FACTORS AFFECTING YOUR SEXUAL LIFE: DYSPAREUNIA OR UNCOMFORTABLE INTERCOURSE
Dyspareunia occurs at varying times in women’s lives and in some instances not at all, for some women continue to produce enough oestrogen after menstruation ceases. Fat women for instance, who manufacture oestrogen in their subcutaneous fat, complain less often of this symptom. However, dyspareunia may gradually increase as the woman ages, unless oestrogen is replaced locally or generally.
Discomfort with intercourse at this time was once thought to be a psychological symptom, and women were blamed for not being interested in intercourse. But there is an actual change in the cells of the vagina that can be observed under a microscope. With the application of oestrogens, these cells revert to their oestrogenised state.
At menopause the tissues atrophy and become dry, and the vagina becomes, in some instances, shorter and more rigid. This condition is aggravated if there is no sexual activity.
Lack of lubrication can certainly affect libido because of sheer discomfort. In addition the oestrogen-deficient, less-acid vagina is more prone to infection, and, with vaginal thinning, it may bleed due to friction during intercourse. This dryness of vaginal tissues in some women comes on gradually, and in others it appears more suddenly. It may occur within weeks if the ovaries are removed surgically.
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