Time in the saddle seems to be the only thing that fixes it. That's what biking friends told me when I started biking last summer, and they were right. When I started riding, I could hardly sit after 15 miles. I just kept at it and now I can do several hours. I won't say it is the most comfortable thing I do, but it doesn't bother me like it used to.
Also, have her try different shorts. I found that I like my tri shorts, with a thinner pad, better than my biking shorts. The thick pads causes me extra rubbing and soreness.

ASSOS CREAM ... its good stuff and it does work ... she will appreciate this stuff :)

Different shorts help to different degrees. Some women find that less padded tri shorts are actually more comfortable when they're riding, so she might try that.

Also, make sure she moves around when she's riding--stands up occasionally, etc. Gets the blood where it needs to be and gives the parts a break.

I agree with the thinner chamois comment. I much prefer riding in my tri shorts to my bike shorts. The smaller pad doesn't bunch up as much. A liberal application Chamois Butt'r or something similar is wonderful. As are saddles with the cut-out in the front. I'm using the Terry Butterfly on my road bike and I've got the Women's Serfas saddle on my mountain bike. Even the cheap Women's specific saddle on my Giant didn't cause any problems. My commuter bike hasn't got the cut-out and I've had to tilt the saddle a little bit forward. It's not ideal, but it's better. Once I start commuting every day on that bike, I will upgrade the saddle as well.

Time on the bike makes a big difference. I haven't been riding my mountain bike much this year and find it to be not as comfortable as my road bike. In years when I've spent more time on the mountain bike and less on the road bike, I've found the mountain bike to be more comfortable.

My wife was experiencing the same sort of thing. She had a Terry type saddle when she first started riding. After a couple of months, she was still unable to get comfortable, so we switched the saddle. She nows ride an Arione Tri saddle and loves it. Some of those women specific saddles seem very wide, especially through the nose area. She found the narrower design of the Arione saddle to be a better fit. Oh yeah, use chamois cream.

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*Your Mama*

Yep, tri shorts with a thinner pad may be the ticket. I also switched this year to a Blackwell saddle. With any saddle, though, I've found that pointing the nose ever so slightly upward and ever so slightly to the side also makes for a much more comfortable ride. Good luck experimenting.

I haven't tried this myself, but some of my MS150 friends say Preparation H works wonders...

Ditto on all of the above. Not all shorts are created equal -- PIs are fine for me for about 15 miles, then ... AGONY! But I can ride all day in Voler bibs. (And I'm dying to try the women's Assos bibs, but I'm afraid I'll like them too much!) Same thing with saddles -- some women like cut-outs, some don't; some like a little more padding, some don't. I'm using an SLR right now and love it.

And you might want to turn the saddle a few degees to the right or left. I think I picked up that tip from Tom D.'s site some time back ... and it works!

agreeing with Milan - I've had Terry saddles and they can be uncomfortable, I actually had my favorite shaved down on the sides so it's not as wide. I just skipped the Terry saddle entirely on my other bike and bought a different one (can't remember right off). Much happier.

there's one more variable to look for, and it's under the general heading of "get the right shorts for your body". that is, the exact contours and width of the pad itself. each maker of bike shorts has a slightly different pattern for the pad, which hit one's anatomy at a slightly different part. this, matched up with the edges of one's particular saddle, makes for a large difference in possible "hit" places.
in brief, the irritation could be the match of saddle edge with pad edge, so you might want to see if that's part of the problem.
overall, though, a build-up of time spent on the saddle will probably give you that information and solve the problem.
peggy

Not sure what type of issues she has but it could be a few things...

Ditto on finding the right size chamois and shorts. I've also worked my way towards the smaller tri chamois. I'm using the deSoto womans short and have no problems with long rides and very little chamois but I also think that takes time in the saddle.

I'll disagree with creams for solving saddle discomfort unless it's chafing. If it's pressure, ditch the Terry and find a saddle that supports her...and more than likely, you'll find that it's a unisex or mens saddle she ends up with.

I've found most women specific saddles not only have a wider nose but they stay wider in the throat of the saddle. I'll give you an example of how it didn't work for me. If I were sitting properly on the sit bones, there would be a lot of saddle bulk right at the bottom of the glute-top of the hamstring, so with the down stroke, leg extended, the saddle is in the way. So it forced me to sit more forward to get clearance. Now I'm not in the right sit bone location....and the sit bones aren't supporting me any longer..soft tissue or other bones are=not good.

I finally ended up with a Selle San Marco Arami with the help of a very good bike shop owner. It's the only seat he has on his girlfriends bikes and the one he has had success with with many other women who have saddle issues. It was my glass slipper. It has one of the more narrow noses..and stays fairly narrow back to the seat. Plenty of leg clearance now and I'm never aware of having to change positions for comfort on long rides.

Also, if she's really new to cycling, it could also be core strength and posture. Collapsing into the saddle with poor/new form can cause too much pressure on sensitive areas.

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Nancy
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