Re: Betrayed by her own body - magazine article (Christin Veasley's sto...

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Hmm, not sure why you can't see it -- it came through fine on my computer....I'll try again! ;-) Let me know whether or not it works.

Betrayed by her own bodySept. 2004 - Good Housekeeping Magazine ArticleShe

couldn't be intimate with her husband - or have the family she longed

for. Veasley's brave struggle to find a cure for a painful

problem.by Collier CoolIn 1994, she had just finished her freshman year at the University of Wisconsin. A bright, pretty girl with a full life,

was active in her church and loved to play soccer, volleyball, and

basketball. And yet, she often found herself falling into a

depression. had been diagnosed with an unusual medical condition

- a condition, she worried, that would prevent her from ever having a

boyfriend or a husband. The pain had come on suddenly. At her HMO, learned she had vulvodynia, a disorder defined mostly by its

symptoms--persistent rawness,

stinging, or irritation of the vulva (the skin folds around the vagina).In

Chris's case, the pain was so severe, she couldn't use tampons, wear

jeans or pantyhose, ride a bike, or even sit comfortably. The cause is

unknown, though researchers believe that nerve injury,

hypersensitivity to yeast, and genes may play a role. Amazingly, the

nurse-practitioner had been able to identify the problem right

away--usually, women have to see doctor after doctor in order to get a

diagnosis--but she also told that nothing would help.Chris

refused to accept that. She consulted several doctors, and finally one

diagnosed a serious vaginal infection, which, if it hadn't caused the

vulvodynia, was certainly making it worse. After several months of

treatment, including antibiotics and an antidepressant for the pain,

she got better ("I could wear jeans again," recalls). But she

still had excruciating pain at the

vaginal entrance.

"Tampons were out, and I practically screamed during gynecological exams," she says. Other treatments-estrogen cream, biofeedback, pelvic exercises, a special diet, vitamins -- offered no relief.But

was still -- outgoing, eager to keep trying to find help

and to help others. In her sophomore year, she became a support leader

for the National Vulvodynia Association, a patient advocacy group

with 3,500 members. She also shared her problem with friends. As it

turned out, the classmate she most confided in was a guy--and someone

whose background was very different from her own. Melvin Veasley grew

up in Detroit's inner city, while came from a middle-class family

in Wisconsin. The pair quickly became inseparable--in two years, they

went from being friends to becoming "best friends, to falling in love,"

reports. In love--but uncertain about what kind of

future they could have together. After graduating in 1997, the couple

moved to Baltimore sot hat could work as a research assistant in

the neurology department at the Hopkins University.

"I wanted to learn everything I could about vulvodynia and to help

advance understanding of it" she says. Melvin, who had interned for a

rental-car business in college, became a manager in the company.By

now, the two were deeply attached, and finally, in November 1998, after

much prayer, Melvin made a big decision. He hoped that would

find a treatment for her condition, he explains, but "even if we never

had sexual intercourse, I loved and wanted her to be my wife."

They married in July 2000.The couple tried to find ways to make

each other happy in bed. But their love life was more frustrating than

pleasurable, says Chris. "We couldn't have sex, and I didn't have much

desire for other intimate activities, because I was in constant fear

they'd be painful." continued to look into every treatment she

heard about. But nothing helped her. After

her marriage, though, felt desperate enough to consider

surgery--a procedure in which a doctor removes the sensitive tissue

near the vaginal opening. To it was a last resort. When she

was 15, she'd been in a car accident and had undergone several

operations and a very long recovery; she wasn't eager to repeat any

part of the experience. Worse, she knew the procedure didn't always

work. But her surgeon, P. Marvel, M.D., director of the Center

for Pelvic Pain at Greater Baltimore Medical Center,

explained that it had helped more than 75 percent of patients with

Chris's kind of vulvodynia. "It was the only thing I hadn't tried,"

she says now, "and it was the only way I'd be able to have a normal

life, to have a physical relationship with my husband, to become

pregnant and have a family." She had the 90-minute procedure in September 2000,

then suffered through weeks of discomfort as the area healed. In

October, began working with a sex therapist, who gave her

dilators to gradually stretch her vaginal opening. In November, four

months after their wedding, she and Melvin were able to make love for

the very first time."How can I describe it?" says. She

was nervous. But to her amazement, there was almost no discomfort.

"It was like beginning our relationship all over again." As for Melvin, "I was extremely happy," he says simply.By

Christmas, the couple had more to celebrate: was pregnant.

Daughter Grace was born in September 2001. "And as if that wasn't

enough," says "my symptoms disappeared completely after I gave

birth."But she hasn't given up the cause. "As long as I've

known " says Melvin, "she has been trying to help others." She

is now director of the research and programs for the National

Vuvlodynia Association. "It's not just a job for me," explains.

"It's a calling. I want to share my experiences with women who are

going through the same thing." The

Veasleys, who moved to Providence, Rhode Island, in 2003, when Melvin

was promoted to a new position, hope to have another child in a year or

two. Their lives, they feel are blessed. "Let me tell you about an

e-mail Melvin just sent from work," says Chris. "He wrote that he was

thinking about Grace and me --and he was smiling." Vulvodynia: how to find helpAlthough

millions of women suffer from this puzzling disorder, until recently,

there were few serious studies on it. Not surprisingly, general

OB-GYNs and family doctors often fail to recognize the problem,

mistakenly diagnosing a yeast infection.

At worst, doctors may tell patients the pain is in their head. And

about 40 percent of women with vulvodynia don't seek medical attention

at all, because they think there's is something "weird" about their

symptoms or aren't aware there are treatments that might help. Finding the right therapy is a matter of trial and error, involving various medications (including topical anesthetics,

estrogen, corticosteroids, antidepressants) and treatments (such as

physical therapy, biofeedback, surgery). Specialists say that a diet

low in the chemical oxalate may help (oxalates are found in certain

fruits and vegetables).For more information, contact

the National

Vulvodynia Association at or www.nva.org,

or write to P.O. Box 4491, Silver Spring, MD 20914. The group offers

the latest research and can also recommend a knowledgeable OB-GYN in

your area.