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Sexual Desire Disorders

Sexual desire disorders come in two degrees of intensity: Hypoactive Sexual Desire Disorder, and Sexual Aversion Disorder. In the former, the fantasies and desires that usually precede sex are missing or deficient. In the latter, there is not just the absence of positive feeling, but the presence of negative feelings like fear and revulsion. The usual caveats apply to both diagnoses; the diagnosis is not made if the client is not bothered by this deficiency, and the disorder must not be one of the symptoms of another problem like substance abuse or depression. The examiner is given a great deal of latitude in this and other cases of sexual dysfunction because the issues are so complex. What counts as a deficiency of desire depends on the individual's age, gender, culture, partner, past experiences, and other life circumstances. This complexity affects judgments about each of the four phases of the sexual response cycle, so the clinician must base his or her judgment on fewer explicit criteria than are provided in most other cases of possible mental disorder.

Behavioral treatments focused directly on symptoms are successful in the majority of cases that are not a result of use of a substance or of a medical condition. However, it is likely that most sexual dysfunctions never come to the attention of a clinician; those that do have typically had an onset years before help was sought.

Read a book on the subject:

I'm Not in the Mood : What Every Woman Should Know about Improving her Libido by Judith Reichman (Editor)

Visit a web site that is developing a national directory of sex therapists.

Last updated  12/19/03

 
     
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