{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,10,26]],"date-time":"2026-10-26T02:22:05Z","timestamp":1792981325578,"version":"4.5.0"},"reference-count":86,"publisher":"SAGE Publications","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2023,1,1]],"date-time":"2023-01-01T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1672531200000},"content-version":"unspecified","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"funder":[{"DOI":"10.13039\/501100018822","name":"Western Sydney University","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","award":["CS0074466 - Funding is only for APC"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["CS0074466 - Funding is only for APC"]}],"id":[{"id":"10.13039\/501100018822","id-type":"DOI","asserted-by":"publisher"}]}],"content-domain":{"domain":["journals.sagepub.com"],"crossmark-restriction":true},"short-container-title":["Womens Health (Lond Engl)"],"published-print":{"date-parts":[[2023,1]]},"abstract":"<jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Background:<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>There is low social awareness of vaginismus despite it being a relatively common female sexual dysfunction that makes vaginal penetration painful, difficult, and\/or impossible. While existing literature on vaginismus has had a clinical focus on the affected genitalia, there is a lack of research on women\u2019s help-seeking experiences of vaginismus from their perspective.<\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>\n                  <jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Objectives:<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>This integrative review\u2019s objective was to explore: women\u2019s help-seeking experiences of vaginismus, and how such help-seeking experiences impact their sense of self.<\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>\n                  <jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Design:<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>Cooper\u2019s five-step integrative review approach was followed to develop a research question, a search strategy, selection criteria, and data evaluation, analysis, and presentation.<\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>\n                  <jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Data Sources and Methods:<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>A systematic search of the literature was completed in the following seven databases in January 2023: PsycINFO, ProQuest Central, PubMed, Scopus, CINAHL, Cochrane, and Embase. Out of the 373 articles found through database searches and additional citation searching, 22 studies were included in this review for meeting the eligibility criteria of having an empirical design, being written in English, and examining women\u2019s help-seeking experiences for vaginismus and its impact on their sense of self.<\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>\n                  <jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Results:<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>Thematic analysis was used to summarize the findings from the included studies which were informed by 1671 participants. Help-Seeking Process, Medical Management, Help-Seeking and Sense of Self, and Holistic Care Recommendations from the Findings emerged as four major themes with corresponding subthemes.<\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>\n                  <jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Conclusion:<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>This review indicates that women continue to face difficulties in seeking and receiving help for vaginismus even through the healthcare system. However, the studies did not explicitly discuss how women\u2019s help-seeking for vaginismus impacted their sense of self. This highlights an epistemological gap on how women\u2019s help-seeking for their vaginismus impacts their sense of self, which can affect their treatment responses. Recommendations are provided for future healthcare and research to improve health outcomes for women with vaginismus.<\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>","DOI":"10.1177\/17455057231199383","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2023,9,29]],"date-time":"2023-09-29T01:09:25Z","timestamp":1695949765000},"update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1177\/sage-journals-update-policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":12,"title":["The experiences of women seeking help for vaginismus and its impact on their sense of self: An integrative review"],"prefix":"10.1177","volume":"19","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-7499-9393","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Rashmi","family":"Pithavadian","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"School of Health Sciences, Western Sydney University, Penrith, NSW, Australia"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Jane","family":"Chalmers","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Allied Health and Human Performance, University of South Australia, Adelaide, SA, Australia"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Tinashe","family":"Dune","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Translational Health Research Institute, Western Sydney University, Penrith, NSW, Australia"},{"name":"Psychological Science at Australian College of Applied Professions, Sydney, NSW, 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