscle control.
Steps 5 through 8 begin working with the dilators so a woman can practice controlling her muscles while something is being inserted inside of her. These steps reinforce muscle control and teach a woman how to begin slowly with the smallest dilator and work up to the largest. The largest dilator included with the kit is rather large and most women say it is larger than their partner’s penis.
Steps 9 and 10 involve actually transitioning to intercourse. These are the final steps that aid a woman in becoming truly comfortable with sex so that she can have a normal and pleasurable sexual life.
Overall, this kit seems to cover almost everything a woman needs to overcome vaginismus. It doesn’t deal with other causes that may be responsible for painful intercourse, so a woman should also speak with a doctor to rule out any underlying medical conditions.
Sources and Further Reading:
Completely Overcome Vaginismus by Mark and Lisa Carter (available from Vaginismus.com)
