Medicine and Health Sciences Commons^™

Women’S Experiences Of Vulvodynia: An Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis Of The Journey Toward Diagnosis, Rebekah Shallcross, Joanne M. Dickson, David Nunns, Kate Taylor, Gundi Kiemle

Research outputs 2014 to 2021

Vulvodynia is the experience of idiopathic pain characterized by burning, soreness, or throbbing in the external female genitalia or vulva and is estimated to be experienced by 4–16% of the female population, yet only half of women seek help regarding their symptoms. Of the women who do seek help, only around 2% obtain a diagnosis. Therefore, the aim of the current study was to explore the experiences of women with vulvodynia on their journey toward diagnosis, by using semi-structured interviews and an interpretative phenomenological analysis (IPA) methodology. Eight women were interviewed, and their experiences were analyzed and interpreted into three …