A lack of sexual desire can spell disaster for any relationship. However, loss of sexual desire is not an uncommon condition. Most couples go through a phase where one of both of them suffers from what has been termed as an aversion to sex. Low sex drive is common in both men and women and the causes of loss of sexual desire are also similar in most cases.
Loss of Sexual Desire Causes
Health Conditions
The health of a person is a determining factor when it comes to sex drive. A healthy person will feel adequately about being intimate with her/his partner. However, conditions such as obesity, anaemia, high or low blood pressure and other heart related ailments can interfere with sexual desire.
Medications
Certain medications such as anti-depressants, tranquilisers and blood pressure medicines supposedly have a retarding affect on sex drive. Regular use of these medicines can cause loss of sex drive. However, changing the medication and taking medicines that have less impact on one’s libido can help resolve the problem.
Drinking and Smoking
The deadly combination of drinking and smoking has a telling effect on sexual drive. Alcohol lowers sex drive and smoking can lead to impotency in men. Addiction to smoking and drinking can ruin a person appetite for sex.Work and relationship related stress is a major reason for the loss of sexual desire in people. People tend to carry their baggage related to work to home and that weighs on their mind and bogs them down. Constantly mulling over what has happened at work distracts people from developing an intimate relationship with their partner. Over time, this can lead to a loss of sexual drive.
Relationship Issues
A relationship that is battling troubled waters will cause loss of sexual desire in people. Constant fights, arguments, infidelity and growing distance between couples add to the woes and make sex a tiresome and mundane activity. If the problem persists over an extended period of time then loss of sexual desire is bound to happen.
Reasons for Loss of Sexual Desire in Women
Childbirth can take a toll on sex drive in women. The trauma related to the pain associated with labour and delivery can instil the feeling of fear and aversion towards sex.
Postpartum depression is another reason which may impact sex drive post childbirth in women.
Medical conditions such as dyspareunia and vaginitis cause loss of sexual desire in women. These ailments lead to pain during sexual intercourse and if not treated in time can lead to aversion to sexual intercourse.
Traumas associated with one’s childhood also cause lack of sexual drive. Child sexual abuse is one of the most crippling factors when it comes to the libido of women.
Age is also a factor that determines sexual drive in women. Ageing women lose androgens which lowers their sex drive eventually.
Reasons for Loss of Sexual Desire in Men
Most men are afflicted with performance anxiety that lowers their sex drive. The desire to fully satisfy their partner weighs on their mind and distracts them while having sex
Impotence and loss of libido are interconnected. With erectile dysfunction or impotence, men tend to lose their sexual desire. Also the impact of erectile dysfunction increases with age. However, this condition can be effectively treated with medication and the sexual desire can be restored
Excessive intimacy is also seen as a cause for the loss of sexual desire in men. Constant togetherness tends to stifle men and make their partners less appealing to them.