Cosmopolitan Quotes Heather Jeffcoat in "5 Positions to Try if Penetrative Sex Is Painful for You"

Looking for Positions to Try if Penetrative Sex Is Painful?

Since its inception Cosmopolitan Magazine has been a "go-to" source of valuable information for women looking to improve their sex lives. In a recently released online article, Heather Jeffcoat, DPT was their first source of insight when it comes to overcoming painful intercourse due to endometriosis and other factors.

There can be many reasons for pain during vaginal intercourse. Conditions like vaginismus and vulvodynia can make penetration hurt even if you're super turned on and just put on plenty of lube. Sexual trauma could be one cause; endometriosis, a condition where the tissue that normally lines the uterus grows outside of it, is another.

Sex, of course, should never be narrowly defined as just penetration. But, if you find yourself wanting to have intercourse, there are some angles and positions that can potentially reduce, or even fully avoid, discomfort. For instance, “Women with endometriosis typically have pain upon deeper thrusting, so positions that limit the depth of penetration are key,” says Heather Jeffcoat, a doctor of physical therapy and author of Sex Without Pain: A Self Treatment Guide to the Sex Life You Deserve. If this all sounds familiar, here are five positions you can try (and, of course, if you've never seen a gynecologist about this, please do so first!):

The Goddess

"Consider additional erotic activities that don't include penetration," says Jenni Skyler, PhD, a certified sex therapist and sex expert for AdamEve.com. "Penetration can be the side dish for sex while the other activities dominate. Pleasure is the goal, so creatively figuring this out is key."

The Cowgirl Crouch

"The person with the vagina gets on top and kneels over the person who's prone to control the depth and speed of penetration," says Carol Queen, PhD, Good Vibrations staff sexologist, curator of the Antique Vibrator Museum, and co-author of The Sex and Pleasure Book with Shar Rednour.

Curious about more positions to try if penetrative sex Is painful? The full article can be found here.