Reply To: I don’t know what to try

[srhsrh]

I’m also dealing with vaginismus and know how emotionally draining it can be when you’ve tried so much already. That overwhelming reaction you mentioned, crying, pain, shutting down, hits close to home, and I’ve also felt unsure about how much my partner wants to be involved, even when they say they care. What’s helped me a bit is taking really small steps, like just getting comfortable with external touch or even just holding a dilator nearby without trying to insert it, and writing down feelings after. I’ve also thought about using substances, but I worry it would just numb things temporarily without actually helping long term.