Sex therapy: what is it and what are its benefits?

This form of psychological intervention is very useful for treating problems in intimate relationships.

Psychologists who are experts in sex therapy deal daily with patients who come to their offices for different reasons: erectile dysfunction, lack of desire or arousal, difficulties in reaching orgasm, premature ejaculation... These problems often affect not only the person who suffers from them, but also his or her partner.

But talking about sexual problems can be difficult, largely because people in this situation can feel ashamed, guilty, failed and defeated both in life and in front of their partners. Luckily, sex therapy can help overcome these problems, the suffering they cause and, in turn, improve well-being.

But...What does this form of therapy really involve? What are its benefits? In this article that we present today we are going to expose the characteristics of this type of therapy and the reasons why it is advisable to go to sex therapy.

What is sex therapy?

Sex therapy is a type of psychotherapy that can help people who experience difficulties in their sexual and love life because they suffer from a sexual disorder or are not comfortable with their physical intimacy. Sexual dysfunctions, gender identity problems, paraphilias (exhibiting physical intimacies), sexual dysfunctions and sexual dysfunction.Paraphilias (exhibitionism, voyeurism, etc.), conflicts regarding sexual orientation and even problems arising from sexual abuse are some of the issues that are addressed in psychotherapeutic sessions.

Sexual disorders or limitations may be multi-causal and many factors may be involved in the maintenance of the problem. This is why professionals working with sexual problems deal with psychological or mixed causes. deal with psychological or mixed causes (i.e., with psychological and organic elements), which means that, often, the intervention to solve this type of difficulties requires multidisciplinary work, involving psychologists, gynecologists, pelvic floor physiotherapists, among other specialists. The therapeutic process can last from two to three months to several years, although the latter is rare.

The impact of sexual problems on the couple

Sex therapy is often is often associated with couple's therapy, since this type of problemThis is because this type of problem can affect both partners when it occurs within the relationship. Intimate moments with the couple play a very important role in the unity and stability of the couple and influence the emotional health of its members.

Sexual relationships make both partners feel a unique connection, but when this fails, the foundation of the relationship can be destabilized, the foundations that support the affectionate relationship can be destabilized.. Sometimes, the couple can go together to psychotherapeutic sessions when the problem affects both.

When to go to sex therapy

According to recent research, approximately 20% of men are dissatisfied with their sex life and only 30% of women claim to be satisfied. However, only one-third of those affected seek psychological help despite the fact that the benefits of sex therapy are more than proven.

The most frequent reasons for seeking to sex therapy are:

• Lack of sexual desire.
• Difficulty in getting or maintaining an erection (erectile dysfunction) or premature ejaculation in the case of men.
• Difficulty having an orgasm.
• Pain during intercourse or inability to have penetrative sex.
• Fear or aversion to sex.
• Sexual assault or abuse.
• Lack of sexual skills.
• Sexual disinterest or problems derived from the monotony of the couple.
• Addiction to sex.
• Gender dysphoria.
• Paraphilias.

It is necessary to emphasize that it is not indispensable to have serious problems to attend this type of therapy, since sex therapy can also be useful to treat other issues. For example: to vary and enrich the erotic repertoire of the couple or to develop social skills in the field of sexuality. At the beginning of sex therapy, each individual case is always carefully evaluated to determine the most appropriate treatment.