IN FRATERNAM MEAM: SIX THINGS THAT SHRINK YOUR SEX DRIVE

IN FRATERNAM MEAM

Tuesday, August 02, 2005

SIX THINGS THAT SHRINK YOUR SEX DRIVE

** 1. BAD BODY IMAGE . Researchers in Minnesota fount that women who are satisfied with their bodies are more likely to initiate sex and have more orgasms than less body-confident women. Obesity can also be a buzz-kill. A study at Duke University Medical Center in Durham, North Carolina, found that only 2 percent of the healthy-weight participants reported low desire, while 50 percent of obese participants did. Researchers aren't yet sure why, but they did find that weight had a bigger impact on women's sexual happiness than men's.

** 2. PREGNANCY FEARS. A study by Indiana University in Bloomington found that women about unwanted pregnancy turn off a woman's interest in sex.

** 3. FOR SOME, THE PILL. Oral contraceptives may assuage pregnancy fears, but they can have a downside. "Many patients complain about the sexual side effects of the pill," says Dr. Trupin. "It actually decreases your levels of testosterone (the hormones that fuel desire, lowering your sex drive" Triphasic pills, which change hormone levels throughout the month, may have less of an effect than monophasic versions, which provide a stable does of hormones all month long. If triphasics don't he;p, experts recommend nonhormonal options, like diaphragms, IUDs or condoms.

** 4. CHRONIC STRESS. Biologically speaking, stress lowers testosterone, which is why a bad day at the office can wreck the mood for both men and women. But because sex tends to be more mental for women, feeling tense is a bigger problem for them: "Stress is distracting -- it makes your brain go into overdrive and interferes with your ability to focus, " says Leonard R. DeRogatis, Ph.D., director of the John Hopkins Center for Sexual Health and Medicine in Baltimore. "That interferes with your ability to get in the mood." No wonder a relaxing activity, whether it's doing yoga or listening to soft music, can help.

** 5. RELATIONSHIP PROBLEMS. Tension in a relationship weighs for more heavily on women than on men, experts say. For men. sex is usually just as simple as getting an erection. "But women need to have their minds engaged -- to feel relaxed, cared for and emotionally connected with their partner," says Sandra Leiblum, Ph.D., director for the Center for Sexual and Relationship Health at Robert Wood Johnson Medical School in Piscataway, New Jersey.

** 6. DEPRESSION. "You lost interest in things you would typically enjoy, including sex, when you're depressed", says Leiblum, In fact, serious blues were a factor in 43 percent of women with low sexual desire in one small study. Treating the disease, whether with therapy or drugs, is critical, but since some doctors find that certain antidepressants can interfere with desire, ask your doctor which one your should take.

(Abstracted from GLAMOUR MAG)

posted by infraternam meam @ 10:37 PM

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