Painful penetration- Help?

"My girlfriend and I have had sex about a dozen times, but often penetration still causes her discomfort. Sometimes, she is in pain throughout the act. Is this normal? Is there anyway to alleviate her pain?"

To answer this question, we looked at a number of medical sites and found we most liked Columbia's "Ask Alice!" site, so we adapted it. The short answer is that intercourse shouldn't be painful, so your girlfriend should make an appointment to speak with a medical provider and get more personalized feedback, but a more developed answer (thank you Alice!) is below:

There are any number of reasons why one might be experiencing painful intercourse. The most common reasons are poor communication skills, lack of trust or commitment, and sexual ignorance. However, it sounds like in your case, it is caused by none of the above. There are also several physical reasons you might experience pain during intercourse (all are remedy-able):

• Painful penetration -- vaginismus: This is a strong, involuntary tightening of your vaginal muscles -- a spasm of the outer third of your vagina which makes entrance by the penis acutely painful. This can be physically or psychologically based.
• Local infection: Some vaginal infections can be present in a non acute, visually unnoticeable form. The friction of a penis can cause the infection to flare up.
• Insufficient lubrication: If your natural secretions of lubrication are not enough, or your timing is off, the friction of a penis in your vagina could be quite painful. In this case, using an extra lubricant, such as Astroglide (available in Dick's House) might help.
• Tightness in the vaginal entrance: The first few times you have intercourse, an unstretched hymen can cause pain. And whenever you are tense and preoccupied, the vaginal entrance is not likely to loosen up enough, therefore making getting the penis in hurtful. In addition, if you try to get the penis in before you are fully aroused, you might still be too tight, even though you are lubricated enough. Slow down and take your time.
• Pain deep in the pelvis: This can be caused by tears in the ligaments that support the uterus, infections of the cervix, uterus or tubes, endometriosis, or cysts or tumors on the ovaries. All of these may be medically treatable.

Whatever the cause, your girlfriend doesn't need to put up with the pain! Get a good gynecological exam at Dick's House (call x6-9401 or use BannerStudent online to make an appointment), and find out what's going on. In the meantime, continue to find other ways to give each other pleasure. Feel good!