Women's Sexual Health in Millcreek, UT

Pain with Intercourse

Pain may be more common than you think. I do not like to refer to the pain as painful sex but rather pain with intercourse. The pain can be either at the entrance or deep inside and/or clitoral pain. Wherever the pain is located, an exam is helpful to find the source of the pain and begin the healing. Sometimes the pain is caused from oral birth control pills, lack of estrogen in the vagina causing dryness, nerve pain in the vagina or tight pelvic floor muscles.

 

Desire Discrepancies

This used to be said of low or no desire; I like the new term desire discrepancy because it does not indicate that a person is abnormal. It just means there are different desires to be had between two people.

Lack of motivation for sexual activity means reduced or absence of spontaneous desire, inability to maintain desire or interest through sexual activity. Loss of desire to initiate or participate in sexual activity like avoidance of any activity that could lead to sexual activity. This leads to personal distress that includes frustration, grief, sadness, sorrow or worry. Getting to the why is very important and sometimes not easy. Starting the conversation can lead to finding a solution to the concern.

 

Orgasmic Disorders

This is a hot topic to cover. Is an orgasm experienced or given? If an orgasm does not happen does it mean sex was not pleasurable and one partner is not good enough? NO

Does not ever having orgasm make a person broken? NO

These terms refer to orgasm disorder:

Frequency: orgasms occur with reduced frequency or are absent.

Intensity: orgasm that occurs with reduced intensity

Timing: orgasm is delayed or happens earlier then a woman desires

Pleasure: Orgasm that occurs with absent or decreased pleasure

FYI Only about 15% of women experience vaginal orgasms. Most will experience orgasms through manual clitoral stimulation.

Whatever the reason, there can be a solution to help.

Some women may experience migraines, confusion, anxiety, insomnia, depression, chills or genital pain after experiencing an orgasm. These symptoms may last for minutes, hours or days. This is called post-orgasmic illness disorder and is not common and can leave both parties concerned. When the root of the problem can be identified the treatment plan is easier to follow.

 

Female Arousal disorders

Female sexual arousal disorder is a physical state rising from an interaction between genital response, central nervous system activity and information processing of sexual stimuli.

Female cognitive arousal disorder is when a woman is unable to attain or maintain adequate mental excitement and not feeling engaged and or mentally turned on or sexually aroused.

Female genital arousal disorder is when a woman is unable to maintain adequate genital response including vulvovaginal lubrication, engagement of the genitalia and sensitivity of the genitalia associated with sexual activity. These genital disorders are related to vascular and neurological injury or dysfunction.

There are receptors for arousal located in the front of the brain, if those receptors are not stimulated in the right way or at all, arousal is affected. There are ways to help stimulate the receptors to improve arousal. These things take time so patience will help.

Persistent genital arousal disorder (PGAD) is a disorder when the person has recurrent, unwanted or intrusive sensations of genital arousal. She may experience buzzing, twitching or pain. It occurs mostly in the clitoris but can also happen in the vulva, vagina, bladder or rectum. It feels like being on the verge of orgasming without sexual stimuli such as thoughts, activity or interest.

 

Sex Hormones

Sex hormones are essential to a woman's health and affect every body system. Hormones are a part of sexual health.
The most common hormones include DHEA from the adrenal glands, testosterone, estradiol, progesterone, estrone and sex hormone binding globulin (SHBG) from the liver. The vagina, clitoris and tissue around the urethral area where the urine comes out are highly dependent on estradiol, progesterone and testosterone. When hormones are low at any age or too high then those organs may not function as well as they should and can affect sexual activity, thoughts and health. Checking the hormone levels by a simple blood test can help identify how to balance hormones.

 

Pelvic Pain

Pelvic pain can be a mystery for a lot of women. It can cause distress in a woman’s life from avoiding sex, lack of exercise, poor eating habits, weight gain, interrupt relationships and delaying dreams. Pelvic pain can be caused by neurological pathways from a fall earlier in life or pinched nerve, hormonal pathways, endometriosis, fibroids or ovarian cysts and muscular pathways like pelvis misalignment. The goal is to take a history and check laboratory findings and make a plan of action to decrease or eliminate the pain.

 

 

 

Women’s sexual health includes all ages and concerns like; pain with intercourse, desire discrepancies, orgasmic disorders, arousal disorders, hormonal changes, and pelvic pain. There are a variety of reasons these issues occur and can be simple or complex. Treatments involve natural pathways like diet changes, exercise and mental well being, hormones, sex therapy, innovative therapies, brain training, physical therapy and/or surgery if necessary.

Women may not feel comfortable discussing these issues with their provider at the time of their regular visit and sometimes will not be brought up by the provider. Phase II Center for Women’s Health is a safe place to talk about any of these topics during your visit. Let’s look at each topic briefly. If you are experiencing any of these concerns please make an appointment to discuss them with Julie Jones CNM, MS, IF, CST. Julie received her certificate in Medical Sex Therapy in 2013 and has been helping women ever since.