Cancer Survivorship: Regaining a quality sex life

I hear it so frequently.....Yes, you survived cancer and should be thankful for your life. Unfortunately, many cancer survivors, both male and female, battle with SEXUAL DYSFUNCTION AND PAIN after cancer treatments.

For women, chemotherapy and drugs such as Tomoxofen can rapidly deplete the body of Estrogen. One type of Estrogen, Estradiol has over 400 functions in the body so you can only imagine how many bodily functions change with rapid loss. A major function of Estrogen is keeping tissues hydrated. Dryness in vaginal tissues can be very painful in and of itself during intercourse. Chronic depletion of estrogen can also lead to vaginal atrophy, or shrinkage of the muscles surrounding the vagina. These muscles not only contribute to sexual function, but are also key in bowel and bladder function (urinary urgency, frequency or pain).

For males, removal of the prostate can lead to scarring and irritation around the bladder and pelvic floor muscles. The scarring can also irritate local nerves and can lead to chronic pelvic pain, tailbone pain, urinary frequency, painful intercourse and even erectile dysfunction.

THERE IS HELP! We have had tremendous success in helping cancer survivors regain their sexual health. Physical Therapy trigger point release directly to the pelvic floor muscles can increase blood flow and therefore help improve tissue quality, normalize bladder function, decrease muscle tension, and improve sexual function. In addition to internal trigger point release of the pelvic muscles (offered to both females and males) we can use several modalities to decrease pain and nerve sensitivity such as Electrical Stimulation and Biofeedback.

While manual physical therapy is very helpful, we also utilize massage therapy, pilates exercise therapy and acupuncture. Many women benefit from massage therapy for lymph drainage after mastectomies. Lymph build-up in the body can significantly contribute to pain all over the body as painful tissues need to circulate out the toxins/ inflammatory chemicals that they produce. Specific exercises in a specialized Pilates exercise program can also aid in lymph drainage. Pilates is also a wonderful way to decrease tension in spasmed muscles and to regain core stength. Finally, Acupuncture has amazing abilities to decrease pain and improve circulation. Acupuncture also helps in rebalancing the body's natural functions.

Womanology believes survivorship is not merely defined by a heartbeat, pulse, and breathing. Survivorship is regaining life's simple pleasures and health. There is help for you or a loved one.

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