5 sex wreckers (and the ways to outsmart them).

Cosmo uncovers the biggest between-the-sheets bothers and tells how you can banish them for good.

* After indulging in three months of toe-curling sex with her new boyfriend, the good times came to a screeching halt for Stephanie [*], 23. "Over the course of a few days, I became so dry down there that he could barely enter me," she remembers. "It huit like hell!"

Luckily, the cure to Stephanie's coital conundrum was fast and simple: Her gyno diagnosed her with a yeast infection and recommended that she use an OTC remedy. Presto! A few days later, Stephanie and her sweetie were able to return to satisfying sack sessions.

Unfortunately, not all passion problems are as benign as Stephanie's, which is why we've pinpointed five conditions that can cramp your urge to get busy as well as the solutions that will help soothe them...stat. Keep in mind that you should always consult your gynecologist when it comes to romance roadblocks that have a physical root, says Hulda Hutcherson, M.D., assistant professor of obstetrics and gynecology at Columbia University Medical School in New York City.

SEX WRECKER 1 You're Drier Than the Sahara

As Stephanie found out, if you're not sufficiently lubricated, sex can be less than sublime. The trick is figuring out what's behind those arid amorous encounters.

Becca, a 27-year-old Chicago event planner, was forced to go through a two-month dry spell, so to speak, after she first started having sex with her new boyfriend. "The friction of his penis felt like sandpaper scraping against my insides," recalls Becca, who finally realized that her problems began when she and her guy switched to spermicidal condoms. "Latex condoms that contain the spermicide nonoxynol-9 can irritate your vagina, causing a dry, painful feeling," explains Dr. Hutcherson, who suggests using condoms in conjunction with a water-based lubricant.