This time we want to talk to you about how depression affects sexual relations. The first thing you should know is that depression affects approximately 264 million people worldwide. As a result, depression is one of the most common mental health problems.

It can be debilitating, draining, numb, and depressed. It is also known to be one of the most common causes of low libido in a relationship. Here’s how depression affects sex drive and what you can do about it.

Why does depression affect sexual desire?

Sex can be seriously damaged by depression. It can make us lose our desire and enjoyment of sexual connection, as well as our ability to feel emotionally safe with our partner.

However, you need to understand why depression affects sexual desire. In this sense, you should know that sexual desire goes far beyond a simple impulse. It is even sometimes misinterpreted as a biological need. However, it is more of an emotion that can be influenced by a variety of factors other than our biology.

Low libido can be caused by psychological problems like melancholy and anxiety. Also by interpersonal characteristics such as conflict and communication styles, and even by cultural influences such as the way we think we should experience desire or sex.

Because we cannot separate our sexuality from ourselves, depression can have such a significant impact on our sexual desire.

How does depression affect sex?

Here are some of the most common ways depression affects sex:

Absence of pleasure

People who experience bouts of depression actually fail to enjoy the same things that they used to do and that brought them pleasure. This includes a lot of things, like cooking, walking in the park, or having sex.

Increased emotional sensitivity is experienced

When things go wrong in sex, as they inevitably do, depressed people can mistake these transitory changes as a reflection of their own shortcomings. As a result, people who are emotionally sensitive tend to avoid sex.

Fatigue is another effect of depression on sex

Fatigue, or lack of energy, is a common complaint that undermines sexual vitality. When a person suffers from depression, they usually tend to sleep too little or too much. Even a lot of rest will not restore energy.

Therefore, tiredness can not only affect desire, but can also cause sexual function to deteriorate. Simply put, when a person is depressed, it can be very difficult to muster enough energy to please their partner.

Can make bonding difficult

People who are depressed often have a hard time feeling worthy of love. What’s worse, their partners may become frustrated that their efforts to love them, as well as their hints at a vibrant sexual relationship, have failed.

What to do to prevent depression from affecting your sexual relationships?

Consider switching antidepressants

One of the main things you can do to prevent depression from affecting your sex life is to change your medication. In fact, the most common antidepressant medication belongs to a class of pharmaceuticals that have a negative influence on sex.

Antidepressants are known as selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors. This means that they can decrease sexual desire and inhibit orgasm in both men and women. In men it can even affect erections.

If you are taking an antidepressant, and it is affecting your sex life, it is important to talk to your doctor about switching to another medication.

Seek the help of a psychotherapist

Therapy with a psychotherapist can be beneficial in helping you understand and heal the causes of your depression. Counseling can help you control your mood and possibly allow you to stop taking medications.

In addition, therapy organizes the complex feelings of despair that a person experiences. As such, it will help you psychologically understand that there are real steps that can be taken to alleviate depression.

On the other hand, the psychotherapist’s empathy and understanding are internalized as comfort, laying a new foundation for mood stability. Also, a person’s constant relational experience in therapy helps form stronger bonds in your other relationships.

Consult a sex therapist with your partner

Going to sex therapy with your partner can help you clarify any misconception about the sexual process. Sex therapists understand that sex is a physical activity that strengthens a person’s attachment to their partner.

Consequently, they can help couples increase their sexual intimacy. Most of the time, sex therapists help couples resolve their power struggle in the sexual realm. This arrangement improves the security of the relationship while eliminating a common source of depression.