How common is painful vaginal intercourse?

Many women feel pain the first time that they have sex, but with enough time and practice they get to know their bodies to learn how to minimize or eliminate discomfort, as well as what feels good for them. For other women, intercourse never feels pleasurable or else it becomes painful as a result of aging, childbirth, a medical condition, a new partner or for other reasons that a woman can't seem to pinpoint. It can be a difficult and frustrating experience for women to meet with healthcare provider after healthcare provider, trying to get to the bottom of what may be causing her pain during sex.

The fact is that most women will experience some form of pain during intercourse at one time or another. Dyspareunia, the clinical name for painful intercourse, is reported in 15 percent of women at any given time, according to the Association of Reproductive Health Professionals. Pain may be felt in the vagina, deep inside the pelvis, or at the opening of the vagina. Sensations of pain can range from dull to throbbing to a burning or tenderness of the skin. Some women experience pain during intercourse, others after intercourse.