Sexuality is a core aspect of human identity, offering more than mere pleasure—it brings fulfillment, emotional bonds, intimacy, and empowerment. However, women worldwide often encounter hurdles in attaining a satisfying and enriching sex life due to sexual dysfunction. Female sexual dysfunction (FSD) is a widespread and troubling condition that encompasses various challenges, affecting women of all backgrounds and ages.
FSD is characterized by an ongoing or recurring inability to achieve sexual satisfaction, leading to distress. The causes of FSD are complex and hard to pinpoint. They can include physical factors like hormone imbalances, chronic illnesses, and medication side effects, as well as psychological factors such as anxiety, depression, and relationship problems. Social factors like cultural or religious beliefs can also play a role. Women with FSD often feel distressed, have relationship issues, and a lower quality of life. Despite being common, FSD is often not talked about, which makes it hard for women to get help. It’s important to educate women about FSD and encourage open discussions about sexuality to address this issue.
Female sexual dysfunction can be classified according to the stages of the Human Sexual Response Cycle: Desire disorders; arousal disorders; orgasmic disorders and pain disorders.
Female Sexual Interest/Arousal Disorder is a common problem where a person has little or no interest in sex or arousal. Symptoms include no sexual desire or thoughts, difficulty initiating sex, little pleasure during sex, and low arousal even with sexual cues (like erotica). It’s also important to understand whether this happens only in certain sexual situations (like with a partner or alone), or with specific partners. To get this diagnosis, a person should be experiencing this for at least 6 months and cause them distress.
An orgasmic disorder, also called inhibited orgasm, is when someone has trouble reaching orgasm even with enough sexual stimulation and arousal, which can be frustrating and distressing. This issue may be caused by psychological factors like anxiety, body image concerns, stress, past trauma, or problems in the relationship. It could also be linked to certain medications.
Sexual aversion disorder is a rare sexual problem where someone strongly avoids or dislikes any sexual activity. The causes of this issue may be similar to those of other sexual dysfunctions.
Sexual pain disorders are conditions that cause pain during sex. They can include pain during intercourse (dyspareunia), ongoing genital pain (vulvodynia) and vaginismus. These disorders can have a big impact on a woman’s health, self-esteem, relationships, quality of life, and work productivity. They can be caused by anatomical issues or infections, as well as complex biopsychosocial factors. Figuring out exactly what’s causing the pain can be hard, as there might be more than one reason.
If you are suffering with any of these sexual disorders, please know that you are not alone and help is available. Talk to your gynecologist to rule out any physical cause and speak to a sex therapist to help you figure out the cause and to develop a plan of action.