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Dilators: helpful or harmful for recovering from pelvic pain?

In Vaginismus by Cambria Oetken

By Stephanie Prendergast, MPT, Cofounder, PHRC Pasadena and Cambria Oetken, DPT, PHRC Westlake Village Spoiler alert: the answer is both. Let us explain. Vaginal dilators are tools used to assist in the treatment of pelvic floor dysfunction, specifically when there are issues with penetration of any kind. Historically, patients have had to direct their own care and may have purchased …

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You Are Invited to a Vulvar Pain Educational Fundraiser!

In Vulvodynia by Stephanie Prendergast

The Pelvic Health and Rehabilitation Center cordially invites you to an exclusive fundraising and educational event in honor of  Pelvic Pain Awareness Month! We extend our heartfelt invitation to join us in lending support to two vital nonprofit organizations that rely on your generous contributions to sustain their impactful initiatives. One of these organizations is Tight Lipped, a dedicated patient …

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What is an expandable vaginal dilator? Meet Milli!

In Female Pelvic Pain by Stephanie PrendergastLeave a Comment

Author: Tracy MacNeal, Materna CEO   This week we are posting about the Milli, the first-ever gradually expanding dilator. Please note PHRC cofounder Stephanie Prendergast is a member of the Materna Scientific Advisory Board and PHRC is posting this blog on their behalf.   Vaginal dilators are often recommended in treatment plans for women suffering from vaginal stiffness and discomfort. …

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How Pelvic Floor Physical Therapy Helped Me Recover From Vaginismus

In Female Pelvic Pain by Emily TranLeave a Comment

Last month, Sigourney shared Martha’s Success Story, told from her perspective as Martha’s pelvic floor physical therapist. This week, Martha was kid enough to share her experience, in her own words. We hope her story provides hope for the many, many other women suffering from primary vaginismus or other causes of painful sex. We are sharing many success stories this …

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Recovery From Vaginismus and Painful Sex: Martha’s Success Story

In Female Pelvic Pain by Emily TranLeave a Comment

By Sigourney Cross, DPT, PHRC Walnut Creek Vaginismus is characterized as an involuntary spasm or contraction of the muscles around the vagina. This makes it very difficult for women to insert tampons, receive pelvic exams by their doctors and can also make sexual intercourse nearly impossible and painful. It can affect women anywhere from their teenage years to later in …

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Sex Therapy and CBT for Pain with Sex

In Female Pelvic Pain by Emily TranLeave a Comment

In 2012, The Journal of Sexual Medicine published an article, What we don’t talk about when we don’t talk about sex: results of a national survey of U.S. obstetrician/gynecologists. The results from the survey revealed that though Ob/gyns routinely (63%) assess their patients’ sexual activities, only 40% of them ask their female patients about sexual problems. Sexual problems may include …

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Vulvodynia, Vestibulodynia, and Vaginismus: what’s the difference and why does it matter?

In Female Pelvic Pain by Stephanie Prendergast3 Comments

  By Stephanie Prendergast, PHRC Cofounder   As many as 28% of women experience painful sex at some point during their reproductive years and that sucks. Knowledge is power and May is Pelvic Pain Awareness Month so we want to provide women with useful information about the three most common diagnoses associated with painful sex: vulvodynia, vaginismus, and vesitbulodynia. Differentiating …

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Vaginismus: Real Answers for Sexual Pain

In Female Pelvic Pain by Emily Tran2 Comments

  Vag·i·nis·mus /ˌvajəˈnizməs/   Noun noun: vaginismus painful spasmodic contraction of the vagina in response to physical contact or pressure (especially in sexual intercourse).   What is vaginismus?   Above is the definition that comes up when you google vaginismus. You may have seen blogs or posts on social media about vaginismus or painful sex or may have experienced it …

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You are invited to Becoming UnWOUND: A Conversation about Female Sexual Health & Pelvic Pain with Screening of Animated Short Film“Tightly Wound”

In Female Pelvic Pain by Stephanie PrendergastLeave a Comment

  By Stephanie Prendergast   The Pelvic Health and Rehabilitation Center, Femina Physical Therapy, and the Milli, the first  Expandable Dilator, are teaming up to bring Shelby Hadden and her animated short film about vaginismus, Tightly Wound, to Los Angeles on Saturday, May 19th! Many of you may know of Shelby and her past struggles with pelvic pain. Her journey …

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Love and Vaginismus: Mary’s story of personal growth

In Female Pelvic Pain by Melinda Fontaine1 Comment

By Melinda Fontaine   Mary is an amazing story because in a matter of months, she went from not having any penetrative sex for many years to having unrestricted intercourse with her partner. When Mary was a young woman, she saw a gynecologist for a routine exam. Now, lying on the exam table with your butt almost falling off the …

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Vagi-what? A rough guide to Vaginismus

In Female Pelvic Pain by Emily Tran8 Comments

If you’ve ever said the following: “It feels like there’s a wall there.” “I can’t insert a tampon.” “I can’t have penetrative sex with my husband.” “I was told I need to drink a glass of wine right before sex, but that still doesn’t help.” You might be experiencing vaginismus symptoms. DEFINITION What exactly is vaginismus? Vaginismus, pronounced vaj-uh-niz-muhs, is …