Living With Low Sex Drive
You can take steps to make your sex life more enjoyable. For enhancing sexual satisfaction:
- Try Kegal exercises, which can enhance sexual gratification. These exercises strengthen the pelvic floor muscles. You do them by tightening and then relaxing the pelvic floor muscles (it's as if you are starting and stopping the flow of urine). Kegal exercises can improve sensation during sex and also can decrease urinary incontinence (many cases of incontinence are linked to weakened muscles).
- Increase the time spent on foreplay before engaging in intercourse. This will not only help you discover each other's bodies, but will allow more time for your body's natural lubrication to occur.
- Exercise regularly. Becoming physically fit will not only improve your self-esteem, but increased blood flow to the vagina can also stimulate your sex drive.
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How To Information:
Here is helpful advice for women at any age:
- Learn to communicate effectively with your partner to gain the most from your shared sexual experience.
- Consider counseling to help you and your partner talk through any sexual frustrations and open up to each another.
- Realize that exploring her own body is a healthy way for a woman to learn what truly arouses her.
- If you face serious psychological issues, particularly prior sexual abuse, it is crucial to get help from a mental health professional.
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Nice To Know:
Don't fall into the common trap of believing that only intercourse "counts" as sex. Touching, kissing, and holding can all be good ways of overcoming obstacles due to illness, and can add intimacy to a relationship.
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Sex After Menopause
While some women experience a decrease in libido after menopause, studies have shown that many couples in their 50s and up through their 80s (or beyond!) still enjoy a healthy sex life.
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How To Information:
Here are a few tips to maintaining a healthy sex drive after menopause:
- Use an estrogen cream or pill to maintain vaginal lubrication
- Have sex or try self-stimulation at least once a week to maintain lubrication
- Ask your doctor about taking testosterone in small doses, after considering possible negative side effects
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Just because you're past menopause does not mean that you should live without sexual intimacy. Have sex - have great sex - but don't assume it will be just like it was when you were in your 20s. Instead, focus on sharing affection.
It's also a good idea to find alternatives to intercourse that make your sex life rich and enjoyable for both of you, such as touching, kissing, and holding.
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