[header] How to cope with vaginismus [title] Take painful sex seriously. [step] The first and most disturbing symptom of vaginismus is pain during attempted sexual intercourse. Different women experience this pain differently--it may feel like burning, stinging, tightening, tearing, or as if your partner is " hitting a wall. 
" in many cases, the pain and the involuntary muscle contractions are severe enough to prevent sexual intercourse entirely. [substeps] Many women discover this problem the very first time they attempt to have sex.