sexual intercourse - Hintonburg Health Clinic

The Keys to Great Sex

Posted on January 18, 2021January 18, 2021 by Dr. Erin Lush

What makes for magnificent sex?

Hint. It’s not what you were made to believe. The research has been done, the results are in and it does not involve any crazy positions (although those can be good too).

So what makes it great?

Communication. Yes, the most obvious one but still the one that is so often missed. You have to tell your partner what you like. I promise they don’t know if you don’t say it. And you might not know what that is right away, that’s okay too. That’s why a focus on pleasure, not performance is SO key. You can find this out together. You just have to trust each other enough to be open to trying those new things.

What are the other keys?

Anticipation – think about those butterflies you get when you still don’t know what’s going to happen. Affection – intimacy OUTSIDE of your sexual relationship is key to creating intimacy inside your sexual relationship. A non-genital focus – only 30% of women orgasm from penetration, if this is all you are focusing on you will be missing out.

Want to learn more? Magnificent Sex: Lessons from Extraordinary Lovers written by two amazing female doctrates Peggy Kleinplatz and Dana Ménard explores the latest research in the sexual health field to help us all achieve this.

Have you Heard About This?

Posted on November 26, 2020April 22, 2022 by Dr. Erin Lush

This does happen. You’re not alone.

So what actually is it?

Simply put, you don’t or can’t have an orgasm when you want to. You’ve done all the right things, you’re sufficiently turned on and yet you can’t quite get there. Then you get upset (rightfully so) and you become sexually dissatisfied and frustrated. I don’t blame you. This happens to all women at some point or another. It becomes a problem when this becomes a pattern. The less we enjoy something, the less we want to participate in it. The less we get the results we want, the less likely we are to try again.

What causes it?

A few different things. The medications you’re on, a decrease in sensation to the clitoral tissue, any number of hormonal imbalances, relationship breakdown, and psychological reasons like anxiety or past traumas.

Can I get my orgasm back?

YES! Just because this is the way you are feeling right now does not mean this is the way you always have to feel. The ability (and right) to have an orgasm is a reflection of our overall health. This is what are bodies are capable to do when all our other needs are met, we seek out PLEASURE.

Working with me I will tease out what is blocking your ability to fully achieve your O because that’s what every woman wants right?

PMID: 26439762

A Need to Know:

Posted on November 21, 2020 by Dr. Erin Lush

Your libido fluctuates. This is NORMAL.
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What’s not normal is when it stays that way for a long time. You are missing out on such a big part of being human; we all DESERVE PLEASURE in our life. Right now, the majority of us are under an increased level of stress and this could be killing your sex drive, but there are other underlying issues that could be having an effect. Let’s learn the causes:
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The Obvious Ones (the ones we normally think of)
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Hormonal Imbalance
Vulvodynia (Painful Sex)
Stress
Relationship Breakdown
Lack of Sleep
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The Less Obvious Ones (these are just as important)
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Endometriosis
Poor Body Image
Past Sexual Trauma
Low Self-Esteem
Vaginismus (Involuntary Vaginal Contractions)
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There are SO many reasons you may not be feeling yourself right now. That is okay. I am here to make sure that you get back on track solo, or with your partner, because we all need that. When patients come back to see me and tell me how much better they are feeling, it lights me up. Let me do that for you, book an appointment today!

There’s More Than One Reason for Pelvic Pain

Posted on November 21, 2020 by Dr. Erin Lush

How do these relate?
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The official definition of pain is “an unpleasant sensory and emotional experience associated with actual or potential tissue damage or described in terms of such damage.”
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Did you catch that?
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Pain has an emotional connection. Does this mean that your pain is all in your head? ABSOLUTELY NOT. But pain does not always provide accurate information on the health of your tissues. If your pain has been persistent for over 3 months, your central nervous system (CNS) may be playing a big part in your pain response.
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The CNS and the sensation of pain
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This weekend I’ve been taking my Pelvic Floor Therapist Level 3 course to learn more about all the different types of pelvic pain, including pain with sex, to help my patients. We’ve spent a lot of time discussing the role of the central nervous system and how pain lives in the body. One of the main takeaways of this was the role of central sensitization which is the amplification of your nerve signals within your CNS which is causing your hypersensitivity to pain. In basic terms, your nerves are firing when they shouldn’t be or sending more signals than they should.
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If you’re living with chronic pelvic pain, please know you don’t have to! There are so many things you can do to fix this. Set up an appointment with me so we can get to the root of your pain and get you back to enjoying your life the way you want to!

Let’s Improve your Sleep & your Relationship

Posted on November 19, 2020 by Dr. Erin Lush

This has two benefits.
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Let’s start with sleep
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Researchers looked at stopping the use of your smartphone just 30 minutes before falling asleep. The results? After only four weeks sleep latency was reduced (the amount of time it takes to fall asleep), the amount of time you were actually asleep increased, your sleep quality improved (meaning you were able to achieve those coveted deep sleep waves). They found a reduction in your pre-sleep arousal (or an improvement in your relaxation), and as an added bonus, the NEXT day participants had improved mood (this is definitely me) and working memory. Is there a downside to this? I can’t think of one.
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How blue light affects your body
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Your body needs to produce melatonin (a hormone that helps regulate your circadian rhythm) to let you know it’s time to sleep. This is done through your eyes exposure, or lack thereof to light. It has been shown that light lowers the production of melatonin and that blue light (from smartphones) is extra powerful at doing this, making it even harder for you to fall asleep.
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And now for the effect on your relationship
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This is the easy one, I bet you can guess it. You get that extra little bit of quality time together. You can nurture your connection, check in at the end of a long day, and snag a snuggle increasing your oxytocin secretion (creating those feelings of love).
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If you are struggling with your sleep, I can help! There are many ways (other than just this) to help you fall asleep and stay asleep through the night. You can wake up feeling refreshed, let me get you there.
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DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0228756

Add Sex to your Wellness Routine

Posted on November 19, 2020 by Dr. Erin Lush

Let’s say that again. And now let’s think about it.
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What does optimization mean?
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It’s realizing your best life. It’s ensuring you are experiencing pleasure more times than you’re missing out. It’s learning how to make your body work for you. It’s improving your relationship with your body, yourself and your overall health. It’s realizing there are many ways to experience pleasure, it’s making love not porn.
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When we usually seek help
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When something is WRONG. Not when something is not quite right. If we can live with it, we leave it. It doesn’t have to be this way. You know your body better than anybody else. You know when it’s off. So why not address it? It doesn’t have to be a major problem for it to be a MAJOR problem for you.
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What might be wrong?
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Multiple things. Your libido is low. You’re in a love-hate relationship with your body. You experience pain with sex (vulvodynia). You’ve never achieved an orgasm (anorgasmia). You have vaginal dryness. Your period causes you pain and discomfort every month so miss that week. That pesky UTI keeps coming back (or that yeast infection). Your body is not working for YOU period.
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I work with women to help put a pin on what is missing; what is not quite right and then we work together to develop a plan to fix it. Life’s to short to not fully experience pleasure, am I right?

How Sex Can Lead to a UTI

Posted on October 1, 2020 by Dr. Erin Lush

If you are an adult woman, there’s a 50-60% chance you have had or will get a UTI (Urinary Tract Infection) in your lifetime. If you’re sexually active, that increases your chances, it being the major risk factor for younger women. That’s one out of every two of us.

The question is why does this happen?

Let’s look at the science, the female urethra is much shorter than its male counterpart making it a. lot more susceptible to bacteria entering and colonizing where it shouldn’t. The majority of UTI’s are caused by the E. coli bacteria that are naturally present in the digestive tract.

During sexual activity, bacteria from your partner’s genitals, anus, fingers or sex toys can get pushed into your urethra allowing the bacteria to make a home and causing you discomfort.

What do I do about it?

Good news is that you can greatly reduce the risk. Steps to take to avoid getting a UTI are peeing directly after sexual activity to flush out your urinary tract, always wiping front to back to avoid pushing the bad bacteria into your urethra, cleaning your sex toys after each use, having your partner wash their hands before engaging in your fun and sleeping in breathable clothes (if you wear any at all) to maintain air circulation and avoid a moist area.

If you are experiencing recurrent UTI’s it’s a good idea to seek treatment from a Naturopathic Doctor to find the underlying cause of your problem. I would be happy to help!

DOI: 10.1177/1756287219832172

Tag: sexual intercourse