Vaginismus? Vulvodynia? What?

People ask all the time about the difference between Vulvodynia and Vaginismus, so here’s a brief explanation: Vulvodynia is chronic unexplained pain in the vulva that lasts for over 3 months. The pain can be described as burning, stinging, rawness, or even itching. It can occur with intercourse, but frequently women will have pain with …

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5 Myths About Vaginismus Debunked

There are so many myths surrounding Vaginismus, let’s try and bust them! Myth 1: VAGINIMUS is all “in your head.” Vaginismus is a condition where there is involuntary tightness of the vagina during attempted intercourse. The tightness is actually caused by involuntary contractions of the pelvic floor muscles surrounding the vagina.  Those muscles are in …

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Ch-ch-ch-ch-Changes

The road to change is rarely a straight one. There are usually some bumps along the way. At Maze Women’s Health we treat many women with Vaginismus. It’s so rewarding to witness the success our women have as they go through the necessary dilation process. It may take years for someone to begin treatment and …

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Enjoying Sex with Vaginismus

So much energy and frustration is given to not being able to have intercourse with vaginismus, that many forget that sex is not just intercourse. While being treated for vaginismus and wanting to be able to have intercourse is a very important part of sexuality, there is more to sex than intercourse. Often, when I …

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That’s What HE Said

I’m proud of our Vaginismus Forum. Vaginismus can be a heartbreaking condition to deal with and the shame around it adds some real salt to the wound.  So the fact that we have a place where people can go where vaginismus language is understood, it’s a drink of water in a desert of silence. Recently, …

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Out of the Box

Sigmund Freud was an Austrian neurologist and one of the most influential thinkers in the field of psychology today. Among his contributions to the field is the formulation of what are called ‘defense mechanisms’.  In lay terms, defense mechanisms are internal “security guards” inside of us whose goal is to protect us from experiencing pain and …

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