IASH India: Institute of Andrology & Sexual Health India
Sexual Problems in Men: Causes & Treatment

Sexual Problem in Men means difficulty in making sexual contact with your partner. Doctors also called it Sexual Dysfunction. Sexual Dysfunction is a physical or phycological problem that prevents you from getting sexual satisfaction. It includes fertility issues such as Premature Ejaculation, Erectile Dysfunction, and other problems like testicular pain, lack of sexual desire, etc. However, these issues need some immediate medical treatment.

Further, To understand what happens in your body when you perform any sexual activity, we will break the entire process into different stages of your sexual cycle.

How Common is Sexual Dysfunction in Men?

Sexual dysfunctions are extremely frequent in both sexes, affecting 10% to 52% of males and 25% to 63% of females, according to small-scale community research. Age, health, and emotional function were all strongly connected with moderate to severe erectile dysfunction in 34.8% of males between the ages of 40 and 70, according to the Massachusetts Male Aging Study7 (MMAS).

How Does Sexual Function Work?

Sexual functioning involves a complex interplay of biological, psychological, and social factors. Desire, or libido, is the first stage of the sexual response cycle and reflects a person’s overall interest in engaging in sexual activity. Second, Sexual Arousal is a state of being physically and psychologically aroused, characterized by increased blood flow to the genital area, causing physiological changes such as increased heart rate, breathing, and muscle tension. The third or final stage is Orgasm which is the peak of sexual arousal and is characterized by the release of sexual tension and involuntary contraction of muscles.

However, sexual function can be hindered by various sexual problems such as medical conditions, medications, relationship issues, and psychological factors such as stress and anxiety. These can result in low desire, difficulty in arousal and difficulty reaching orgasm.

It is important for individuals to understand their sexual function and to use this knowledge to cope with sexual problems and seek help. Talking with a healthcare provider or sex therapist can help you identify and address the underlying causes of sexual problems. Educating yourself about sexual health and seeking support can improve sexual satisfaction and overall well-being. So let’s learn about sexual dysfunction and its diagnosis at different stages of sexual activity.

sexual problems for men: Explained Briefly Causes & Treatment

Sexual Desire – First Stage

Desire means all the conceptualized fantasies about sex. When you have a strong feeling or urge to make out, it is called Sexual Desire.

What can go wrong with sexual desire? The answer is male hypoactive sexual desire disorder. In this, males face low libido, testosterone, and SAD problems.

A man with a deficiency or absence of fantasies or desires suffers from this disorder. Usually, these disorders are physical, but some psychological factors can be responsible for these disorders.

Reason and Causes

  • If you have stress in your marriage, that could be a psychological component that would cause you to have low libido or sexual desire.
  • If you have low testosterone, that would be more of a physiological issue, and you tend to experience a lot of these issues, especially after surgery for prostate cancer.
  • Partner dissatisfaction is the most common reason for people seeking treatment for low libido.

Treatment

Antidepressants can be helpful if a man is depressed, but they can also lower sexual interest.

If low libido is caused by an androgen deficiency (low testosterone) confirmed by a blood test, testosterone replacement therapy may be needed.
Low libido related to stress or tiredness may be helped by stress management strategies or counselling.

Who can help a man with Male Hypoactive Sexual Desire Disorder?

You must consult a male sexual health specialist(Andrologist) or Sexologist at IASH for low libido treatment. If you think you are suffering from low libido or low sex drive. It is essential to rule out any physical cause for the same by taking a detailed sexual history, physical examination, and doing some blood tests. If no physical cause is identified, it is essential to consult a clinical psychologist with good experience in treating desire problems.

Sexual Arousal – Second Stage

Sexual arousal is the physiological response to sexual excitation, so for females, it’s lubrication, and for males, it’s the erection. The sexual problems in men related to sexual arousal can be either erectile dysfunction or nightfall problem.

When a male cannot have sexual arousal, he doesn’t feel a thing in his reproductive organ. This sexual problem is referred to as erectile dysfunction or nightfall.

Erectile dysfunction is the failure to achieve an adequate erection until the completion of the sexual act. This is the primary symptom of erectile dysfunction not being able to have an erection while having sex; if having sex is not pleasurable or not having a firm erection throughout the intercourse.

It has been said that this is one of men’s most common sexual problems. About 1 in every 7 men has erectile dysfunction, and about three per cent of the men treated for this dysfunction complain about still being impotence or dysfunction.

Sexual Arousal Disorders

  • Relate to the excitement phase
  • Problem involving feelings of sexual pleasure
  • Kaplan estimates that approximately 50% of men have experienced transient.

Reason and Causes of Erectile Dysfunction

  • The aging a man is, the greater the incidence of erectile dysfunction.
  • The other more significant number of patients are smokers, which affects the blood vessels and disrupts the easy blood flow to the penis region.
  • The other major cause of erectile dysfunction is diabetes.
  • Problems in married life can also cause erectile dysfunction.

What we need to determine in male erectile dysfunction cause, Whether it’s psychological or physiological.

Erectile Dysfunction Treatment

Once the proper diagnosis of erectile dysfunction is made, you may want to have the appropriate erectile dysfunction treatment. Many recommend treatments for ED with medicines are sildenafil or tadalafil. These medicines are another form of popular therapy, viagra Cialis. You must have seen plenty of commercials related to these disorders. Kegel exercise, Garudasana in yoga, and a Mediterranean food and diet are considered to help in erectile dysfunction naturally. Read about erectile dysfunction or स्तंभन दोष in hindi

Orgasm – Third Stage

Orgasm is the highest feeling of excitement. It is the plateau range where the feeling of pleasure reaches its highest level and then starts diminishing. Sexual performance is said to be incomplete when there is no orgasm. Men and women or both partners should attain Orgasm to have complete satisfaction.

People who cannot attain Orgasm are said to suffer from Orgasmic disorders. The disorders can be premature ejaculation or (शीघ्रपतन का इलाज), retrograde ejaculationdelayed ejaculation or painful ejaculation.

When the man ejaculates before or immediately after entering is typically associated with Premature ejaculation or PE.

Reason and Causes of Premature Ejaculation

Early ejaculation can be either because of desperation or when men are very anxious about sexual performance or have performance anxiety; they might experience premature ejaculation. The real causes of premature ejaculation need to be diagnosed before treatment.

Treatment of Sexual problems in Men related to Orgasm 

The treatment of this disorder is either behavioural techniques or medications. Below are 2 of the behavioural techniques.

  • Stop-and-go technique: In the Stop-and-go technique, the control is ejaculation by stopping and restarting when he is thrusting or about to ejaculate.
  • Squeeze technique: In the squeeze technique, when the partner stimulates the man partner, which makes him ejaculate, the partner squeezes the glans of the penis to stop the ejaculation.

In both of these cases, what you are going to do is you are delaying the time before you ejaculate; therefore, you are treating this problem. For more complicated problems, we also use medications such as SSRIs. These are the ideal drugs because one of the side effects of SSRIs is delayed ejaculation.

Hindi users, for better understanding, can read Shighrapatan ka Ilaj(शीघ्रपतन का इलाज) or Premature Ejaculation Treatment in Hindi.

Some Other Common Sexual Problems in Men

The most common myth worldwide is that sexual problems are all about Ed or PE. Some people even assume the size of the penis is the main issue of sexual dissatisfaction. But according to the Internation institute of sexual Medicine, there is more concern beyond ED.

Pain disorder

The first disorder is genital pelvic pain, a disorder formerly known as dyspareunia.

Men with pain during or after intercourse usually suffer from psychological causes. The painful ejaculation is not due to any physiological or medical condition. The treatment for such disorders is individual psychotherapy, as they have pain for psychological reasons. For example, many men and women in India have been taught that sex is bad and that only bad people can enjoy sex time. They may have a fear of impregnation. So these are all issues that need to be addressed to treat this genital pelvic pain disorder. Pain disorder also includes testicular problems such as Varicocele, epididymis and cancer.

Ejaculation disorder

When the man has no control over ejaculation, he might suffer from common sexual problems in Men like nightfall and dhat syndrome. In such cases, men ejaculate while urinating or can have wet dreams. In females, it can be called vaginismus, where women experience involuntary constriction of the outer third of the vagina, preventing penile insertion right again. This is psychological, maybe religious upbringing, fear of impregnation, etc.

Nightfall is natural, but when it causes health problems, it needs to be consulted by our experts. According to Dr. Chirag Bhandari, the Top Sexologist in Delhi, If you are seeing symptoms like pain, an unusual smell, or bloody semen or urine, you need to consult the best sexologist in India.

Sexual problems causes are both psychological and physical. There are hormonal or psychological issues responsible for the desperate urge to have sex. When someone cannot control their feelings, they develop a certain disorder. Paraphilic disorders are some severe disorders that need urgent attention and treatment.

Paraphilic Disorder

This psychological disorder involves men in unnatural and abusive sexual activity. There are eight major disorders under Paraphilic disorder.

  • Pedophilia Disorder: when someone has sexual urges towards children under 14.
  • Exhibitionist disorder: He is an individual that exposes their genitals to a stranger.
  • Paraphilic Disorder: Voyeur is the man that peeps in through your window while you are naked or engaging in sexual activity or anything else, and it’s the earliest to develop.
  • Sadist: He is the one that likes inflicting pain. He likes to be aggressive by beating up his partner or tying them up.
  • Masochist: He is the one that likes to receive it, likes to be beaten, abused, etc.
  • Fetish: Fetishism is when you focus sexually on a non-living object, for example, women’s pantyhose, panties, shoe stockings etc
  • ZOOphilia is when you use animals and sexual fantasies or practices.
  • Coprophilia: He is that one who combines sex with defecation
  • Europhilia: It is when you combine sex with urination
  • Necrophilia is when you are having sex with cadavers; it’s nothing but dead human bodies.
  • Hypoxia philia: It is where when you experience a hypoxic event, and this hypoxic event is going to heighten the sensation of the Orgasm, usually achieved through a technique called auto-erotic asphyxiation. It is where you could have someone who’s choking themselves while they are masturbating.

The deepest and most taboo subject, “sex, ” must be understood as a biological need. Today’s youth must acknowledge it and appreciate its significance in life. With proper sex education for youth, we can see a significant drop in porn addiction, rape cases, the flesh trade, and many other evils in society, which are just aftermaths of uncontrolled desperation for unusual human activity.

Question Asked to diagnose sexual problems in men

DimenssionQuestions
DesireDo you think spontaneously about sex or imagine yourself having sex?
Is your interest in sex sufficient for you to take part in sexul relations enthusiastically?
ArousalDo you normally get lubricated (wet) during sexual relations?
During the sexual relation, as your partner becomes more aroused, do you also feel more stimulated for sex?
OrgasmAre you able to reach orgasm (maximum pleasure) in the sexual relations you have?
SatisfcationDoes the level of satisfaction you get from sexual relations make you want to have sex again on other days?

Facts that you should Know about Sexual Problems in Men

  1. Cardiovascular Disease leads to sexual Problems in Men.
  2. Sexual function and mental health are strongly connected.
  3. Medications for mental illness may bring on various degrees of sexual function changes.
  4. As men grow older, having some changes in sexual function is normal.
  5. Improving overall health will enhance sexual Performance.

Conclusion

Sex is a phenomenal activity of every living thing. You cannot avoid it for an extended period. People are becoming aware of it and experimenting with making their sexual life exciting and healthy. Being aware and educated is the best way to avoid sex diseases. If a couple is having first-time sex, then the chances of getting Sexual Transmitted Diseases are not any less as compared to a couple who had been active.

Frequently Asked Question

Q1. What are the Symptoms of Sexual Problems in Men?

Ans: The symptoms of sexual problems in men are:

  • Trouble getting an erection.
  • Trouble keeping an erection.
  • Reduced sexual desire.

Q2. What is the Common Sexual Dysfunction in Males?

Ans: The Common Sexual dysfunction in males are:

  • Erectile Dysfunction
  • Premature Ejaculation
  • Low Libido
  • Delay in Ejaculation

Q3. What Foods help you to stay erect?

Ans: Here are some of the fruits and foods that men should eat to stay erect for a longer period:

Watermelon, Spinach, Coffee, Dark Chocolates, Selemon, Oranges, Blueberries, Almonds, Walnuts and other nuts.

Q4. Types of doctors treat sexual problems in men?

Ans. Psychiatrists, psychologists, and sexologists can be involved in the management of sexual dysfunction. Psychiatrists or psychologists can significantly help when the cause of the dysfunction is psychogenic. Therapies targeting cognition and behaviour usually have reasonable success rates. Sexologists can also contribute to these therapies.

Q5. What is the prognosis for sexual problems in men? Can they be cured?

Ans. The prognosis varies according to the method of treatment and the underlying disease. Nowadays, many innovations have changed the face of male sexual dysfunction, giving men multiple options regarding treatment. Not only do men have choices, but developing technologies and medications have also given men a voice to share their experiences.

Q6. Can sexual problems in men be prevented?

Ans. Lifestyle changes can help treat or improve sexual dysfunction, but more importantly, they can have an impact before the development of the disease itself. You can prevent sexual troubles by having a healthy lifestyle, exercising regularly, eating well, limiting alcohol consumption, and quitting smoking if you are a smoker. Lifestyle changes take time and effort, but the results are worthwhile.