Login
Register

Home

About Us

Diagnoses

Treatments

Classes

Resources

Media

Testimonials

Blog

Account

Home
Register

Get The Book

Haga clic aquí para la versión española

Sex Without Pain: A Self-Treatment Guide To The Sex Life You Deserve was written by Heather Jeffcoat, DPT, a physical therapist with countless successes in treating pain of this type. Women with vaginismus, overactive pelvic floor, painful intercourse, vulvodynia, vulvar vestibulitis, vestibulodynia, dyspareunia, interstitial cystitis have all benefited from her unique program. Heather uses her orthopaedic background to approach treatment of these muscles like they are....muscles! She utilizes a self-treatment tool called a dilator to provide massage and other muscle relaxation and stretching techniques in a gentle fashion to return a women's muscles back to a resting, rather than guarded, state.

Sex Without Pain: A Self-Treatment Guide To The Sex Life You Deserve

What Others are Saying About "Sex Without Pain ":

I have seen Heather's treatment program work time and time again with my patients. Her unique approach to treating women with painful intercourse through a combination of hands on skills, patient education and the thorough home program outlined in this book has surpassed the results of her peers. Her techniques and expertise have been an invaluable resource to my practice."

- Kerri Parks, MD (Associate Professor Ob/Gyn USC Keck School of Medicine)


I will use it frequently for clients who cannot afford pelvic floor PT or for those who cannot find pelvic floor PT any where near them! I have so needed this resource. The clarity of each step and the drawings are so helpful - I don't know of any other resource that will be as effective for self-help."

- Joyce Penner, RN, MN (Sexual Therapist, Educator and Co-author of The Gift of Sex, Restoring the Pleasure and numerous other publications)


Sex Without Pain is an essential book for any woman suffering with pelvic or sexual pain. Heather's approach is simple and clear. She empowers the woman and her partner with the resources needed to lead a healthy and pain free sex life. A great read for patients and professionals alike."

- Jennifer Briggs, DPT (Women's Health Physical Therapist, Pennsylvania)


• To order "Sex Without Pain" in paperback from Amazon for $24.99, click here.

• To order an electronic read-only non-printable PDF copy of the book for instant download at $19.99, use the button below:

• To schedule an appointment at one of the Femina PT offices, click here.

• For a list of other trusted health care providers, click here.

Mary P. Shriver, CMT

Pre- and Post Surgical, Somatic Stress, Trauma and Massage Therapist

Mary P. Shriver (she/her/hers) is an integral part of the Fusion/Femina team. Her work as a Trauma-Informed, Somatic Stress Therapist (Shake Off Stress) is an invaluable part of the healing journey for many of our patients.

Besides being a Certified Massage Therapist, Mary is a The Resilience Toolkit Certification Trainer, Certified Provider of Tension/Trauma Release Exercises (TRE®), Certified Compassion Fatigue Educator, and holds a B.S. in Psychology from Denison University. She is also trained in the Trauma Resilience Model and Community Resilience Model through the Trauma Resource Institute, Motivational Interviewing for Behavior Change (MINT), Level 1 Resistance Flexibility with Bob Cooley, Pelvic Floor Piston Science from Julie Wiebe, and is a member of the International Pelvic Floor Society.

Mary is also trained in the SSP/Safe and Sound Protocol (acoustic ventral vagal tone stimulation) and Brainspotting.

A native New Yorker, Mary began her career in the public relations and marketing field. She worked in both the Las Vegas and Los Angeles markets, including a decade-long stint as a corporate spokesmodel for companies such as Black and Decker, LG and Oracle, before burnout helped her discover her calling as a healer.

Mary’s unique hybrid approach to healing blends massage with assorted tools from The Resilience Toolkit from Lumos Transforms, with emphasis on a lesser known modalities called therapeutic tremoring and myofascial unwinding. This combination of hands-on massage, advanced therapeutic tremor interventions, along with other evidence-based mindfulness and movement techniques helps build body-mind awareness and produces deep relaxation, reducing symptoms of chronic anxiety and pain.

Mary specializes in helping clients who struggle with chronic pain, pelvic floor dysfunction, and musculoskeletal blocks. She offers new solutions to both men and women suffering from a multitude of “above and below the belt” health issues and emotional symptoms.

Mary’s spirit and personality reflect the deep connection and spark she feels towards her work. Her enthusiasm for the work can best be summed up in her own words:

This transformational work provides me with the purpose-filled life I’ve pined for since college. It’s the most important thing I’ve ever done, and is the last career I see myself having. This is it for me. I am finally home.”

Mary has worked with physicians, nurses, and mental health clinicians at hospitals and agencies across the LA area. As a clinical intern, Mary spent six months facilitating TRE® to people experiencing homelessness and addiction at Homeless Health Care Los Angeles. As a volunteer, Mary has worked with burn survivors through the Phoenix Society and served on an international humanitarian response team supporting Typhoon Yolanda survivors, first responders, and clinicians in the Philippines.

Mary is the Immediate Past Executive Director of the TRE® For All nonprofit, providing support to TRE® Providers and organizations in more than 35 countries internationally and serves as senior staff at Lumos Transforms.

Massage techniques avaialable:

  • MyoFascial Release (MFR)
  • Therapeutic Tremoring (TRE)
  • Myofascial Unwinding (MU)
  • Pre/Postnatal and Pregnancy
  • Soft Tissue Mobilization (STM) such as
    • Swedish
    • Deep Tissue
    • Sports
    • Skin Rolling
    • Lymphatic Drainage
    • Scraping
    • Currently training in Cranial-Sacral

Mary is also trained in the SSP/Safe and Sound Protocol (acoustic ventral vagal tone stimulation) Brainspotting, the Trauma Resilience Model and Community Resilience Model through the Trauma Resource Institute, Motivational Interviewing for Behavior Change (MINT), and Level 1 Resistance Flexibility with Bob Cooley.

As Featured In

Nike logo
Vogue Magazine
men's health magazine
Runner's World logo
parade logo
Porch logo

What Our Patients Have to Say

Prev
Next

Testimonial by Julie T.

Femina PT (née Fusion Wellness & Physical Therapy) has honestly changed my life. Before receiving treatment at Femina, I was going doctor to doctor to try and find the answer to my pelvic pain. It has taken me YEARS to find someone that can help fix this. It wasn't until my gynecologist recommended your clinic that I finally felt relief. My pelvic pain is almost gone, and granted I still have a lot more to work on with Laureen (my PT), my original problem is nearly cured. I am so grateful to her.

What is even better is she gave me practical exercises to do at home that were not tedious and provided instant (and lasting) relief. Although I mainly work with Laureen, my interaction with the owner (Heather) has been great. She is very generous, kind, and committed to her business.

It hurts to know there are women out there suffering who will never know or have the opportunity to work with women like Laureen and Heather because this issue is hardly talked about and this field is so rare. I hope more doctors and physical therapists see the value in this work and can relieve more woman of their pain.

-- Julie T., 12/4/16 via Yelp!

Testimonial by Amanda W.

Heather's unique physical therapy program literally changed my life! After years of struggling with vaginismus, a condition that made it impossible for me to have intercourse and very difficult to use tampons without pain, a gynecologist referred me to Heather. I was nervous for my first appointment, but Heather's professional and friendly demeanor put me at ease. She did a great job explaining each technique she was using to help my muscles relax. Heather uses a combination of internal and external stretches and exercises to relax the pelvic floor and build muscle strength. Her specially developed home program helped me quickly recover from an issue that seemed insurmountable before meeting Heather. She was optimistic about my progress and incredibly encouraging. Less than 6 months after my first session, I was able to have pain-free sex for the first time in my life! If you are suffering from vaginismus or any other pelvic floor issues, I highly recommend making an appointment with Heather and reading her book!

-- Amanda W., 2/15/16 via Yelp!

Testimonial by Amanda W.

Heather's unique physical therapy program literally changed my life! After years of struggling with vaginismus, a condition that made it impossible for me to have intercourse and very difficult to use tampons without pain, a gynecologist referred me to Heather. I was nervous for my first appointment, but Heather's professional and friendly demeanor put me at ease. She did a great job explaining each technique she was using to help my muscles relax. Heather uses a combination of internal and external stretches and exercises to relax the pelvic floor and build muscle strength. Her specially developed home program helped me quickly recover from an issue that seemed insurmountable before meeting Heather. She was optimistic about my progress and incredibly encouraging. Less than 6 months after my first session, I was able to have pain-free sex for the first time in my life! If you are suffering from vaginismus or any other pelvic floor issues, I highly recommend making an appointment with Heather and reading her book!

-- Amanda W., 2/15/16 via Yelp!

Testimonial by T.H.

I started seeing Heather in October 2014. For more than two years, I had been suffering from painful urinary tract infection type symptoms after my bartholins gland surgery which included constant burning and urinary frequency sensation that led to more and more painful intercourse. I had made multiple visits to internist, obgyn and urologist's offices, went through a range of treatment with UTI and bladder frequency medication that included antibiotics, vesicare, estrogen cream, but nothing worked.

Read more: Testimonial by T.H.

Testimonial by Mary L.

I started seeing Heather to treat my Interstitial Cystitis in November 2016. At this time, I was extremely miserable, in constant pain, and felt as though no one was listening or understood what was going on with my body. I have just finished my last appointment and I can honestly say that my life has completely changed for the better because of Heather and her team of PTs! I live almost completely pain free, and when I do have flare ups, I am able to treat them at home on my own. I am so grateful that this office was recommended to me a honestly cannot recommend them enough!

Read more: Testimonial by Mary L.

Testimonial by Fritzette H.

I went to Heather after the birth of my third child. It was lucky, really, that I was referred to her, because my doctor had referred me to a surgeon for a possible hysterectomy or pelvic wall rebuild. Thankfully, I went to Heather before undergoing either surgery, she was able to fix the problem. She has studied extensively in women's health--even written a book about it--and was able to diagnose my problem, suggest a course of treatment (6 weeks), and then follow through with said treatment. By the end, as she said, I was as good as gold. Boy, was it worth it! Though uncomfortable to talk about, much less write about, it is worth getting the word out there. If you have painful intercourse, especially after birth or other trauma, the treatment may be as simple as Physical Therapy (with Heather, of course). I highly recommend her.

-- Fritzette H., 3/24/16 via Yelp!

Subscribe To Our Newsletter

Get access to our free downloads and a 15% discount on Heather's book "Sex Without Pain"!
captcha 
I agree with the Terms and Conditions and the Privacy policy