Painful Intercourse? Here's How Pelvic Floor Physical Therapy can Help

While more common during pregnancy, postpartum, perimenopause, and menopause/postmenopause, painful intercourse is a common experience throughout the lifespan. You may have thought that it’s “normal” for your age or stage of life, that you should just use more lube or foreplay, and it will just “go away soon.”

At Root to Bloom we know that painful intercourse, or dyspareunia, is treatable and that you deserve individualized guidance from a pelvic floor therapist to find the root cause of your symptoms.

If you’re experiencing dyspareunia, you may feel:

• Pain with initial penetration

• Pain deep in the pelvis during penetration

• Vaginal pain several hours after penetration

Your painful intercourse may be accompanied by other symptoms, including:

• Pain with sexual arousal

• Pelvic pain and heaviness

• Urinary urgency

• Urinary incontinence

• Constipation

• Pain when sitting

No matter what your symptoms are, support is available.

Painful intercourse won’t always go away with more lube or foreplay. It may be a sign of one or multiple underlying issues. 

That is why Root to Bloom takes a whole-body approach when assessing painful intercourse. Our therapists evaluate all of the factors that could be influencing your symptoms, including the pelvic floor directly and other factors that may indirectly contribute to your symptoms. 

Some of these contributing factors are:

• Pelvic organ prolapse (POP): The bladder, rectum, uterus, or small bowel shift into the vaginal canal

• Pudendal neuralgia: Pain in the pudendal nerve, which transmits sensation to your pelvic floor

• Vaginismus: Involuntary spasms of the vaginal wall muscles

• Lack of lubrication in the vagina often associated with declining estrogen levels during lactation, fluctuating levels during menopause, and decreased levels during the post menopausal period

• Psychological issues like anxiety, depression, and stress

• History of sexual trauma

• Posture

• Breathing

• Orthopedic factors, like back pain and hip pain

Root to Bloom addresses all of these underlying factors and works with you to develop a tailored program to help you improve movement, gain strength, and resolve your symptoms.

Treatment can include:

• Improving the connection between your nervous system and pelvic floor  

• Using a wand or dilator to desensitize the pelvic floor

• Strength and mobility exercises

• Hands-on manual therapy

• Breathing strategies

• Activity modifications

• Lifestyle education

This treatment can help you get back to enjoying pain-free intercourse without being held back by your symptoms.

Just because painful intercourse is common, does not mean that it’s inevitable or that you have to suffer alone.

If you’re looking for a holistic approach to resolve your painful intercourse or other pelvic floor dysfunction, reach out here to book an evaluation at our Lynnfield, MA office.