Women's Sexual Health
in Lake Forest, IL
Private, Whole-Person Care for Low Libido and Sexual Health Concerns, Looking at Every Possible Cause
Personalized Women's Sexual Health Care at Lake Forest Regenesis
Provider-Guided Care That Starts by Listening
Lake Forest Regenesis provides women’s sexual health care for women in Lake Forest, Chicago’s North Shore, and Lake County. Low libido and sexual health concerns are common at every stage of adult life, yet many women never bring them up, or are told it’s just stress, age, or something to live with.
These concerns are rarely just one thing. Hormones can play a role, but so can stress, medications, nutrition, sleep, pelvic floor health, recurrent infections, and relationships. We look at all of it, privately and without judgment.
Our goal is to understand what’s actually going on and give you clear, honest options. It’s part of our Pelvic & Sexual Health care, and it connects with our HRT for Women and Emsella services.
Low Libido Isn't One Thing
Understanding What's Actually Going On
“Low libido” can mean very different things. It might be a lack of desire, trouble reaching orgasm, vaginal dryness, pain with intercourse, bleeding afterward, or recurrent UTIs that make intimacy something to avoid.
Each points in a different direction. Low desire might be tied to hormones, stress, or medications. Pain or dryness may relate to hormonal changes or pelvic floor tension. Recurrent infections need their own evaluation. Treating them all the same way rarely works.
So we start by understanding your specific concern: what’s changed, when it started, and how it’s affecting you. Our article on hormonal, medical and lifestyle causes of low libido is a helpful overview.
It can also help to think about timing. Did changes begin after a pregnancy, a new medication, a stressful period, or as cycles started shifting? Those clues often point us in the right direction.
Bleeding after sex should always be evaluated, so we take that seriously and refer when needed.
What Can Affect Sexual Health
Body, Mind, and Life All Play a Part
Sexual health is shaped by hormones, pelvic floor strength, blood flow, medications, diet and nutrition, stress, sleep, and emotional connection.
Hormonal shifts during perimenopause, after childbirth, and in menopause can affect desire, lubrication, and comfort. Certain medications, including some antidepressants and hormonal birth control, can lower libido. Pelvic floor changes after pregnancy and with age can affect sensation and confidence.
Life matters just as much. A high-stress job, poor sleep, caring for children or parents, or a hard season in a relationship can matter as much as any lab value. That’s why we look at the whole picture.
These factors often overlap. Dryness can make sex uncomfortable, discomfort can lower desire, and lower desire can create tension in a relationship, which adds stress. Untangling that cycle usually means addressing more than one piece at a time, which is why a single quick fix rarely works.
Common Concerns We Evaluate
Desire, Orgasm, Dryness, Pain, UTIs, Stress & Medications
Low Desire
Less interest in sex than you'd like, or a noticeable change from what's normal for you.
Difficulty With Orgasm
Desire is there, but climax is harder to reach or feels different than it used to.
Vaginal Dryness
Dryness or discomfort that can make intimacy harder, often tied to hormonal changes.
Pain With Intercourse
Discomfort during or after sex, which can have hormonal, muscular, or other causes.
Recurrent UTIs
Repeated urinary infections that affect comfort, confidence, and intimacy.
Stress & Medications
Life stress, poor sleep, and certain medications can all lower libido.
A Personalized Approach to Women's Sexual Health
Least Invasive to Most Invasive
We address what needs addressing, starting with the least invasive and most practical options for you. For one woman that might be a medication change; for another, Emsella or hormone therapy; for many, a combination.
Allana explains what your body and labs are telling you, lays out your options and what they mean, including their risks and benefits, and you stay in the driver’s seat. She doesn’t tell you what you have to do.
Plans are revisited at follow-ups, so if something isn’t helping, we adjust rather than asking you to wait it out.
What to Expect at Your First Visit
A Private, Unhurried Conversation
Your first visit is a confidential conversation about your concerns, health history, menstrual and pregnancy history, medications, diet, stress, sleep, and goals. You set the pace, and nothing is off-limits to ask about.
We also order a comprehensive morning lab panel to look at hormones, thyroid, iron, vitamins, and other factors that can affect desire and energy.
If urinary symptoms are part of the picture, we’ll talk through those too. Our guide on when urinary symptoms need a medical evaluation explains what we look for.
The visit is about understanding your concerns first, at your own pace, before any decisions about treatment.
Treatment Options
Often a Combination, Tailored to You
Because sexual health concerns are usually multifactorial, plans often combine approaches, such as hormones and Emsella, peptide therapy and Emsella, or hormones and peptides.
We start with what is most likely to help with the least disruption, then build from there based on how you respond. Every option has potential benefits and risks, and not every option is right for every woman.
Allana reviews your full history and medications first, since some treatments aren’t appropriate with certain conditions, and explains what realistic expectations look like.
Progress is often gradual. Some changes, like adjusting a medication, can help within weeks, while pelvic floor or hormonal changes may take longer to show their full effect. We’ll set expectations up front and check in along the way.
Hormone Therapy
When labs and symptoms point to hormones, HRT for women may be considered, including options that address dryness and comfort. Risks and benefits are reviewed with your full history in mind.
Emsella
A non-invasive pelvic floor treatment. You sit fully clothed for about 28 minutes while the chair stimulates thousands of pelvic floor muscle contractions, often compared to around 11,000 Kegels in a single session, with no undressing, stirrups, or internal devices. Learn about Emsella.
Peptide Therapy
When appropriate, peptide therapy may be part of a broader plan, discussed with clear expectations about what the evidence does and doesn't show.
Medication Review & Lifestyle
Reviewing medications that may lower libido, and addressing stress, sleep, and nutrition. Sometimes a medication change makes a meaningful difference on its own.
Emsella & Pelvic Floor Health
A Comfortable Option for Pelvic Floor Strengthening
For some women, Emsella can be a comfortable, fully clothed, non-invasive option for pelvic floor strengthening. You sit on the chair and read a book while it stimulates your pelvic floor muscles, with no undressing, stirrups, needles, or downtime.
Emsella is FDA-cleared for urinary incontinence. Evidence for sexual wellness benefits is more limited and still emerging, though many women use it as part of a broader plan for pelvic floor strength and confidence.
Because Emsella works by contracting and strengthening the muscles, it isn’t the right fit for everyone. If pain or muscle tension is part of the picture, pelvic floor physical therapy may be the better option, and Allana will refer you.
Allana will talk through whether Emsella makes sense for your goals, how many sessions may fit, how it works with other treatments, and what you can realistically expect.
Hormones, Stress & Connection
Why We Look Beyond the Labs
Hormones are one piece. Stress at work or home, sleep, and emotional connection with a partner all affect desire, sometimes more than any hormone level.
Desire for many women is responsive rather than spontaneous, shaped by context, rest, and feeling connected. When life is stretched thin, libido is often one of the first things to fade. Naming that can be a relief in itself.
We talk about all of it, without judgment. When hormones are involved, our guide to what women should know before hormone therapy is a good place to start, and how menopause affects sexual health covers changes later in life.
When We Refer to a Specialist
Allana refers to pelvic floor physical therapy or an OB-GYN when needed, based on what you need and what's in network for your insurance. Bleeding after sex, new pelvic pain, or a suspected gynecological condition are examples where a specialist may be the right next step.
Medical Disclaimer
This content is for informational purposes only and is not medical advice. No treatment can guarantee results, and every option has risks and benefits. See our Medical Disclaimer.
Your Care Process
From a Private Consultation Through Follow-Up
Private Consultation
Your concerns, history, medications, and goals, discussed confidentially at your pace.
Evaluation & Labs
Hormones, thyroid, iron, and other factors, checked as needed.
Your Personalized Plan
Options, risks, and benefits, explained clearly so you can choose.
Follow-Up & Adjustments
We track your progress and adjust your plan as needed.
Meet Your Women's Sexual Health Provider
Women's Sexual Health Care Led by an Experienced Family Nurse Practitioner
Women’s sexual health care at Lake Forest Regenesis is led by Allana Bush, FNP-C, RN, PHN, MSN, a family nurse practitioner with more than 20 years of healthcare experience.
Her clinical focus includes hormone optimization, sexual wellness, functional and regenerative medicine, medical weight management, metabolic health, and personalized wellness care. This broader perspective allows sexual health to be considered within the context of your overall health and life.
Allana treats in-house and refers to pelvic floor physical therapy or OB-GYN providers when needed.
Benefits of Whole-Person Women's Sexual Health Care
Designed to look at every cause and give you options you choose.
Looks at Every Cause
Hormones, pelvic floor, medications, stress, and relationships, not just one factor.
Private & Judgment-Free
Space to talk openly about concerns many women never raise.
Non-Invasive Options
Emsella, while fully clothed, with no downtime.
Combined Approaches
Hormones, Emsella, peptides, and lifestyle support, used together when helpful.
Specialist Referrals When Needed
Pelvic floor PT or OB-GYN, matched to your needs and insurance.
You Make the Decisions
Clear options so you can choose what fits your life.
Related Reading
Sexual Health Articles From Our Patient Education Library
How Menopause Affects Sexual Health
3 min read
Women's Sexual Health Frequently Asked Questions
Answers to Common Questions About Libido, Emsella & Treatment
Is low libido always hormonal?
No. Stress, medications, nutrition, pelvic floor health, and relationships can all play a role. We look at all of them.
What does Emsella involve?
You sit fully clothed on the chair for about 28 minutes. There's no undressing, no stirrups, and no internal devices.
Can my medications affect my libido?
Yes, some can, including certain antidepressants and hormonal birth control. We review everything you take.
Will I need hormone therapy?
Not necessarily. Hormones are one option, and many women combine approaches or start with less invasive ones.
Why do I keep getting UTIs?
Recurrent UTIs can have several causes, including hormonal changes. The NIH UTI overview explains common risk factors.
Is my visit private?
Yes. Visits are private and confidential, with the same provider each time, in a judgment-free setting.
Start Your Regenesis Today
Take the Next Step Toward Personalized Women's Sexual Health Care
Begin With a Private Consultation
We talk through your concerns, history, medications, and goals, at your pace.
Evaluation & Labs
We look at hormones and other factors, as needed, so we understand the cause.
Build Your Plan
Clear options, risks, and benefits, adjusted over time. Results vary, and no treatment can be guaranteed. See our Medical Disclaimer.
A Personal Message From Your Provider
Your Sexual Health Is Part of Your Health
“So many women come in assuming this is just how life is now. It doesn’t have to be, and it’s worth talking about.
I explain what your body and your labs are telling you and what your options really mean, including the risks and benefits. I don’t tell you what you have to do.
You’re in the driver’s seat, and I guide you through it, adjusting as we go until we find what works for you.”
Allana Bush, FNP-C, RN, PHN, MSN
Medical Weight Management & Hormone Optimization
Lake Forest, IL