Do you feel your love life isn’t as active as it used to be? Join the crowd. A 2020 study published in JAMA revealed that many American adults of all ages and marital status report a similar experience.
Physical intimacy is an important part of marriage. It helps cultivate emotional connections and strengthens the ties that bind. There is no “right” amount, and if both spouses are happy with your current situation, that’s fine. But if you are not on the same page, it can cause tension, doubt or resentment in one or both partners.
The problem is often low libido, and it affects men as well as women. It can be difficult to muster up enthusiasm for romance if you’re just not feeling it. The good news is that there are answers for this common problem.
Potential Causes of Low Libido
If you would like to boost your libido and reignite the spark in your love life, the first thing you need to do is look for underlying causes.
Fatigue: Excessive fatigue is a real problem in today’s world. There just aren’t enough hours in the day! I hear this from both sexes, but especially from women who are juggling kids, work and household chores. They say it’s not that they are uninterested, just that they would rather get some sleep. The solution here may be as simple as acknowledging the problem, rearranging your schedule and carving out time for intimacy.
Stress, anxiety and depression: Stress levels have risen at an alarming pace over the past year, and anxiety and depression rates are at an all-time high. A third to half of individuals with major depression have problems with sexual desire or function. Both anxiety and depression can cause—or be caused by—hormonal disruptions that have significant adverse effects on your libido. Balancing your hormone levels with bioidentical hormone replacement therapy can make a big difference in this and many other aspects of your well-being.
Chronic illness: When you aren’t feeling well or are dealing with pain, intimacy is probably the last thing on your mind. Get serious about improving your health. If that requires seeing a doctor, don’t delay. There are solutions for most physical ailments.
Medications: You may not realize it, but dozens of prescription and over-the-counter medications can drag down your sex drive. SSRI antidepressants are notorious for reducing erectile function as well as libido in women and men. Birth control pills, antihistamines, some antihypertensives and other medications also interfere with function. Talk to your doctor about natural alternatives to side effect-riddled drugs.
Lifestyle: Inactivity, overeating, excess alcohol and other unhealthy habits can curb sexual desire. Smoking is even worse, especially for men because it is also linked with erectile dysfunction. Clean up your act! If you cannot do it on your own, our doctors, certified nutritionists and other healthcare professionals can help.
Distractions: Recent research suggests that one reason for the drought in physical relations is that people have “better” things to do. TV, social media, web browsing, etc., offer a lot of options other than talking, connecting with your spouse, going to bed at a reasonable time and enjoying intimacy. If this hits home, do something about it. Put away your devices and pay attention to your loved ones.
Hormones of Desire
Hormones have a profound effect on sexual desire and function. Low libido is a side effect of hypothyroidism (low thyroid function), which affects 1 in 10 Americans and twice that many older women. Unrelenting stress can lead to adrenal fatigue, which also dampens sex drive. Ask most any woman who has given birth, suffers with PMS, has had a hysterectomy or undergone menopause, and she will tell you that the fluctuations in female hormones that occur during these times can seriously mess with sexual desire.
What I want to focus on, however, is testosterone. Testosterone is best known as a male hormone. The increase in testosterone production during adolescence is responsible for the development of larger muscles, body hair and other male characteristics—not to mention boys’ sudden interest in girls.
A man’s testosterone level peaks in his 20s and declines thereafter. By the time he hits 40, it’s half of what it once was. By age 60, it’s about a quarter of the peak level. Testosterone levels vary, and some men report little change in libido or function. However, most older men and a fair percentage of those in their 40s and 50s notice a reduction in both.
This is not surprising, since testosterone is the hormone of desire. But did you know that women also produce testosterone? And that this hormone drives desire in women as well as men? Declining levels of testosterone in both sexes, due to age or other factors, is a primary reason for low libido.
A Simple Solution
There is a simple solution. The key to boosting low libido caused by hormone deficiencies is to restore levels to those of a healthy young man or woman with bioidentical hormones.
The Hotze Health & Wellness Center specializes in comprehensive hormone testing and hormone replenishment with bioidentical hormones made just for you by our compounding pharmacy. A personalized hormone regimen, plus a healthy eating program and vitamin and mineral supplementation, not only gives libido a lift but also helps restore energy, mood, vitality and overall well-being.
To learn more and schedule a Free Wellness Consultation, call us at 281-698-8698 or visit hotzehwc.com. We offer virtual Telemedicine Appointments, as well.
