Secret Suffering Newsletter - 9/23/07
Secret Suffering Newsletter
Issue #1 - September 23, 2007
Publisher: Susan Bilheimer
susan@secretsuffering.com
http://www.secretsuffering.com
Copyright 2007 Very Peri, Inc.
Circulation: 175
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“Helping women cope with sexual pain and it’s impact on
their relationships”
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Please forward this ezine to anyone you know who would
benefit from the information contained in this newsletter.
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In This Issue:
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1. We’re up and running
2. Update on our book
3. On our blog
4. News for you
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1. We’re up and running
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I’m happy (and relieved) that our website/blog is
finally up and running. I’ve got a long way to
go to get all the information we’ve accumulated
into the site, but it’s a start. I’ve been
in touch with lots of other sites who have great
information on all the conditions that cause
sexual pain and we’re getting a very positive response.
If you haven’t been on the site yet, please be
sure to check out the Resources page.
We have included many excellent books and website that
contain a great deal of helpful information.
We’d love for you to send us any information or news that
you think would be interesting to other women (or their
partners).
Plus, we encourage you to share your story in
our Healing room. We just ask that your story focus on
your condition as it affects all of your relationships.
If you want to comment on any other issue about your condition, feel
free to post in the Random
Thoughts page.
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2. Update on our book
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You may know that in conjunction with the site,
Dr. Echenberg (Dr. E) and I are writing a book, also called
“Secret Suffering,” about women’s sexual pain and
relationships. Now that the site is up, I’ve got
to get moving on the book. We actually have a publisher
interested, which is very exciting.
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3. On our blog
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Dr. E responded to a woman who has been through much
of what many of us have experienced.
You can read her post in Random Thoughts.
Dr. E responded:
Your suffering with pelvic pain is exactly why we started this
project. Our chronic pelvic pain center has drawn many hundreds of
women like yourself with relentless pain in the pelvic region often
associated with bladder or bowel issues as major triggers. Your
history and symptoms seem to indicate a strong possibility of your
bladder as a primary trigger for your pain.
I cannot make a specific diagnosis, but you need to use as many
resources as you can to look into what is so commonly mis-diagnosed
or not diagnosed at all - “Painful Bladder Syndrome” or otherwise
known as Interstitial Cystitis (IC).
About 60% of otherwise undiagnosed chronic pelvic pain is triggered
by this condition. IC effects possibly up to 20% of all reproductive
age women in the USA. A combination of symptoms of urinary urgency,
frequency, and pain in the pelvic region can be made fairly readily
especially if all other anatomic pathologies have been ruled out as
in your case.
On average IC is not diagnosed for up to 5 or 6 years after symptoms
get significant and women usually see multiple specialists and get
multiple invasive procedures before diagnosis…
Read more here.
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4. News for you
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A medical website in the UK, Menopause Matters, conducted a study of
over 1,000 women and found that 53 per cent of menopausal women
experience painful sex.
It’s a sad fact, but one that may give you comfort that you aren’t
alone, even if you are not in menopause.
By the way, Dr. Echenberg is on his way to Panama today to
give the keynote address at a pain conference. To check out
other events, go to our Events page.
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There’s a new set of procedures called “vaginal rejuvenation” that
are billed as improving sexual response and enhancing vaginal
appearance. OK, I, for one, cannot fathom why I’d need to
enhance the appearance of my vagina, but maybe it’s because
I don’t look at my own too often.
On a more serious note, however, the American College of
Obstetricans and Gynecologists are urging women to be wary of
these procedures. They can lead to a host of problems, including
increased pain during sex. To read more, here is an article from The
Ledger.
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Suffering Newsletter” in your own print or electronic newsletter. But
please include the following paragraph:
Reprinted from “The Secret Suffering Newsletter,” a free ezine to
help women cope with sexual pain. Subscribe at
http://www.secretsuffering.com/ and download the free ebook “How to
Find Relief from Vaginal/Vulvar Pain.”
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Copyright 2007 Very Peri, Inc.
Susan Bilheimer
Very Peri, Inc.
Loggers Run
Boca Raton, FL 33428
(954) 778-9160
(888) 241-1461
susan@secretsuffering.com