How Does Sex Drive Change as You Age?
It’s no secret that as you age, sex can start to look different from how it did when you were younger. This is a combination of many different factors, from the shifting mental, emotional, and social influences on your life to physical and chemical changes in your body. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing– it’s natural for your sex drive to change and slow down as you get older, and you can still have a healthy sex life no matter your age. It’s good to know what changes to expect, however, and that if you’re struggling with changes to your sex drive as you age, there are routes you can take to help combat the less-than-enjoyable effects. Here’s a quick breakdown of what the evolution of an adult’s sex drive typically looks like. Remember, everyone is different, so these are not hard and fast milestones so much as generalizations.
20s and 30s
You might assume that both men and women have their highest libidos around the same age, but that’s surprisingly not true! In men, testosterone is high in the 20s, and sex drive is usually high along with it.
For women, libido is a little lower during the 20s but tends to go up in the 30s. Sex drive is a very complicated subject, and scientists haven’t conclusively proven why this happens, but it’s generally assumed that there’s a correlation between the increase of sex drive and the decrease in fertility that happens in the late 20s to 30s. High fertility in your 20s might lead to an evolutionary instinct to be more selective about sex.
Pregnancy
Most women who have children do so sometime in their 20s and 30s, and this has some serious effects of sex drive, not just during the pregnancy, but afterwards as well. It’s common to experience a boost in libido during the second trimester and be disinterested in sex at other times, but this isn’t the case for everyone. Some women experience an unusually high sex drive during pregnancy, or an unusually low one, or they might be anxious about whether it’s safe (the answer is typically yes, but double check with your doctor if you’re nervous). The stress of raising children can also lead to a decrease in sex drive after the baby arrives.
40s
Around the age of 35, testosterone levels in men start to drop, which can cause a decrease in sex drive as well. These changing hormone levels continue into the 40s, and the decrease might be fairly gradual for some men or faster for others.
Women, on the other hand, tend to have fairly high sex drives and active sex lives in their 40s. Some studies indicate that women around this age are more likely to have sex more often and earlier on in a relationship, as well as having more intense fantasies.
50s
For men, sex drive around this age is usually significantly lower than it was earlier in life, although there’s no reason for this to get in the way of a healthy sex life. Erectile dysfunction does become more common in men as they get older, but this actually has less to do with age and more to do with other health problems that become common with age, like obesity, heart disease, diabetes, and high cholesterol. Medications for these conditions and others can also lead to erectile dysfunction, and you should discuss it with your doctor if it’s becoming a problem.
For women, lowered stress levels from environmental factors like the kids moving out or less worry around getting pregnant might lead to an increased interest in sex, but the onset of menopause can throw a bit of a wrench in the works with hormonoal changes leading to things like vaginal dryness, lowered libido, and mood changes or sleep problems. These are also things you should discuss with your doctor.
What Can I Do?
If you’re struggling with the effects of aging on your sex life, hormone replacement therapy might be a great option for you! At Renewed Vitality, our bioidentical hormones are more efficient and have less adverse effects than synthetic hormones, and giving yourself a boost of testosterone or estrogen as needed can help to get you feeling more normal and get your sex life back on track. If you’re interested in this treatment, please contact us here to learn more!
Mental wellness and sex are a lot more closely connected than they might seem at first glance. Although they’re incredibly different from person to person, everyone needs to have balance between these two factors. Whether they engage in intimacy with one person, multiple people, or individually, good mental health is tied to a healthy sex life, and a healthy sex life is tied to good mental health. With age, it can be common for sex drive to decrease, which can have unexpected results on a person’s mental wellbeing, so making an effort to keep your sex life active later in life can be very helpful! Here are some of the benefits of a healthy sex life on your mental wellness.
Relationship Benefits
If you’re in a relationship, keeping up with your sex life can do a lot of good things for you and your partner. Physical intimacy encourages communication and bonding between partners, boosts self esteem and self image, and can help lower relational anxiety, or anxiousness around relating to or bonding with other people. Overall, it helps to bring you closer together and make your relationship stronger and happier, which is never a bad thing!
Lowered Stress
Sex offers all the same benefits of exercise, so it has the added side bonus of lowering your stress levels by releasing your body’s feel-good hormones, endorphins and oxytocin. Overall they help you to feel more relaxed and stave off feelings of anxiety and depression.
Improved Mood
Just like your daily mental health walk helps you to feel happier, so does sex! The same hormones that are associated with lowered stress levels, endorphins and oxytocin, as well as serotonin, can help you to feel happier and put some more pep in your step throughout the day.
Better Sleep
A healthy and active sex life will be a big help to your sleep patterns. The brain chemicals released during sex help you to feel relaxed and sleepy, which can help you get a better night’s shut-eye. Poor sleep can be extremely detrimental to your mental health, even just one night and especially if it becomes a chronic problem, so by helping you to sleep better, sex can also better equip you to handle your mental wellness.
Between changes in your sex drive as you age, increased stress, and a busy lifestyle, keeping your sex life active and healthy can start to feel like an afterthought, but the benefits you can get from making it a priority in your life are worth the effort it takes to make time for it. Whether you’re in a committed or casual relationship or you’re single, you can still enjoy all the mental health benefits, not to mention the physical health benefits!
If you’re struggling with sexual issues like low libido, speaking to a professional can make a huge difference. Renewed Vitality in Berks County is the area’s premier facility for hormone replacement therapy (HRT), which can be exceptionally helpful in terms of improving your sex life, especially as you age. We have both male and female patients, and we offer safe, effective treatments to help with hormone imbalances and restore your quality of life. Contact us to learn more about what this treatment can do for you!
It’s true that getting older often brings benefits like greater experience and a more refined perspective on life. But from a purely physical point of view, most people associate aging with wrinkles, reduced athletic capability, and a decrease in sexual performance. But sexual dysfunction and age aren’t as clearly connected as you might think, with some men maintaining sexual activity well into old age.
Since sexual activity inevitably changes over time, when should men stop having sex? The good news is that, generally speaking, you don’t have to stop! People’s sexual appetites and capabilities vary because everyone’s aging process and sexuality are at least somewhat unique. But what happens if your body is exhibiting symptoms that make it harder to have sex as you age? Let’s take a closer look at some of these issues and how to treat and mitigate them.
Sexuality Changes Over Time
It can take older men more time to become aroused, and they may need longer recovery times after orgasming. Erectile dysfunction is also quite common as men age, with up to two-thirds of men over 70 years old reporting symptoms. From a medical perspective, this is often related to declining testosterone levels, and can also be affected by many age-related conditions and the medications used to mitigate them.
Intimacy is crucial for everyone, including older men. In addition to adjusting medications and how men may treat their other physical health conditions, it also useful for older men to change how they think about sexual performance. For example, if age or health-related problems prevent or reduce your sexual performance, it’s often a great idea to focus more on sexual activities that don’t need an erection or ejaculation to be pleasurable.
How to Stay Sexually Active as an Older Man
While it’s expected that the vast majority of people will experience a decline in sexual activity as they enter their latter years, it doesn’t necessarily mean they have to stop having sex altogether or even much at all.
Along with staying healthy by practicing good nutrition and regular exercise, older men should treat medical conditions as they come up and, if required, use preventative medication to stop issues such as erectile dysfunction. This can help you maintain fulfilling sexual relationships as you age and establish greater peace of mind about sexual performance.
Maintaining a Healthy Lifestyle
For reliable and satisfying sexual activity as men age, incorporating good physical health activities usually means better sexual health and stronger sexual desire. Even basic things like regular exerise, a balanced diet, and kicking bad habits like smoking or drinking too much alcohol can all contribute to a healthy sex like even into your 70s and 80s.
Using Erectile Dysfunction (ED) Medication
While it’s true that erectile dysfunction can occur in men of all ages, there’s a much higher incidence rate in older men. In particular, research has found that men have about a 40 percent risk of encountering some degree of ED in their 40s, increasing subtintailyl more every decade.
While this may seem intimidating, there are great modern ED prescriptions that can make it easy to maintain an erection, even if you’re experiencing symptoms of ED. If you’re experiencing such symptoms, be sure to talk with your doctor to get a better understanding of the best medication options for you.
Treat Any Underlying Medical Issues
It’s possible for many sexual performance challenges to be caused or worsened by specific health conditions. For instance, erectile dysfunction often results from high blood pressure, cardiovascular problems, diabetes, and other physical conditions that become bigger issues as men age.
If you have a chronic disease or other health conditions that could affect your sexual performance, keep in close contact with your healthcare provider and, potentially, use medication to control your condition(s)’s symptoms for a more satisfying quality of life.
It’s also crucial to take an active approach to maintaining your health by checking for age-related medical issues that could impact your sexual satisfaction and capability. By staying on top of your overall health, you may be able to address issues as they come up for improved health and sexual performance across the decades.
Taking Action
If you’ve been feeling dissatisfied with your sexual performance or sex life in general as a result of age, we hope this info will help you take action toward a more rewarding sex life in your later years. By speaking with a medical professional about potential medications and physical or emotional issues related to sex, you’ll be taking the first steps to a better quality of life.
Feel free to reach out and contact us with any questions about how to treat and mitigate symptoms of age-related sexual decline. here are great ways to adapt to your body’s changing needs, and by exploring these possibilities, you can maintain a great sex life for years to come!
Aging changes quite a few things about our bodies. Sometimes we gain weight, we have less energy, and our bodies don’t move like they used to. Mood and mental health can then be affected by these physical changes. This can have an impact on how we take care of ourselves and stand in the way of our health.
Knowing how to best approach these changes makes a huge difference in how they can affect your life. One way to combat the effects of aging is by engaging in exercise as it has been found to improve mood and mental health in aging adults. That’s why we’ve compiled a list of exercises specifically selected to meet those particular needs.
What Is Low Impact?
Low impact exercises generally refer to activities that put less harmful stress on the body. This refers to activities such as running. When you run, all of your weight is bouncing on your skeleton and joints, causing strain and potentially pain. Having that weight coming down on one hip joint, knee, or foot can lead to new pain or exacerbate existing joint problems.
Low impact exercises involve smoother motions where weight and stresses are transferred throughout the body more smoothly—avoiding that jolt of stress that can cause pain. Low impact is all about raising the heart rate and improving health without wearing on your joints.
Walking
We do it every day, and most people don’t consider it that much of a struggle to walk. If you’re looking for a good intro to low impact exercises, walking is a great option. For added difficulty, set your walk on an incline or with added weight like a backpack.
Cycling
Just like walking, cycling is a straightforward low impact exercise. Your body is in fluid motion and muscles are always working. It’s possible to either bike out and about or at home on a cycling machine.
Tai Chi
When it comes to smooth fluid motions, there’s really one activity that stands out as obvious. There are a variety of health benefits associated with Tai Chi, from improved balance and physical self-awareness, to improved mood and reduced stress. Unlike some other exercises, you don’t need any additional equipment to start practicing, and Youtube has plenty of videos for beginners looking to try their hand at this relaxing low impact exercise.
Yogo
Along the same vein of smooth motions and body control, yoga is a fantastic way to improve flexibility and balance. The awesome part about yoga is that you don’t need to be a master contortionist to get started (or even maintain the practice), and you can measure your improvements in easily identifiable ways. After a week or so of these stretches, you might notice you can reach down and touch lower on your legs or even get to your toes when you previously could not!
Swimming
Swimming is the ultimate low impact exercise. Your full weight is being supported in the water, meaning at no point is your body working to support it. Simply treating water is a fantastic way to increase your heart rate and improve cardiovascular health. Walking through water is even less impact than walking on dry land! You also get the added benefit of walking through the resistance of the water, meaning your exercise is even more effective. For an even more practical reason to try out this exercise, consider it a great excuse to hang out in the pool during the hot summer days!
Reaping The Benefits
There are a few reasons to do these exercises as we previously mentioned: physical, mental, and emotional health. Unlike heavy weight training or running where you can mark your success by checking your increased mileage and added weight on the dumbbell, low impact training requires something more internal.
Taking a look at your overall daily experience both in and out of your training is important. Some of these exercises allow for measuring of physical benefits—how far you might swim; can you touch your toes; length of a cycling session—but it’s hard to quantify the emotional benefits.
Try to notice how you feel before, during, and after an exercise. Even if you aren’t motivated before a workout, most people will testify that their mood has improved after the fact. Once you recognize this in your own experience with low impact exercises, that becomes a motivation in itself.
Doing regular personal check-ins about how you feel throughout the day, both before and after, can also put everything in perspective. Having a regular mental check-in regiment about your exercise routine can keep you sharp and improve/maintain overall functionality.
The Takeaway
Getting older doesn’t mean your body can’t continue to improve and maintain mobility and strength. By engaging in these simple and accessible low impact activities, you can hold off the more negative impacts associated with growing older.
Working with a professional to identify which exercises and practices might be most effective for you is always a good idea. The experts at Renewed Vitality are especially knowledgeable about these kinds of practices. Give us a call to set up an evaluation and check in today!
