While a lot of men experience temporary performance problems in the bedroom, impotence or erectile dysfunction actually happens to about one in ten men, and can be caused by a number of different factors.
What is it?
Erectile dysfunction (ED) is “an inability to get a good enough erection to achieve satisfactory intercourse.” While a lot of men experience temporary performance problems in the bedroom, impotence or erectile dysfunction actually happens to about one in ten men.
It can happen for a number of reasons and at a number of stages in a man’s life. During teenage or early adulthood the most common cause of ED is nervousness. It may come from anxiousness about pregnancy or using a condom. The cause changes in middle age when stress, marital problems, guilt, bereavement and diabetes are likely causes of ED. It is a common misconception to think that ED happens to old people when in actual fact, around 70% of 70 year olds are still sexually active. In a lot of cases the problem can be down to deterioration in the blood vessels that carry blood to the penis, so maintaining healthy blood pressure and cholestoral becomes increasingly important as you get older.
It is important to stay healthy at any age but smoking, excessive drinking and obesity are common causes of ED. Recreational drugs such as cocaine are also key causes of ED and should be avoided at all costs.
Don’t suffer in silence! This is a common problem that can be helped by a visit to your GP. Your doctor will take a full history of the problem and do an examination so that they can find out if the problem that you have is down to a physical or psychological causes.
If the cause of the problem is physical then you may be offered one of the oral drugs available on the market today. One of the most well known of these is Viagra. Alternatively, if your doctor feels that the cause of your illness is psychological then he may recommend a course of counselling or psychotherapy. Sometimes he may want to talk to both you and your partner.
