Sexology: what it is and what it does

What exactly is sexology and what is it responsible for?

Sexology is the health care specialty that deals with sexuality, which includes reproduction, sexual identity, gender identity, sexual desire orientation and all related factors. In turn, sexology is in charge of treating the different sexual dysfunctions, paraphilias and couple problems.

What is the role of the sexologist? What differentiates a sexologist from a psychologist?

The Psychologist specialized in Sexology, or Sexologist, is a professional, graduate or undergraduate in psychology, who has specialized, through postgraduate training, in human sexuality, its disorders and appropriate therapies. Therefore, the Sexologist is a professional psychologist with a specialization in this field, just as there are psychologists specialized in child psychology, education, etc.

When is it recommended to see a sexologist?

When a person feels discomfort in any issue related to their sexuality, whether it is due to their orientation, lack of desire, anxiety about relationships or any other reason, they should see a sexologist who will help them identify the cause of their discomfort and apply psychological therapies according to the problem so that the person feels good again.

And it is important to note that, as it is an intimate issue, and people sometimes feel shy to talk about it with a stranger, they are often slow to take the step of asking for help from a professional, which is counterproductive in two ways: first, because the problem may have worsened over time; and second, because the longer it takes to go, the more suffering the person accumulates.

For example, a problem of premature ejaculation? Can the sexologist help or would it be something to be treated by a urologist or andrologist?

In both premature ejaculation and erectile dysfunction problems it is very important to identify whether it is a physiological or psychological problem. In the vast majority of cases, these problems are usually of psychological origin, so, once medical causes are ruled out, you should go to a sexologist and, the sooner you go, the sooner you will have a solution, which in many cases is a quick therapy with very good results.

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In the case of erectile dysfunction or lack of sexual desire, how can a sexologist help?

As indicated in the previous question, the vast majority of cases of erectile dysfunction, premature ejaculation or lack of libido are due to psychological factors. Some studies rate them at 90 percent, as opposed to 10 percent that have physiological causes.

Therefore, the best professional to address these types of disorders is the sexologist.

Although they are described as separate disorders, they sometimes overlap with each other. The sexologist will analyze and look for their origin, which, in the case of erectile dysfunction, is usually related to anxiety, either due to previous experiences in which there has been an episode of dysfunction, or to ideas or thoughts that make the person interpret sexual relations as something negative or “dangerous”. The positive side is that, once the causes have been identified, there are therapeutic tools that can help the patient to reverse the situation quickly and return to enjoying sexual relations to the fullest.

Sexual desire or libido in humans is closely related to mood. Anxiogenic, stressful situations or negative events such as a job layoff or bereavement can obviously affect sexual desire, reducing or even eliminating it. Psychological disorders such as depression can also cause this lack of libido.

The therapy is aimed at looking for causes that may be the origin of this low sexual desire, and from there use the appropriate techniques so that the person can return to have sexual desire, even if the situations that have caused it still exist. The human brain responds very well to rewards, and a satisfying sexual relationship is a great reward that will quickly bring the libido back and, as with other sexual disorders, the person can re-establish a full and satisfying sex life.