Couples generally consult a doctor because they are unable to have intercourse. The duration of being unable to have intercourse varies.
Women with vaginismus may feel the vaginal entrance like a wall during attempts at sexual intercourse. For this reason, they frequently use expressions such as “there is a wall there, the penis seems to hit a wall”. They describe the pain and other sensations they feel as tearing, piercing, splitting, burning, or stinging.
In women with vaginismus, the most basic symptom is experiencing a panic attack-like condition at the moment of sexual intercourse. Even if consciousness is clear, the patient loses control. In addition to this, involuntary contractions occur not only around the vagina but also in accompanying muscle groups. There may be contraction throughout the whole body, anxiety, fear, and panic. The patient tightly closes her legs and pushes her partner away with her hands. Generally, when the intervention to the vaginal area ends, the muscles relax and return to normal. In women with vaginismus, situations such as pushing their partners away during intercourse, escaping from the bed, crying, begging the partner to stop, screaming, sweating, trembling, feeling the urge to urinate, restlessness, nausea, abdominal pain, closing the legs, passing gas, and holding the breath may occur. Emotional stress may manifest in different ways, from a mild feeling of discomfort to severe anxiety and panic attacks. Women with vaginismus have thoughts such as they will feel burning, stinging, hitting a wall, and pain during intercourse attempts. Questions such as what will happen to my hymen, how will I get pregnant, and how will I give birth occupy their minds.
Fear of pain is a condition we commonly see in vaginismus. Sexual intercourse always evokes pain. This pain may be a real pain she has experienced, or it may be an imagined perception of pain she has never experienced before. What matters is how the woman perceives it. Because this perception, through the signals it sends to the nervous system, causes the muscles around the vagina to contract. This contraction narrows the diameter of the vagina and may cause intercourse to actually be painful.
How can I tell if I have vaginismus?
How can I tell if I have vaginismus?
Involuntary contractions, panic, and fear during intercourse mean that a person may have vaginismus.
What causes vaginismus?
The causes of vaginismus are generally psychological. Fear of sexuality and experiencing sexual abuse may cause vaginismus. Its biological causes can be listed as traumatic childbirth, a history of gynecological procedures, or vaginal yeast infection.
How many years does vaginismus last?
When vaginismus is not treated, it creates more fear toward sexuality and affects the person's sexual life. When treated, recovery is achieved within 3–6 months.
What happens if vaginismus is forced?
During vaginismus, the muscles contract, so the entrance becomes closed. Therefore, when forced, it causes the person pain and makes sexual intercourse traumatic.
Does vaginismus go away on its own?
Vaginismus requires treatment. It does not go away on its own. It is necessary to determine whether vaginismus is experienced due to psychological or biological reasons and to find a treatment method accordingly.
What should be done to overcome vaginismus?
Exercises can be done during treatment to overcome vaginismus. Touch, breathing, mirror, leg opening, and pelvic muscle exercises can support vaginismus treatment.
