Tag: pelvic PT

Sex After Baby- 4 Reasons Why It Can Hurt and What To Do About It

~ jesspreale ~ Leave a comment

“Ok, TMI…but is everyone having sex again? We tried last night and OMG it was awful! So painful!!”

I clicked on the thread in one of my Facebook moms groups, and slowly looked through the comments, hoping to see words of encouragement, support, and most importantly, solid health advice. 

“I know, me too. I just try to avoid it as much as I can.”

“What is sex? LOL”

Then, I began my comment, “Hi, I’m a pelvic PT and also the mom to a 6 month old. I’m so sorry you’re hurting. It’s so important to know that pain is not something you have to live with. There is help out there…”

Why is painful sex after childbirth so overlooked in healthcare? Why do so many women feel like they just have to live with this as a normal “consequence” of having a baby?

This past fall, I went through the craziest initiation process to join one of the most exclusive clubs out there: Motherhood. It has been an incredible and humbling journey for me, especially as a health care provider who specializes in helping women with problems they experience while pregnant and postpartum. Becoming a mother has allowed me to experience and witness first-hand many of the challenges women face after having babies.

Pain during sexual activity is extremely common after childbirth (Note: I said common…NOT normal). In fact, a large study of over 1000 women found that 85% experience pain during their first vaginal intercourse postnatally. At 3 months postpartum, 45% still were experiencing pain and at 18 months postpartum, 23% were still experiencing pain. Let that sink in. When a mother’s baby is 18 months old, 1 in 5 mamas had pain during sex! And the sad thing is that pain during sexual intercourse is SO treatable!! So, let’s get down to business…

Why could sex hurt after a baby? 

baby-165067_1280

  1. Perineal Trauma from Childbirth

    Spontaneous tearing and episiotomies are very common during vaginal deliveries. In fact, this study looking at 449 women who had at least 1 delivery found that only 3% of them did not have any tearing/episiotomy. Many women are able to heal from tears without problems. However, for some women, these injuries can become sources of pain, especially during sexual intercourse. This is especially true with more severe tears extending into the external anal sphinctor and rectum (grade 3-4 tears). This study found that women who had tears extending into the anal sphinctor were 3-4 times more likely to have pain during intercourse at 1 year postpartum compared to their counterparts. Perineal scars can be very sensitive and move poorly in some women leading to persistent discomfort which can last for years after the baby is born when it is not treated (but guess what? It CAN be treated!)

  2. Hormonal Changes

    Anyone who has had a baby can attest to the crazy hormonal fluctuations that happen during pregnancy and postpartum. One of my very best friends warned me about this telling me that she cried every day for the first week after the baby was born. Guess what? So did I. These crazy hormones can also impact what is happening down below, especially in breastfeeding mamas. Basically, the hormonal changes lead to decreased estrogen in the vulvar tissues often causing thinning and dryness. This is why breastfeeding is associated with painful sexual intercourse early on postpartum. Now, if you are reading this and you are a nursing mama like myself, should you stop to fix your sexual discomfort? Not necessarily. This study found that although nursing was associated with dyspareunia at 6 weeks postpartum, the association was eliminated by 6 months. Meaning, stopping nursing won’t necessarily fix the problem (so don’t let this be your deciding factor in the decision to breastfeed your babe).

  3.  Tender Pelvic Floor Muscles

    The pelvic floor muscles themselves can become big sources of sexual discomfort if they are tender, shortened or irritated after childbirth. Perineal trauma and hormonal changes can lead to tenderness in the pelvic floor muscles, but the muscles can also stand on their own. Many people believe that C-sections protect the pelvic floor muscles from having problems, however, we have to remember that the pelvic floor are one member of a team of muscles (including the deep abdominal muscles, low back muscles and respiratory diaphragm) that work together to provide support and stability to the pelvis. That could be partially why C-section mamas are actually 2-3 times more likely to experience more intense pain during sexual intercourse at 6 months postpartum.

  4. Because Babies are Hard

    I had to add this one in. It’s important to remember than normal sexual function should include sexual desire, arousal, and orgasm. New mamas are exhausted, feeding sweet little babies around the clock, settling into a new routine whether they are returning to jobs or caring for their babies at home,  sleep-deprived from often waking up multiple times a night, changing diapers, and worrying constantly about helping these little babies survive and thrive. And honestly, it can be really hard for many moms to have the same level of sexual desire and arousal that they had prior to having their babies (at least until life settles down– or I’m told–when the babies go to college LOL). When a woman experiences sexual desire and arousal, there is natural lubrication and lengthening of the vaginal canal, and this step is so important in having enjoyable sexual activity. Sometimes, when this step is skipped, women are more likely to experience discomfort with vaginal penetration.

So, what can be done to help?

Realize it is not normal. Don’t just deal with it. And check-in with your Obstetric provider.

The first step is seeing your OB or midwife to make sure everything is ok medically. She should evaluate you to make sure everything is healing the way that it should be healing and that nothing else is going on that needs to be managed medically. I have had patients who have had difficulties healing after tears and needed some medical help to encourage their tissues to heal the way they needed to. I have also worked with women who had underlying infections contributing to their pain, that of course, needed to be treated to move forward. This is not a step you should skip, so don’t be bashful! Tell your doctor what is going on.

Don’t be afraid to use a little help.

I get it. You never had to use lubricant before, and it’s annoying to have to use it now. But guess what? It can make a HUGE difference in reducing discomfort from thin or dehydrated vulvar tissues after babies! So, if you don’t already have a good one, go pick out a nice water-based lubricant to use. Some of my favorites for my patients are Slippery Stuff and Sliquid. I am also a big fan of coconut oil (but make sure to know that using it with condoms can cause condom breakdown).

If you are having difficulty with sexual arousal and desire since having your baby, and you feel comfortable with it (I know, some women don’t!), try using a small vibrator to help with improving sexual arousal and promoting orgasm. Many sex therapists I work with encourage couples to consider using this on days when they need a little assistance attaining the arousal they need.

Educate your sexual partner and empower them to help you

It can be so helpful to include partners in this process. Show them this blog post, so they can understand what could be going on, and empower them to help you! For some women having difficulties with arousal, having their partner do something like clean up after dinner and put the baby to bed so they can have time for a quiet relaxing shower can be just the ticket to helping them become more sexually aroused to decrease sexual discomfort. If you are having problems with painful perineal scars or pelvic floor muscles, consider including your partner in your medical or physical therapy visits so they can understand what you are experiencing. Many pelvic PTs (like myself) will often educate partners in methods to help with decreasing pain , and even in treating the pelvic floor muscles/scars (if both people feel comfortable and on-board with this!).

Go see a pelvic PT!

If you have tender pelvic floor muscles or painful scars, all the lubricant and sexual arousal in the world is not going to fix the problem. Working with a skilled pelvic floor physical therapist can be hugely beneficial in identifying where and what the problem is, and helping you move forward from pain!

A skilled physical therapist will spend time talking with you the first visit to understand your history (including specifics of your delivery), and will perform a comprehensive examination, head to toe, to see how your body moves, where you might not be moving as well as you could be, and how you transfer force through your body. They will also perform an examination of the abdominal wall (especially important for C-section mamas), and an internal vaginal examination of the pelvic floor muscles. Based on this examination, they will be able to work with you to develop a plan to help you optimize the function of your body and get back to a happy and healthy sex life!

This is first in likely a few series of posts I will be doing on postpartum specific problems. I hope you all enjoy! Please please please reach out if you have any questions at all!

Have a wonderful week!

Jessica

 

Interview with Sara Sauder, PT on Vestibulodynia, Contraceptives and Bladder Pain

~ jesspreale ~ Leave a comment
A few weekends ago, I had the awesome opportunity to host Sara Sauder and Kelli Wilson in teaching their course, Vestibulodynia: An Orthopedic and Pelvic Floor Approach. The course was fantastic, and both Kelli and Sara are excellent instructors. Their course is unique in that it 1) focused on a very specific diagnosis (super great for those of us who have been practicing for a while 2) is very small–a max of 12 participants, meaning lots of one on one time with instructors 3) includes a facetime conversation with a well-known pelvic pain medical expert (in our case, Dr. Irwin Goldstein) and 4) allows participants to both perform treatments on instructors and have instructors perform treatments on participants.

Sara and I have been “virtual” friends for quite some time… in fact, I can’t remember when exactly we started e-mailing, but we became penpals of sorts. We share journal articles with each other, and I believe I even told her I was pregnant before I told many of my other friends (truth!). So, needless to say, I was SO excited for us to finally meet in person and become real friends. And, Sara was so gracious to agree to answer some of my questions to share some excellent insight with all of you on vestibulodynia and her course. I hope you enjoy!

JR: First, can you briefly explain what vestibulodynia is to my readers out there who are unfamiliar?

SS: Vestibulodynia is pain at the vestibule.  The vestibule is a specific tissue at the opening of the vagina.  The opening of the vagina itself has a name which is the “introitus”.  The vestibule is part of the introitus.  It is considered part of the vulva even though it may seem that it extends into the space between vulva and vagina.  Hence the name…vestibule.  It’s like a hallway.  Or…an alcove, if you will….
Other than that simple explanation, vestibulodynia can feel like pain, itching, burning discomfort at the opening of the vagina or at the urethra or the bladder.  The aftermath of this sort of pain can result in lots of other things happening, like feeling pain inside the vagina, at the other areas of the vulva including the clitoris.  

JR: Thank you for explaining that further. Now, there are so many pelvic pain diagnoses out there…why a course on vestibulodynia?

SS: Vestibulodynia is truly a common denominator in so much female pelvic pain.  I think that if we can start to recognize the vestibule hurts, then we can get to the root of why someone has pain.  There is a logical way to think about why the vestibule hurts and we if we can understand the true why of the pain, then we can treat it.  In treating that one core issue, we will see that other symptoms that may seem unrelated start to resolve.

JR: That’s a really good point. We see vestibulodynia as a common issue with so many different pelvic pain syndromes. One in particular, that we discussed in more detail at your course, is Interstitial Cystitis or Painful Bladder Syndrome. Now, most people see IC/PBS as a “Bladder Problem,” but you shared some interesting information about the relationship between pain at the vestibule and urethral/bladder pain. Can you explain that for our readers?

SS: The vestibule, urethra and lining of the bladder (including the urachus) are all made of endodermal tissue.  They are all part of the same embyrological tube.  Their needs are the same.  That’s why you often see pain at the vestibule with any bladder symptoms.  That’s why the reverse is true.  You will see bladder symptoms with pain at the vestibule.

JR: That is fascinating, and also helps us to understand why some treatments for one may also be effective for the other (for example, both populations can have an increased hystamine response–especially during allergy season– and may have a decrease in pain with using anti-histamines! Moving on, in your course (which was awesome!), you discussed some of the main causes of vestibulodynia. The role between oral contraceptive use and vestibulodynia was discussed in detail. So many people are surprised to hear that being on birth control could contribute to their vulvar pain. Can you explain that a little bit more?

SS: Any product that affects the body’s sex hormones can affect parts of the body that are dependent on sex hormones.  So, using a combined hormonal contraceptive or any other medicine that affects estrogen and testosterone will affect the vulvovaginal tissue.  These areas are sex hormone dependent, to varying degrees based on their different embryology.  We go into this in super detail in the vestibulodynia course.  The mechanics of it are repeated over and over because if this isn’t truly understood, we, as physical therapists, will never understand what kind of progress is or isn’t possible for our patients.  If a woman is on a medication that will lower their sex hormones and I keep treating her for symptoms of sex hormone reduction, I’ll be banging my head on the wall if I don’t understand that hormonally there are changes taking place that I can’t affect until the patient gets off of or alters that medication.

JR:  That is especially interesting to me, as I have seen several patients (as well as a few close friends!) who have used oral contraceptives develop vulvar pain or pain with sexual intercourse. Now of course, we know that not everyone who takes OCPs will develop vestibulodynia, but it seems like certain individuals may be more susceptible than others. And the current research seems to recognize some of these problems occurring, to the point that now OCPs are no longer the most recommended type of contraceptive for women (especially younger ones). I know this was something we chatted a little bit about with Dr. Goldstein during our facetime chat at your course. (Readers: Here’s an interesting article about contraceptives and vulvar/bladder pain you may find helpful!)

Now, Vestibulodynia can be a tough diagnosis for clinicians to treat. What are the most common mistakes you think physical therapists make when working with women with vestibulodynia?

SS: The most common thing I find with clinicians of any discipline in working with patients with vestibulodynia is that often we completely miss the fact that the patient has vestibulodynia in the first place.  Either the vestibule is completely removed from the assessment because it is pushed aside with a speculum, or it is not assessed via appropriate and specific q-tip testing.  If we miss that we are dealing with issues at the vestibule, we are missing the point.

JR: So, true of many diagnoses! So, wrapping things up…one of the things I love about you is how hard you work to advocate for your patients– it’s amazing! So, let’s say I’m a woman reading this, and I think I have vestibulodynia. What should I do?

SS: If you think you have vestibulodynia, definitely talk to your physician about it.  Explain your symptoms and ask to see a pelvic floor physical therapist.  When you get a referral, call the physical therapist before your evaluation.  Ask if they have treated vestibulodynia, ask how they treat it and ask about their success in treating it.

JR: Thank you so much for taking the time to chat with me about vestibulodynia, and for coming to our clinic to share such an awesome course this weekend! I know we all really enjoyed it and found it super useful in learning to provide the best care we can for the women we treat who are experiencing vulvar pain (and really, pelvic pain in general!)

If you are a clinician who works with women with pelvic pain, I highly recommend Sara Sauder and Kelli Wilson’s course, Vestibulodynia: An Orthopedic and Pelvic Floor Approach. For more information, please check out their website: http://www.alcoveeducation.com/

3377681_origSARA K. SAUDER PT, DPT
is originally from Dallas, has lived in Houston and prefers life in Austin. She received her Doctor of Physical Therapy from Texas Woman’s University in 2010, but began practicing with her Master in Physical Therapy in 2007.  She works at Sullivan Physical Therapy and specializes in pelvic pain and mentors pelvic floor physical therapists through a professional mentorship program. To focus her interests, she authors the blog, Blog About Pelvic Pain. Through this medium she voices her opinion and experiences with diagnoses and treatments for pelvic pain. She has also been a guest writer for popular blogs such as Pelvic Guru, Pregnant Chicken, Scary Mommy and Pelvic Health and Rehabilitation Center’s As the Pelvis Turns. Sara interviews and shadows internationally-recognized specialists alike. She is a member of the American Physical Therapy Association’s (APTA) Section of Women’s Health (SOWH), International Pelvic Pain Society (IPPS), the International Society for the Study of Women’s Sexual Health (ISSWSH) and the National Vulvodynia Association (NVA).  She is as blurry in person as she is in her photos.