Sexual therapy is a type of cognitive behavioral treatment applied to individuals or couples with sexual problems by experienced psychiatrists and psychologists trained in sexual problems.
What is Sexual Activity?
The activity is divided into 4 phases in itself. The first stage of sexual activity is arousal. Following arousal, sexual desire plateaus at some point, followed by orgasm. The last stage of sexual activity is the resolution stage.
Problems related to sexuality may arise from problems related to any stage of these 4 stages. The inability to perform sexual activity in a healthy way for various reasons is expressed as sexual dysfunction. Sexual dysfunction is a condition that can occur in both genders. Approximately 4 out of 10 women and 3 out of 10 men may experience sexual dysfunction at some point in their life.
There are many different conditions that are evaluated under the definition of sexual dysfunction:
- Erectile dysfunction
- Loss of libido (sexual aversion)
- Loss of interest
- Premature ejaculation (premature ejaculation)
- Confidence problems
- Problems related to the orgasm phase
What is Sex Therapy?
Sex therapy is a speech therapy practice based on mutual dialogue, sharing and reconciliation. The people involved in therapy communicate to determine which of their medical, psychological or personal problems has become a problem in sexual life.
Sex therapists are licensed psychologists, doctors or psychiatry specialists trained in this field. Sex therapy, which is accepted as a temporary counseling service, is usually completed between 5 and 20 sessions, although it varies depending on the underlying cause.
How is Sexual Therapy Applied?
Many problems that may cause problems with sexual life during the session are addressed by the therapist. evaluation takes place. Conditions such as the degree of sexual desire, whether there is any physical problem that may prevent sexual intercourse, dyspareunia (painful sexual intercourse) or the presence of chronic diseases that will prevent the maintenance of a healthy sexual life can be counted as examples of topics that can be examined during speech therapy.
Other During the sexual therapy session, as in psychotherapy techniques, experiences, concerns and feelings are shared. During the session, the therapist can meet with the couples simultaneously or separately.
At the end of each session, a future with a healthy sexual life is gradually approached. The sexual therapist continues to direct the sessions in order to first accept the problem that is the source of sexual dysfunction and to raise awareness, and to take steps to control this problem.
After the session, the couple can be given various assignments by the sexual therapist, such as reading a book about sexuality or healthy communication exercises.
At the same time, some psychological tests can be applied to investigate whether emotional problems may be the source of sexual dysfunction during sexual therapy sessions. It directs them to the branch that has the solution to this problem.
What are the Benefits of Sexual Therapy?
Sex therapy is a type of psychotherapy that is usually completed in a short time. While the underlying cause of the problems related to sexuality can be determined in a short time during the session, steps can be taken to solve it, while the detection of some problems may take longer. The variability of the duration of sexual therapy is due to the complex nature of sexual problems.
Conditions such as stress, anxiety or depression should not be ignored as they may be related to sexual life.
The foundations of a successful therapy session can be laid through mutual trust and good communication. At the same time, people's sexual activity during therapy Sharing their concerns can improve the understanding of the couples towards each other. As the increased blood flow fills the spaces in the penis, enlargement and hardening occur in the penis. is the case. Erectile dysfunction can occur due to physical or psychological problems.
Erectile dysfunction is one of the situations in which sexual therapy is beneficial for men. The couple's participation and the spouse's efforts to be a part of the solution are among the factors that will contribute to the success of the sessions.
In cases where stress is the cause of erectile dysfunction, sexual therapy sessions with the joint participation of the couples usually result in positive results. The success rate is lower in therapy sessions with the male's participation alone. In premature ejaculation, people do not have control over the time of ejaculation and cannot delay this situation. There is no set time frame for premature ejaculation and if the couple sees this as a problem for their sexual life, a solution should be sought. Although premature ejaculation is a condition that is evaluated independently of the duration of sexual activity, ejaculation occurring in the first 3 minutes of sexual intercourse has a diagnostic importance for this problem.
Premature ejaculation may occur in approximately 1 in 4 men. The only permanent treatment approach for premature ejaculation, which is a common problem in all societies, is to gain control over the act of ejaculation through sexual therapy.
Sex therapy sessions for the solution of premature ejaculation are an average of 3 months . Once the person gains control over his ejaculation with sexual therapy, this situation can be maintained throughout his life.
Approximately 40% of adult women encounter a problem that may lead to sexual dysfunction at some point in their lives. In general, the underlying cause is the loss of sexual desire or problems with the orgasm phase. In the presence of expectation or performance anxiety about sexual activity, sexual functions are negatively affected. With sexual therapy sessions, it is aimed to control the anxiety that causes a decrease in sexual arousal in women.
One of the causes of sexual dysfunction in women is vaginismus. Vaginismus refers to the contraction of the muscles in the vagina region, which does not allow sexual activity to take place. While this situation is present, sexual intercourse to be attempted is quite painful and may cause a feeling of fear towards sexual activities.
Problems related to the orgasm period is another problem that is successfully addressed in sexual therapy sessions. The orgasm phase in sexual activity is an important phase for a healthy sexual life. If this problem is not handled correctly in women who have complaints about orgasm, it should not be ignored because it is considered risky in terms of different sexual dysfunctions and relationship problems in the future.
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