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. Dilators can be used to improve scar tissue after childbirth, surgery, or radiotherapy. They can reduce vulvar and vaginal hypersensitivity. Dilators may help the pelvic muscles relax to a size that is functional for sexual activity, increasing the quality of sex life for women.
In a recent Peer & Pro Tips series featuring Pelvic Health and Rehabilitation Center’s co-founder, Stephanie Prendergast (MPT), Stephanie provides insight on vaginal dilation and why dilators are part of treatment plans for painful sex or vaginal tightness.
During this Peer & Pro Tips segment, Stephanie covers the differences between pelvic muscles and other muscles in the body. Unlike the hamstring, for example, pelvic muscles cannot simply be stretched through common exercises like yoga. Instead, manual techniques like pelvic floor physical therapy and vaginal dilation are often used. Dilators are able to apply stretch to the pelvic floor muscles reducing tightness and increasing relaxation over time. They are a way for women to help stretch their pelvic floor muscles on their own at home.
Vaginal dilators are often recommended to women experiencing tightness or discomfort in their pelvic floor. For anyone suffering, routine vaginal dilation is a non-hormonal approach to loosening these muscles and reducing pain during sex.
Shelby Hadden of Tightly Wound speaks along with Stephanie. Shelby suffered from a condition called Vaginismus, which caused involuntary tightening of her vaginal muscles. Shelby refers to vaginal dilation as a technique to teach your muscles how to relax and ultimately stretch out. Women begin with the smallest diameter dilator in the set and when they have no issues inserting the dilator, they will progress to the next largest size and so on. To minimize discomfort and increase effectiveness, Shelby recommends women try Milli, a silicone vaginal trainer with adjustable sizing. Milli achieves and gives incremental sizing from 15 mm to 40 mm in diameter, with a total expansion of 25 mm. Unlike current vaginal dilators on the market (static dilators), the jumps in sizes can be intimidating for many women. Milli offers a less daunting experience due to its millimeter-by-millimeter incremental sizing that women control with a click of a button. Shelby’s favorite feature of the product is the vibration setting with low and high settings, which she says helps desensitize tissue in the muscles.
Click here to watch this 2-minute Peer & Pro Tip on “What is Vaginal Dilation”.
For more information about the Milli and vaginal dilation please visit their website.