Women and Sexual Health. Sexuality is a part of every woman’s life. All of our bodies have the potential to feel physical. People seem to want and need to be close to others. We want to share our thoughts and feelings with others and to touch and be touched. Just being physically near is important, but many of us also want to continue an active, satisfying sex life as we grow older. However, over time most people may find that it takes them longer to become sexually aroused. This is part of the normal aging process.
Excitement and pleasure.
Sexual activity (sexual function) in humans is an instinctive form of physical intimacy. It may be performed for the purposes of biological reproduction, expressing affection, and for pleasure and enjoyment. The desire to have sex is one of the basic drives of human behavior.
Sexual health also means understanding body and how it works. Women who understand their bodies can make better choices about the sexual activities that they enjoy.
Frequency of sex in couples
As the age advances sexual activities decreases. Following is the frequency of couples can have sexual activity under ideal circumstances.
Teens – any time,
Twenties – daily,
Thirties – alternate days,
Forties – twice weekly,
Fifties – once weekly.
After sixties sexual activity decreases very much and becomes a rare event.
Factors affecting Women Sex
- Sexual health of male partner
- Sexual health of women
Sexual health of male partner
Any illness like heart attack, diabetes, hyper tension, accidents and other serious illness of male partner indirectly affects women sex.
Sexual health of women
Sexual health is very important for women to have better sex life. Both mental and physical health can contribute to have good sexual life. Illness, disability, or the drugs take to treat a health problem can affect ability to have and enjoy sex. Following are some of the diseases which affect women sexual health
Table of Contents
Arthritis
Joint pain due to arthritis, back pain, sciatica can make sexual contact uncomfortable. Joint replacement surgery and drugs may relieve this pain. Exercise, rest, warm baths, and changing the position or timing of sexual activity can be helpful.
Chronic pain
In addition to arthritis, pain that continues for more than a month or comes back on and off over time can be caused by other bone and muscle conditions, poor blood circulation, or blood vessel problems. These can interfere with intimacy between the partners.
Diabetes
Women with diabetes have sexual problems. Some time it can lead to infertility also.
Heart disease
Narrowing and hardening of the arteries known as atherosclerosis can change blood vessels so that blood does not flow freely. This can lead to trouble with sexual arousal in women.
Some people who have had a heart attack are afraid that having sex will cause another attack. The chance of this is very low. Most people can start having sex again 3 to 6 weeks after their condition becomes stable following an attack, if their doctor agrees.
Incontinence
Loss of bladder control or leaking of urine is more common in women as age advances. Stress incontinence happens during exercise, coughing, sneezing, or lifting, for example. Because of the extra pressure on abdomen during sex, incontinence might cause some people to avoid sex. But it can be treated.
Stroke
The ability to have sex is rarely damaged by a stroke. It is unlikely that having sex will cause another stroke. Someone with weakness or paralysis caused by a stroke might try using different positions or medical devices to help them continue having sex.
White discharge (Leucorrhoea)
Leucorrhoea, refers to a whitish discharge from the female genitals. It is an abnormal disease condition of the reproductive organs of women. The condition may continue for weeks or months at a time. If not treated properly in the initial stages, it may become chronic. It can cause pain during intercourse, low back ache, vaginal itching, and burning sensation. All these may interfere with sexual activity.
Vaginitis
Vaginitis is described medically as an irritation and/or inflammation of the vagina. Vaginitis is a very common disease affecting millions of women each year. The three most common vaginal infections are bacterial vaginosis, candida vaginitis and trichomonas vaginitis.
Vaginitis may cause Pain/Irritation with Sexual Intercourse.
Pruritis
Pruritis is the medical word for itch. It is defined as a sensation that provokes the desire to scratch. Itching can be a significant source of frustration and discomfort. When severe, it can lead to loss of sleep, anxiety, depression and may lead to decreased libido.
Painful Sexual Intercourse (Dyspareunia)
Pain during or after sexual intercourse is known as dyspareunia. Although this problem can affect men, it is more common in women. Women with dyspareunia may have pain in the vagina, clitoris or labia. There are numerous causes of dyspareunia, many of which are treatable.
Causes
Common causes include the following:
- Vaginal dryness
- Atrophic vaginitis, a common condition causing thinning of the vaginal lining in postmenopausal women
- Side effects of drugs such as antihistamines and tamoxifen
- An allergic reaction to clothing, spermicides.
- Endometriosis, an often painful condition in which tissue from the uterine lining migrates and grows abnormally inside the pelvis.
- Inflammation of the area surrounding the vaginal opening,
- Urinary tract infections, vaginal yeast infections, or sexually transmitted diseases.
Fibroid Uterus
Uterine fibroids are tumors or growths, made up of muscle cells and other tissues that grow within the wall of the uterus (or womb). Although fibroids are sometimes called tumors, they are almost always benign (not cancerous). Fibroids can grow as a single growth or in clusters (or groups). Their size can vary from small, like an apple seed (or less than one inch), to even larger than a grapefruit, or eight inches across or more. Some time they can cause pain during sex.
Premenopausal Syndrome
Menopause is part of the normal life cycle of women. When a woman has passed through menopause, her monthly periods end, and she no longer can get pregnant naturally. It is usually occurs around age 50. During that time hormone levels can be higher and lower than normal. It can lead to Problems with dryness, itching, pain during sexual intercourse, or irritation of the tissues in and around the vagina;
Obesity
Being overweight increases the risk of many diseases and health conditions, including
Hypertension, High cholesterol, Coronary heart disease, Diabetes, Stroke, Gallbladder disease, Osteoarthritis, Asthma, etc. It can lead to infertility and decreases the libido.
Medications
Some drugs can cause sexual problems. These include some blood pressure medicines, antihistamines, antidepressants, tranquilizers, appetite suppressants, diabetes drugs, and some ulcer drugs like ranitidine. Some drugs can reduce a woman’s sexual desire. Taking some drugs can decrease the libido.
Surgery
Some surgeries like Mastectomy, Hysterectomy can decrease the sexual activity of women.
Emotional aspects
Sexuality is often a delicate balance of emotional and physical issues. Emotional aspects of women like anxiety, depression, loneliness, family matters can contribute greater towards her sexual life. It may also lead to decrease in sexual desire ness in women.
Treatment
If one seem to have a problem that affects sex life, talk to doctors. He or she can suggest a treatment depending on the type of problem and its cause. There is a lot can do to continue an active sex life.
- Follow a healthy lifestyle, do exercises regularly,
- Eat good food, drink plenty of fluids like water or juices,
- Quit smoking, and avoid alcohol.
- Try to reduce the stress in life.
- Consult doctor regularly and keep a positive outlook on life.
Conclusion
Each woman values different things in her sexual and intimate relationships and enjoys different sexual activities. Being aware of your values and desires can help you make decisions that are right for you. We all experience the physical and emotional elements of sex differently. Take some time to learn about your sexual self.
Dr. C. SHARATH KUMAR
M.B.B.S., M.S., Ph.D (Infertility), Director and Chief Fertility Surgeon
Mediwave I.V.F & Fertility Research Hospital, City X-Ray Complex, Sayyaji Rao Road
Mysore-570 001 Phone: 0821-2444441, 4255019
