It can take just a few minutes
There’s a lot happening in your body during and after menopause, and that can have an impact on your sex life. The problem is, many women aren’t aware that there are potential solutions to these issues. Now, a new study finds that motivational interviews can help women with sexual dysfunction feel more satisfied after going through menopause. (Sexual dysfunction, in case you’re not familiar with the term, means having persistent problems with your sexual response, desire, or ability to orgasm, or you’re having pain.) But why might being motivated help? And what does it even mean to have a 'motivational interview' for sex? Here’s the deal.
What did the study find?
For the study, which was published, researchers randomly assigned 164 postmenopausal women with sexual dysfunction to receive four motivational interview sessions, spaced a week apart, or to serve as a control group (meaning, they had no intervention). Those motivational interviews involved educating women on the factors that can lead to sexual dysfunction, helping them figure out what needs to change, and having them believe that things could get better.
The researchers found that fewer women in the motivational interview group met the criteria for having sexual dysfunction after going through the sessions compared to those in the control group. As a result, the researchers concluded that the motivational interviews 'decreased sexual dysfunction and increased sexual quality of life and sexual self-efficacy in postmenopausal women with sexual dysfunction.
Does motivation improve sex during menopause?
It’s likely that the reason for these results is that women realised there were options that could help them. However, there’s likely no need to do that over four motivational interview sessions. If you take a group of people and say, 'Sex hurts. We have a solution for that and we can refer you to someone who can help,’ you don’t need a series of motivational interviews for that,' 'You just need one motivational interview. It can take just a few minutes.'
How can you improve sex during menopause?
Sexual dysfunction during menopause can be complicated, and there’s no one-size-fits-all answer. That’s why she recommends seeing someone who specializes in female sexual dysfunction, if you can. The solution depends on the problem. What a doctor does is going to be completely different if you have painful sex or libido problems or aren’t able to have an orgasm.
Some issues are 'very easily solved,' while 'others are more complicated.' However, doctors may recommend treatments like local vaginal oestrogen cream, adjusting any medications you’re currently taking, or going through sex therapy with a licensed sex therapist. Ultimately, if you’re struggling with sex and it bothers you, it’s important to flag it to a doctor. 'We have solutions,'
Adapted from: WHM
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