Healing Painful Sex: A Woman's Guide to Confronting, Diagnosing, and Treating Sexual Pain [Paperback]

Deborah Coady (Author), Nancy Fish (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 1, 2011

Healing Painful Sex covers the following symptoms and conditions:

Pelvic floor dysfunctionVulvodynia, pudendal nerve pain, and clitorodyniaPelvic organ problems, endometriosis, painful bladder, and irritable bowelSkin disorders, such as lichen sclerosisHormonal, surgical, and post-cancer causes of sexual pain
Millions of women suffer from sexual and pelvic pain in America today, yet it is frequently misdiagnosed—or not diagnosed at all.In Healing Painful Sex, Deborah Coady, MD and Nancy Fish use their combined professional expertise as a doctor and therapist who specialize in sexual pain to provide readers with an understanding of its many causes and how to treat them, from both a physical and psychological standpoint.

Organized into three parts—naming the problem, getting a diagnosis, and overcoming pain—Healing Painful Sex includes medical checklists, illustrations, vignettes based on interviews with women and their healthcare professionals, treatment options, and guidance for moving forward after healing. Coady and Fish speak honestly and directly to sexual pain sufferers’ experiences, helping them address the problem of chronic pain, understand and prevent misdiagnoses, define medical terms and conditions, and regain sexual joy. Comprehensive, multi-dimensional, and deeply insightful, Healing Painful Sex offers women the tools to successfully take on the many challenges of sexual pain and move toward a healthy, happy future.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Sexual pain loses its mystery in a book that comprehensively covers the myriad physical causes and treatments available to replace misiagnosis and improper treatment. For women, here is hope that cuts through the murkiness of vulvodynia to clear diagnosis for vulvar pain."

Elizabeth G. Stewart, MD, author, The V Book

"With an optimistic, holistic, and mindful approach to healing, Coady and Fish provide empathy, support, and most important, a thorough education about the possible causes, approaches, and treatment options."

Talli Y. Rosenbaum, MSc, PT, AASECT,  Associate Editor, Journal of Sexual Medicine

"A concise, clear, & comprehensive resource that informs & empowers women to get the care they deserve...illustrating precisely the type of integrated & holistic treatment approach that stands the best chance of success."

Marta Meana, PhD, author of Obesity Surgery: Stories of Altered Lives

"This empowering book shatters myths, provides hope, and offers tangible help to countless women. Through their compassionate validation and expertise, Coady and Fish have broken the silence and begun the healing process for so many in need. Bravo!"

Heather Roppolo-Guidone, Director of Education, Endometriosis Foundation of America

"Healing Painful Sex identifies many of the mysteries behind diagnoses women commonly receive, and offers solutions to various conditions and disorders. This book makes it easy to understand challenging diagnoses. I highly recommend it to women and their healthcare providers."

Amy Stein, author of Heal Pelvic Pain 

“Dr. Deborah Coady, one of America’s great gynecologists, is an unusually clear-eyed and brilliant advocate for women’s health, and in taking on this taboo subject, she and co-author Nancy Fish are helping women from all walks of life recover full sexual and reproductive lives.” —Naomi Wolf, author of The End of America and Give Me Liberty

From the Author

Please read these reviews of our book.  Thank you, Deborah

PsychCentral.com Book Review

In Healing Painful Sex: A Woman's Guide to Confronting, Diagnosing, and Treating Sexual Pain, physician Deborah Coady, MD, and psychotherapist Nancy Fish, MSW, MPH, combine their medical and psychological expertise to write a book about and for women who suffer from sexual pain.  Healing Painful Sex is concise, clear, and comprehensive, informing women of the many causes and treatments available for disorders.
Through its holistic, compassionate approach, this valuable guide empowers with knowledge, instills with confidence and gives women a direction for finding doctors who are truly knowledgeable about their disorders and able to treat their pain.  As is read in its introduction, "This book is the product of our passionate belief that all women with sexual pain need both physical and emotional support." 
Deborah Coady and Nancy Fish provide a detailed, empathic guide that that offers a wealth of physical and emotional suppport. I highly recommend Healing Painful Sex: A Woman's Guide to Confronting, Diagnosing, and Treating Sexual Pain.
Millions of women suffer from sexual and pelvic pain in America today, yet it is frequently misdiagnosed or not diagnosed at all.  Because of the multidisciplinary nature of sexual pain, which falls between the disciplines of experts, women have often been told that pain is "all in your head"  or that nothing can be done to help them.  As Coady and Fish point out, "We're here to tell you that none of that is true.  Sexual pain is almost always caused by an identifiable, verifiable medical condition; it can be treated and is not in your head." 
Nancy Fish had suffered from severe pelvic pain and had seen seven specialists before visiting Deborah Coady.  Coady, while having years of experience with women suffering from sexual pain, nonetheless took some time to uncover all of Fish's difficulties.  Fish, like most women suffering from sexual pain, through inadequate treatment had several conditions that had compounded and spread.  A licensed certified social worker specializing in chronic illness, Fish found great hope in Coady's insistence that she never give up on herself. She was inspired to form a partnership with Coady to help those with the chronic illness of sexual pain. 
Deborah Coady, through her personally developed teams of colleagues in neurology, dermatology, orthopedics, pain management, gastroenterology, urology, peripheral nerve surgery, physical therapy and psychotherapists, demonstrates inHealing Painful Sex how fruitful their holistic approach can be. As they write, "Even in your most difficult situations, you can experience a significant reduction in your pain and can find help for reintroducing sex as a joyous and nourishing part of your life.  We promise:  Things can get better."
The book is organized into three parts. Part 1: Naming the Problem begins with the difficult situation of talking about sexual pain.  It helps the reader learn how to share her situation with one or two other people who can then help make medical decisions.  The book then discusses the often arrogant, uninformed or downright abusive physicians who exist.  As stated in the book, "The degree of incompetence, insensitivity, and indifference among gynecologists, other specialists, and general practitioners is hard to overstate."  Hoping to aid their emotional healing along the way to ending their sexual pain, Coady and Fish outline the ways in which the reader can understand what to do when the doctors get it wrong. 
The first section of the book ends with a chapter dedicated to finding a doctor who will offer effective treatment and provides a detailed holistic guide on beginning one's healing by following guidelines on pain, sleep hygiene, diet and supplements, exercise and relaxation techniques and learning of how to be gentle with oneself.
Part 2: Understanding the Problem, provides the reader nine chapters of detailed information covering the symptoms and conditions of pelvic floor dysfunction, vulvodynia, pudendal nerve pain, clitorodynia, pelvic organ problems, endometriosis, painful bladder, and irritable bowel syndrome, skin disorders, such as lichen sclerosis, and hormonal, surgical, and post-cancer causes of pain.  Interwoven with detailed explanations of the causes of sexual pain, the book contains full-page anatomical illustrations, checklists for particular disorders, and details on the types of tests needed as well as lists of the common misdiagnoses given for a disorder and ways to rule it out.  It contains details on how the various conditions can co-occur and affect one another.  It tells the potential patient of what to expect during an examination and offers guidance based on the doctor's performance and recommendations.
Part 3: Overcoming the Problem presents valuable information and guidance devoted to fulfilling one's life with the joys often taken away in sexual pain.  Coady and Fish hope to return libido, desire, partner intimacy, healthy relationships with friends and families to women undergoing sexual pain.  Their many personal case studies validate and underscore the valuable guidance they provide.  The book closes with excellent resources, including recommended books, helpful websites, psychotherapists, as well as relevant organizations and associations.

Last reviewed: By John M. Grohol, Psy.D. on 7 Feb 2012          

Published on PsychCentral.com. All rights reserved.

Atlas Wonders Book Review

I have only one question for the authors, Deborah Coady and Nancy Fish; where was this book all my life!?
Healing Painful Sex: A Woman's Guide to Confronting, Diagnosing, and Treating Sexual Pain is probably one of the most important books I've read this year alone. This book would have been a godsend when I was first diagnosed with endometriosis. Or dealing with the beginnings of IBS. Or the multiple urinary tract infections in college.
It is a hefty tome, clocking in at almost four hundred pages, with all the chocked full references included, but it is a must have on every woman's bookshelf. The book is divided into three parts: Naming the Problem, Understanding the Problem, and Overcoming the Problem. The authors give step by step instructions for everything from how to pick the right doctor (one who is caring and listens), how to figure out exactly what is causing the pain and how to begin to heal your life from the illness that splintered your world. The references are a dream guide, which include not only recommended books, but doctors, associations, physical therapists, pharmacies, places to get sexual aids, and even websites that have pain assessment tools.
Coady and Fish, even being medical professionals themselves, advise a great relationship with your primary care doctor, but also have tons of alternative healing advice to give. Yoga, deep sleep techniques, physical therapy, acupuncture, along with many others are also advised to begin the healing the process, even if you haven't found a great doctor to connect with.
The language is caring and sensitive (for the most part because my only issue with this book was that while it strives to be inclusive, there are moments when the language slips into heternormativity) and the love and understanding is felt in every page. These authors want to help every single woman who has ever dealt with sexual pain lead a pain free life.
This is a monumentally important book that needs to be on everyone's wishlist this year. Pick one up for every woman in your life. They will thank you for it.
--Jillian L. Schweitzer
 

Product Details

• Paperback: 400 pages
• Publisher: Seal Press (November 1, 2011)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1580053637
• ISBN-13: 978-1580053631
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6.4 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 15.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #92,041 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #17 in Books > Health, Fitness & Dieting > Sexual Health > Women's Sexual Health

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Wow is an UNDERSTATEMENT! October 24, 2011

By forever***indebted

Format:Paperback

Healing Painful Sex is a brilliant book. Beautifully written and easy to read, this informative masterpiece addresses the medical aspects of pelvic pain to perfection. As well, the perceptive insights woven throughout this book - are truly remarkable.

Kudos to Dr. Coady and Nancy for addressing these taboo issues in a dignified manner - what a worthy and noble cause!

Thanks will never suffice.

G-d has His ways, and Dr. Coady and Nancy are truly angels sent from Heaven.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars A Must for ANYONE Suffering from a Chronic Medical Condition November 3, 2011

By Irene Gottesman

Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase

This book is outstanding. The authors hit the nail on the head! Not only is it a must-read for individuals suffering from pelvic pain or painful sex, but for physicians caring for a patient with this kind of pain. It shouild be required reading for any person who is either caring for someone close to them or is themselves suffering from any pain condition. Fish and Coady help the pateint navigate the complex maze of today's managed care medical system and give practical tips on how be a patient advocate and deal with dismissive doctors. The gifted authors also give the patient hope and coping skills to get them through the roughest times.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent book November 1, 2011

By Mo592

Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase

This book is a must read for anyone suffering from sexual/pelvic pain. Dr. Coady does a wonderful job explaining the medical components of the many conditions that can cause pain. She also explains the treatments available, without overwhelming the reader. She is an expert in her field and the depth of her knowledge is immeasurable. Nancy Fish does a great job reassuring the reader they are not alone. Her advice on how to cope is brilliant. This book validates the suffering that many women have experienced and provides hope. I highly recommend this book...