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how chronic stress affects your sex life
Chronic Stress & Your Sex Life | Image Courtesy of Engin Akyurt via Unsplash

You may have heard that chronic stress takes a toll on your body. But did you know how chronic stress affects your sex life?

What is chronic stress?

Chronic psychosocial stress is defined as either a major life event that takes place over a long period of time (ie. death of a family member) or small stressors that are constant and often accumulate (ie. traffic, financial worries, work deadlines).1,2 A study by Allen Kanner, Ph.D, published in the National Library of Medicine, found that these small stressors can have more of a negative effect on health than the more severe but less common stressors.1

How does chronic stress inhibit sexual arousal?

Chronic stress can inhibit sexual arousal by affecting hormones and emotional wellbeing and leading to cognitive changes. Stress can raise a hormone called cortisol. When cortisol levels are high there is a decrease in two important sex hormones: testosterone and estradiol. These hormones are important for genital arousal in women.3,4,5 Increased blood pressure is also commonly linked to increased stress which can decrease blood flow throughout the body.6 This could in turn inhibit blood flow to the genitals which may interfere with genital arousal. The emotional and cognitive changes that happen with chronic stress can distract a person from sexual cues towards the stressors, impacting sexual arousal.7

 A study by Hamilton et al., found that women reporting high levels of stress had lower levels of genital arousal in response to an erotic film than women reporting average levels of stress. The women in the high stress group also had higher levels of cortisol. In this study, distraction increased in the high-stress level group compared to the average stress level group.8

How should your chronic stress be addressed? 

Chronic stress plays a big impact on sexual function and is a component that must be addressed to restore a normal sex life. It can be helpful to find a sex therapist or marriage and family therapist that can help guide you in this process. Many times it is not just a physical barrier and patients do well with seeing both a pelvic health physical therapist and a psychotherapist to help address sexual dysfunction. We can help guide you in seeking out your team. Stay tuned for our upcoming article on Mental Health and Sexual Pain!

 

References

1Kanner AD, Coyne JC, Schaefer C, Lazarus RS. Comparison of two modes of stress measurement: Daily hassles and uplifts versus major life events. J Behav Med. 1981;4:1–39. 

2Lazarus R. Puzzles in the study of daily hassles. J Behav Med. 1984;7:375–389

3Traish A, Kim N, Min K, Munarriz R, Goldstein I. Role of androgens in female genital sexual arousal: receptor expression, structure, and function. Fertil Steril. 2002;77(Suppl 4):S11–8

4Traish AM, Botchevar E, Kim NN. Biochemical factors modulating female genital sexual arousal physiology. J Sex Med. 2010;7:2925–2946.

5Tuiten A, van Honk J, Verbaten R, et al. Can sublingual testosterone increase subjective and physiological measures of laboratory-induced sexual arousal? Arch Gen Psychiatry. 2002;59:465–6.

6Bonne O, Grillon C, Vythilingam M, Neumeister A, Charney DS. Adaptive and maladaptive psychobiological responses to severe psychological stress: implications for the discovery of novel pharmacotherapy. Neurosci Biobehav Rev. 2004;28:65–94.

7Lazarus RS. Psychological Stress and the Coping Process. New York: McGraw Hill; 1966.


8Hamilton LD, Meston CM. Chronic stress and sexual function in women. J Sex Med. 2013;10(10):2443-2454. doi:10.1111/jsm.12249

What Our Patients Have to Say

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Testimonial by A.B.

Before I was referred to Heather Jeffcoat I was living in a nightmare. I had been married to my husband for three years and I was suffering from Vaginismus. That all changed when I visited my OBGYN and she said she knew of someone with a great success rate. To be honest I was hesitant at first because my first doctor had already told me that all I needed to do was order dilators from the internet and I should overcome my problem. She was wrong because I had followed the book on how to use the dilators with absolutely no advancements in my condition. However, that all changed when I went in for my first visit and Heather took the time to explain my condition and how we were going to work together to overcome it.

I remember leaving her office with a glimmer of hope that I could live a normal life. As my sessions continued I began to see immediate results. With only four sessions and a strict dedication to my home programs I was cured of Vaginismus. In the beginning of this process I was made aware that my health insurance company might not cover the costs, which was disappointing but today I can say one hundred percent that it was the best money I ever spent. Now thanks to Heather I am finally enjoying my life to the fullest with my husband. Thank you Heather, I can’t begin to tell you how much I appreciate all that you have done for me. I will never forget it. Those who are suffering from these types of conditions don’t be afraid because she makes you feel so comfortable and the end result is worth it. Good luck to you all and I hope you experience the success I have.
-- A.B.

Testimonial by S.S., age 54

Heather is the best! I saw her today for terrible hip/groin pain. I was so impressed with the safety measures in place and felt completely safe . Thanks for the healing hands.

S.S., age 54

Testimonial by M.N., age 28

A personal journey and testimonial from one of my patients:

I was diagnosed with vaginismus 4 years ago. I never heard of such medical condition until after I got married. At first my husband and I didn't know what to do, we didn't know what the issues were or how to overcome it. Being born and raised in Armenia and being Christian I wasn't that open about talking to sex with others and so it wasn't easy to seek help. But eventually I went to an Ob-Gyn and luckily she knew about the medical condition (not many doctors know). She referred me to a physical therapist and I couldn't believe it and thought it's something I can handle myself. I ordered a kit from vaginismus.com and started practicing with dilators. There was some small progress but wasn't much helpful.

Read more: Testimonial by M.N., age 28

Testimonial by S.B.

As someone who suffered the debilitating physical and emotional effects of vaginismus (as well as a complicated history of back injuries) for more than 15 years, I thought a "normal" life was just a fantasy. Then I found Heather.

Read more: Testimonial by S.B.

Testimonial by A.B.

Before I was referred to Heather Jeffcoat I was living in a nightmare. I had been married to my husband for three years and I was suffering from Vaginismus. That all changed when I visited my OBGYN and she said she knew of someone with a great success rate. To be honest I was hesitant at first because my first doctor had already told me that all I needed to do was order dilators from the internet and I should overcome my problem. She was wrong because I had followed the book on how to use the dilators with absolutely no advancements in my condition. However, that all changed when I went in for my first visit and Heather took the time to explain my condition and how we were going to work together to overcome it.

I remember leaving her office with a glimmer of hope that I could live a normal life. As my sessions continued I began to see immediate results. With only four sessions and a strict dedication to my home programs I was cured of Vaginismus. In the beginning of this process I was made aware that my health insurance company might not cover the costs, which was disappointing but today I can say one hundred percent that it was the best money I ever spent. Now thanks to Heather I am finally enjoying my life to the fullest with my husband. Thank you Heather, I can’t begin to tell you how much I appreciate all that you have done for me. I will never forget it. Those who are suffering from these types of conditions don’t be afraid because she makes you feel so comfortable and the end result is worth it. Good luck to you all and I hope you experience the success I have.
-- A.B.

Testimonial by M.M.

A personal journey and testimonial from one of my patients:

My husband and I were married for 5 years before we were able to have intercourse due to my vaginismus. There was nothing traumatic in my past but for some reason, even though I wanted sex, I mentally avoided "that area" of my body and didn't even admit to myself that there was a problem for a long time, even though I was never able to put tampons in. Once I finally opened my eyes up to the fact that I had a problem, I had a surgery that was supposed to fix the issue.

Read more: Testimonial by M.M.

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