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How Can Depression Ruin Your Sex Life?

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Depression can adversely affect sexual relationships. It can interfere with our partner’s ability to feel emotionally secure and it can rob us of our desire for and enjoy the sexual connection.

Depression is a very common illness, in spite of social stigma. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Trusted Source (CDC), some form of depression occurs in around one in 20 Americans over the age of 12.

While a higher prevalence in women is stated by the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH), the fact is that depression can occur in anyone and at any age. Depression-types include:

  • persistent depressive disorder
  • psychotic depression
  • major depression
  • bipolar disorder
  • postpartum depression
  • seasonal affective disorder
  • depression coupled with anxiety disorders

What’s most crucial, experts claim, is never to avoid coping for depression out of fear that your relationships and living sex will suffer. That’s because depression can hurt relationships itself, which can cause loved ones to take these things personally.

Dealing with depression can be difficult in so many different ways. The adverse effect on sex that this can have makes the disease even worse. According to a new study in the Journal of Social and Personal Relationships, researchers have definitely linked this mental health diagnosis to a number of challenges in intimacy: difficulties with sexual self-esteem, feeling sexually distant from a partner, trouble communicating about sex, being unsure how to initiate sex, and a flatlining interest in sex in general.

Depression itself may have repercussions in the bedroom and it often carries with it a variety of side effects that even impair libido, says Michael Salas, a Dallas-based sex therapist, Health. “Depression can cause people to lose interest in pleasurable things in their lives; it can increase pessimism and irritability. This is also strongly correlated to low energy and tiredness, “he states. “All of this can lead to a lack of interest or even avoidance.” When they feel furious, frustrated, or disconnected, who wants to get naked? Pretty much.

how depression ruins sex life

Most Common Health Conditions that Depression Causes: 

Lack of Pleasure during Sex: Depressed people find no pleasure in the things they used to do, including engaging in a sexual relationship they might have really enjoyed before.

Increased emotional sensitivity – When things go wrong in a sexual relationship, as they are bound to do from time to time, these temporary changes may be misinterpreted by depressed people because of their own inadequacies, which also leads them to resist sex further.

Low Energy- Fatigue may be a significant symptom of robbing them of sexual energy. Depression can lead to too little or too much sleep and sometimes a lot of rest doesn’t restore the person’s vitality. Tiredness also reduces motivation and sexual performance may decline too. A partner ‘s desire for pleasure may feel impossible to muster.

Low Affection- People with depression also fail to feel dignified with affection. In addition, their partners may feel disappointed that they can not breakthrough with either their love efforts or their invitations to the enlivening sexual relationship.

According to Laurie Watson, if you are experiencing depression, there are a few steps you may take to boost your sex life:

Consider a shift of treatment Interestingly, the medicine most commonly used to relieve depression is a class of medications that often have a significant effect on sex. These medicines, called selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors ( SSRIs), can reduce the sexual desire for both genders and inhibit orgasm. An SSRI can also have an impact on your erections for men. If you are on an SSRI and it affects your sex life, you may want to consult a psychiatrist to see if there are other drugs that you can.

Maybe talk to your psychiatrist or doctor about adding buspirone, which studies show may relieve some sexual side effects in 58 percent of people on SSRIs1 or the possibility of switching to another type of antidepressant – generally bupropion (Wellbutrin)n that has the “least sexual side effects of all antidepressants”.

Treat  Depression first- Working with a psychotherapist may be helpful in helping you understand and cure the roots of your depression. Psychological work can help you stabilize your mood and even help you get out of your medication. Therapy organizes the complicated emotions of depression, helping a person to realize psychologically that there are specific measures of action that can help. Empathy and appreciation of the psychotherapist are internalized as warmth, which lays a new basis for stabilizing mood. And the steadfast relational therapy experience allows a person to establish more stable attachments in the rest of his relationships.

Pay Visit To A Sex Therapist- Going with your partner to sex therapy will reduce misunderstandings about the sexual process and improve a person’s trust in his technique. Sex therapists recognize that sex is a physical phenomenon that increases a person’s commitment to his partner and can recommend ways to improve the relationship’s sexual intimacy. Sex therapists most frequently help couples overcome the power struggle that is being carried out on the sexual sphere between themselves. This resolution enhances relationship stability removing a regularly contributing cause of depression.

Mental Health & Relationship

Nearly half of adults suffer at least once in their lifetime from a mental illness. Research and practical experience tell us that mental illness can cause a person to experience decreased quality of life, decreased productivity and employment, and even physical health impairment.

A mental illness — including post-traumatic stress disorder, significant depressive disorder, widespread anxiety disorder, and alcoholism — can also affect the relationships of a person. What relationship may be more impacted by mental illness than intimate relationships.

Across both the mass media and scientific papers, the effect of mental illness on a couple’s relationship has always been an overlooked factor. People have traditionally examined and written about how mental illness of an individual affects their parents, or, conversely, how the mental illness of a parent affects the child.

This neglect is due in part to the conventional approach of mental health practitioners concentrating on individual problems and ignoring the dynamics of how people in a couple of relationships respond to each other.

Nevertheless, for those working in the field of spouses, it has long been understood that people who have a mental disorder may have a negative effect on the mental health of their partner, and vice versa.

Both partners in a relationship can sometimes struggle with symptoms that developed within one of the partners as a result of the original illness. Yes, research on psychological illness in the couple relationship has shown a strong link between one mentally ill partner and the other mentally ill partner as well.

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Photo of author Janet Fudge
Jim Carson is a highly skilled and dedicated medical writer passionate about advancing medical practice. With years of experience in the field of medical sciences, Jim has made significant contributions to various studies aimed at improving healthcare outcomes. He currently writes for Cheapmedicineshop.com, providing expert insights and knowledge on various topics. Jim's expertise extends to various areas, including drug interactions, dosages, side effects, and best practices for medication use. In Los Angeles, Jim lives with his loving wife, children, and beloved pets. He deeply values spending time with his family and cherishes their presence. When he's not writing, Jim enjoys watching football games and staying updated with the latest sports news. Jim's writing shines through his commitment to advancing medical practice and improving healthcare outcomes. Readers can trust Jim's articles to be informative, accurate, and reliable, making him a trusted pharmaceutical information source for the website's audience.
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