Titan Hospital

Vaginismus is a condition characterized by significant pain in the vagina generally during sexual intercourse. This pain occurs on penetration due to the contraction of the vaginal muscles.

Causes

The exact cause of Vaginismus is not exactly known to the doctors. But some researchers suggests that the pain might result from severe anxiety or illogical fears before sex.

Vaginismus can be primary or secondary depending on the concerned woman’s previous sexual experiences. Vaginismus can be linked to an earlier sexually painful experience, sexual trauma or psychological factors. In some cases, the pain tends to exist without any direct physical cause. The causes of the pain might vary from women to women and might occur in some cases with only one specific partner and not with others.

Sometimes the pain might stem from underlying infections or any other underlying complications.

The symptoms of Vaginismus are as follows:

1. Severe pain during intercourse.

2. Severe pain during insertion of tampons or during any medical check-ups.

The following treatments can be useful to treat Vaginismus:

1. If the pain arises due to anxiety or fear, counselling sessions can help you to a remedy.

2. If the pain arises whenever something penetrates the vaginal walls, progressive desensitization can be useful to treat the pain. The process aims to loosen the vaginal muscles so that you don’t experience any pain during sexual intercourse.

Kegel exercises (at least 20 of them) can help in the initial stage to relax the vaginal muscles. After you exercise for a few days, you should try inserting one finger inside your vagina while doing the exercises. Try doing it gently and if it still hurts, try doing it with a lubricating jelly. This continuous procedure will help in the contraction of the vaginal muscles which eventually relax.

After the advent of the internet, the availability of pornography or explicit video material has become widespread. The availability of this material resulted in a large section of the population relying on it for sexual pleasures as well as living their fantasies through the digital realm.

Internet porn is the new drug

The easy availability and the dependence on internet porn to get a quick fix of dopamine through sexual pleasure have resulted in patterns of addiction among many people. Porn addiction is a phenomenon which has been exacerbated by the easy availability of pornography on the internet. It has not only affected sexual habits such as masturbation, but has also caused hindrances in the daily lives of people and has become a mental disorder as well.

A brain on porn is similar to a brain on alcohol

While it may seem a bit far-fetched, studies of brain scans have shown that people watching porn experience the same effects or pleasure that alcohol gives them. It is a neural circuit which releases pleasure hormones when you sexually pleasure yourself by masturbating to porn. The reward circuit of the brain recognizes this pattern and starts creating please pathways where you want more of it. As you keep doing it more and more, the resistance level increases and you tend to need more. This is a classic sign of addiction.

Healthy and unhealthy masturbation

Masturbation is a natural and normal process that every human indulges in. However a brain addicted to porn will use it as an addict uses a substance. Masturbation is the physical act through which the dopamine would be released. Once it has become an addiction, you would either want to have the daily fix for at least a few hours which you would ensure to take out of your daily routine. This time could have been invested in other fruitful activities when it ends up going to the addiction. In some cases, studies have shown that many would rather do it a few times a week but would spend extended hours masturbating to porn.

Effects of excess masturbation

Some of effects of the porn addiction and excessive masturbation could be

• Premature ejaculation problem

• Erectile dysfunction when you are with a partner and in a real life scenario due to dependence on particular porn fantasies

• Inability to have or form intimate relationships which are not just sexual but emotional and mental as well

• Lethargy to go to work or school due to addiction related problems

• Breakdown in relationships, even with family members and friends among many others

It is thus, imperative that you seek sexologist help to slow down the habit and break the cycle of addiction and ensure that you are able to lead a normal life without disruptions so as to allow yourself to be able to form normal sexual relationships.

Severe pain during intercourse causes difficulty in a relationship in both partners. Sometimes a sustained occurrence of pain might be an indication of some serious medical dysfunction. As such, consult a doctor as soon as the pain arises. Contrary to popular beliefs, sexual pain can occur in both male and female.

In female, the reasons behind the painful sexual intercourse might be:

1. Vaginismus, a condition when the vaginal muscles tighten up mainly due to anxiety or fear and causes significant pain with a tearing sensation.

2. The pain can arise due to vaginal infection due to yeast or any form of sexually transmitted disease or pelvic inflammatory diseases.

3. A severe injury in the vagina during childbirth or any other accident and psychological stress can also cause severe pain during sex.

4. Sometimes, uterine or menopause problems (formation of fibroids in the uterus) can also cause pain.

5. Cyst formation in the ovary or endometriosis (when the inner tissue lining of the uterus tends to grow outside) can also cause severe pain during intercourse.

Among men:

1. Some men can experience pain during intercourse because of allergy to the fluids of the vagina or the chemical content of certain contraceptives.

2. You can experience pain because of undiagnosed sexually transmitted diseases like herpes or gonorrhea

3. The pain might also occur due to urinary tract infections or side effects from certain medications.

4. Severe pain just a few moments before ejaculation can be a result of inflammation of the prostate glands and should be immediately diagnosed as it might be a signal of prostate cancer.

For treating pain during sex in female, you should opt for the following procedures

1. If the pain is caused due to vaginal dryness after menopause, you should consider the application of prescribed lubricants or jellies to reduce the pain.

2. If the pain occurs due to severe anxiety or stress, sex therapy can help you improve physical intimacy.

3. If there are other symptoms like severe bleeding or irregular periods in addition to the pain, a visit to the physician is recommended.

Quite similarly in men

1. If the pain occurs due to severe anxiety or stress, sex therapy can help you improve physical intimacy.

2. If the pain results from side effects of certain medications, you should try changing your prescribed medication after doctor’s suggestion.

3. In extreme cases, the doctors might suggest hormone replacement surgery.

Exercise: to relieve stress and lift your mood. Exercise is a powerful antidote to stress, anxiety, and depression. Look for small ways to add activity to your day, like taking the stairs instead of the elevator or going for a short walk. To get the most mental health benefits, aim for 30 minutes or more of exercise per day.
- get a dose of sunlight every day. Sunlight lifts your mood, so try to get at least 10 to 15 minutes of the sun per day. This can be done while exercising, gardening, or socializing.
- limit alcohol and avoid cigarettes and other drugs. These are stimulants that may unnaturally make you feel good in the short term but have long-term negative consequences for mood and emotional health

Get enough rest. To have good mental and emotional health, it's important to take care of your body. That includes getting enough sleep. Most people need seven to eight hours of sleep each night in order to function optimally.
- learn about good nutrition and practice it. The subject of nutrition is complicated and not always easy to put into practice. But the more you learn about what you eat and how it affects your energy and mood, the better you can feel