Monday July 15, 2019.
Menopause is often a complicated time for women. In addition to physical changes, psychosocial factors lead to a decrease in sexuality. Explanations.
Decreased sexual activity in postmenopausal women: physical and psychosocial factors
As they age, women’s sexuality changes. The physical changes associated with menopause often have an impact on their daily lives. Corn there are other factors and these are not physiological; they are psychosocial. These have been the subject of a large study by researchers from the University of Sussex and University College London (United Kingdom) and the University of New South Wales (Australia).
Published in early July 2019 in the journal Menopause, this qualitative study aims to examine the sexual activity, functioning and sexual satisfaction of postmenopausal women. A total of 24,305 women aged 64 on average completed a questionnaire, while 4,525 respondents provided free text data. This vast sample allowed scientists to get a clear idea of the subject still too little mentioned.
Menopause: 3% of women have positive sexual experiences
The responses made it possible to learn in particular that the main reason for the lack of sexual activity was the lack of a partner, mainly due to widowhood. Low libido has also been mentioned, but this reason comes after physical health problems or sexual dysfunction. In the end, only 3% of the women mentioned positive sexual experiences, while 6% of the participants requested medical help for sexual problems.
This study allowed scientists to conclude that “ more sex education for health professionals is needed to make them aware of sexuality and sexual difficulties later in life “. Thus, to allow women already menopausal to have a fulfilling sexuality, it is necessary to take into account their difficulties as a whole.
Perrine Deurot-Bien
Read also: Tips for living well through menopause
