What are the different psychological approaches used to address sexual problems?

A difficulty for clinicians is to make patients understand that sexual issues occur in response to something instead of being usually located only in the genitals. Relationships, initial knowledge about sex, injury, and daily stresses can all put up. A design of the sexual arousal circuit is useful in explaining how these circumstances might all be connected to a sexual problem. When described to patients, it may assist them in understanding the likely reasons for their problem, and therefore the appropriate options for its management.

In simplest terms, sexual arousal is a direct spinal reflex triggered by proper stimulation of the body, usually, but not always, the genital region. The sexual response is usually defined as an electrical circuit that starts anywhere - mind, emotion, or body. But this circuit also has three breakpoints, 1 in every area.

● The first breakpoint: This occurs when there is unsuitable stimulation of sex or pain. Pain automatically eliminates any expectation of response.

● The second breakpoint: This one is probably the most influential one. It occurs on a sensitive level, and the subject can be deadened by the worry of failure, stress, and performance pressure. Different negative emotions relevant to this setting involve anger, an unsolved dispute in any domain of life, undisclosed regret, and grief.

● The third breakpoint can occur when the mind of the person is very active to relax and become aroused. A common example of this includes erectile dysfunction resulting from "spectatoring." It happens when the mind is concentrated on witnessing the performance of the genital to the elimination of nearly everything else. Others involve distraction resulting from concerns about work, thoughts of negative experiences, fear of failure, and behavioral doubts.

General counseling

Counseling can reveal and help fix hidden disputes or the sentiments of anger and sorrow long denied. Any problems with relationships might also be investigated in this setting, and communication among partners, usually difficult when sexual problems dominate, can be made possible. A surrounding of emotional encouragement and understanding can assist patients in working out their resolutions, establish realistic aims, and support any lifestyle modifications.

Psychosexual therapy

The hypothesis underlying this approach is that the alliance between patient and therapist gives a reflection of the connection the patient/subject has with his/her partner. It allows recognizing any unpleasant interaction with the companion and any concealed disputes in the patient. Initially, the therapist questions the patient only when needed to minimize dominating her or him. Medical examinations and questioning can prove helpful in avoiding painful and powerful sentimental stuff that the subject or the expert may be hesitant to face.

It is very crucial to be conscious of the sentiments that evoke in the expert as well as the patient. As the patient unfolds his/her story and the physical examinations are carried out, different feelings among the two can arise. These sensations need to be addressed to the patient. Also, they can be used to familiarize him or her with the internal conflicts creating the difficulties. Treatment is given to a patient suiting his/her individual needs to facilitate the recognition of the different unconscious barriers preventing sexual fulfillment.

Behavioral approach

The practices aim to allow the patients to understand the responses in their body at various phases of arousal and, by changing the stimulation, in order to learn to regulate their response. Vaginismus can be managed behaviourally. Patients dealing with compulsive sexual behavior are expected to be most efficiently treated with a course of behavior adjustment under guidance.

Sexual and relationship therapy

This integrated therapy includes psychodynamic, cognitive, behavioral, and systemic principles. The bond might be observed as "the patient" instead of either spouse individually after a careful evaluation of physical, emotional, and, especially if a couple of visits mutually, a therapeutic agreement is reached, with openly stated goals if reasonable and sometimes a lesser number of sessions. The subject or couple might agree to practice tasks to promote and maintain changes. Family influences and social and gender conflicts might also be considered important, and conversation between spouses is often necessary for this approach.

Once the conversation between the couple is clear and effective, therapeutic assignments can be given to them to allow them to solve their sexual problems in the secrecy of their own house and at points that fit their daily life. It is the responsibility of the therapist to make things work with them, and this would be most valuable. The feedback from certain tasks, collectively with the proper management of any significant emotional matter resulting from them, presents the route through which many sexual problems can be resolved.

Sensate focus

This is a program that contains tasks, first defined by Masters and Johnson in 1970. A couple can take these tasks in their personal time at home. During the program, there is a prohibition on sexual intercourse or any other genital contact till performance anxiety, and worry of failure have been eliminated and confidence between the two has been developed. This ban makes sure that physical affection will not result in sexual intimacy. The tasks include the couple's time to examine each other's bodies by touching, caressing, stroking, and rubbing, slowly introducing exciting, then erotic, and finally sexual touch over a while.