Life & Style | Health
Is stress killing your sex life?
Surprisingly it's the men who are saying no in the bedroom as nearly 15 per cent of males are suffering from diminished libido triggered by an overload of stress in their lives
- By Saadiya Ahmad for Alpha magazine
- Published: 00:00 January 1, 2012
- Image Credit: Getty Images
- Up to 90 per cent of the time, anorgamsia in healthy men has been attributed to anxiety and depression.
Let's get a few technical terms in order first. A healthy libido is defined as the desire to have sex with your partner at least once or twice a week. A lagging libido then, says Dr Pankaj Shrivastav, director at Conceive, the Gynaecology and Fertility Hospital in Dubai, is a disinterest in sex over the past few months, which can have been triggered by job-related anxiety, marital conflict, financial problems or any type of chronic stress.
The problem: Decreased testosterone levels
Testosterone is the hormone that drives the male libido. "Testosterone levels start dropping by the age of 30, by one to two per cent annually, and lower levels of testosterone reduce a man's interest in sex," says Dr Shrivastav.
How stress affects it: A study led by Robert Josephs, professor at The University of Texas at Austin, and Pranjal Mehta, assistant professor at the University of Oregon, showed that when cortisol — a hormone released by the body in response to threat — chronically increases, it can cause impotence and loss of libido by inhibiting testosterone production in men.
Treatment: Ask your doctor for a testosterone test; low testosterone can be treated by using a daily skin gel, by wearing patches on the skin, orally disintegrating tablets, or injections.
The problem: Anorgasmia or performance anxiety
This is self-consciousness and anxiousness about the quality of one's performance that actually decreases the quality of one's performance.
How stress affects it: "It's estimated that around 90 per cent of anorgasmia for young men, if they don't have any other diseases such as diabetes, hypertension or psychological problems, could be due to anxiety or depression," says specialist urologist Dr Foroozan Khezri at Medcare Hospital.
Anxiety about sex can take many forms, from fear of being rejected, disappointing a partner or becoming embarrassed about the quality of an erection.
Treatment: For the first step, Dr Khezri advises consulting a urologist to help find out if there is a psychological or organic aspect to the problem. Also reduce your stress levels and accept the fact that stress and anxiety can cause problems with sexual performance.
The problem: Erectile dysfunction
"Erection culminating in the sexual act is the end product of the interaction of testosterone, the mind and the environment," explains Dr Shrivastav. Therefore if any of these is not right, a man ends up with erectile dysfunction.
How stress affects it: Stress can reduce your libido by distracting you and taking your mind off sexual desire. "Patients who have stress have a high level of adrenaline in the blood, which can stimulate the sympathetic nervous system that causes erectile dysfunction," says Dr Khezri.
Treatment: According to Dr Kennon Rider, marriage and family therapist at the German Neuroscience Centre, understanding and being aware of the cause can solve 90 per cent of psychological impotence which can be fixed through simple counselling. "Low libido or occasional erectile failures can become a self-fulfilling prophecy; once it happens, a man may worry that it will happen again. When he focuses on whether it will happen again, he loses focus on the present and when this happens, he is more likely to fail again - thus, creating a negative cycle," he says. Psychological impotence can also be treated with medications such as Viagra, Cialis and Levitra.
The problem: Premature ejaculation
"This is the time when ejaculation is faster than normal, just for a few seconds or sometimes even before sexual intercourse," says Dr Khezri.
How stress affects it: Premature ejaculation can be caused by temporary depression, stress over financial matters, unrealistic expectations about performance, or an overall lack of confidence. Dr Khezri adds, "Most of the time, it has psychological causes, but sometimes chronic prostatic infection could be the cause of premature ejaculation."
Treatment: Most sex therapists prescribe a series of exercises to enable the individual to gain ejaculatory control. The most common is the "start-stop" technique to help get the male accustomed to maintaining an erection for an extended period of time. Kegel exercises, which consist of flexing the pelvic muscle, also play an extremely important role in achieving ejaculatory control.
The result: Relationship conflict
Dr Rider says that for a man in early or middle adulthood, flagging libido can have serious effects ranging from psychological (personal) to socio-emotional (relationship). "Men generally think, ‘this should not be happening to me' and therefore feel badly about themselves, worry excessively, and possibly fall into depression or anxiety," he says.
How stress affects it: "Sometimes intimacy problems are the cause of bigger problems; once low libido or failure has occurred, a man may be thinking more than feeling, which is never good for intimacy," says Dr Rider. Once this cycle has shown itself, it is easy for men to begin to avoid intimacy altogether for fear of the cycle repeating. Then, his partner begins to wonder, "Is it me?" Then when she confronts him, he may become defensive, and conflicts arise.
Treatment: Dr Rider advises, "For their own sake and the sake of their relationships, men should seek professional help. Their family doctor would be a good place to start, or a urologist. If there are no biological issues then psychosocial issues need to be explored with a therapist."
Libido-boosting super foods
Celery: contains a powerful substance known as androsterone - an odourless hormone released through male perspiration.
Pumpkin seeds: contain zinc, which is important in testosterone production for men.
Bananas: help to boost male libido largely due to the presence of the enzyme ‘bromelain'. They are also very rich in potassium and B vitamins, which are vital for sex-hormone production.
Avocado: features vitamin B6, which improves male hormone production.
Figs: are very high in amino acids, which are critical to increasing libido and boosting sexual stamina.
Garlic: contains high levels of allicin, a compound that can improve blood flow to the sexual organs.
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