Menopause and Sex: What Changes, What Helps, and When to Seek Support

Menopause and Sex: What Changes, What Helps, and When to Seek Support

Sex after menopause is one of the most discussed and least accurately described topics in women’s health. It gets two versions: the cultural version, in which sex either disappears gracefully or continues unchanged if you simply maintain the right attitude, and the clinical version, which most providers do not have enough time in a standard appointment to explain properly.

The reality is more specific and more useful than either version. Menopause produces real, documented changes to how the body experiences arousal, lubrication, orgasm, and sexual comfort. Some of those changes are significant. Most of them can be addressed and a meaningful number of women find that with the right information and support, their sexual life after menopause is richer, less pressured, and more intentional than it was before.

If you have already read our post on perimenopause, libido, and desire, this post covers different territory. That post focuses on the transitional phase and the hormonal fluctuations that affect desire. This one focuses on what happens to the physical experience of sex once menopause is confirmed, what changes in the body itself, what the evidence says about treating those changes, and when professional support makes a meaningful difference.

What Menopause Actually Does to Sexual Function

Menopause is a day marked by twelve consecutive months without a menstrual period. The ovaries have significantly reduced their production of estrogen and progesterone, and this hormonal shift has specific, well-documented effects on the genitourinary system and on sexual response.

Several studies suggest sexual function worsens with advancing menopause status across multiple domains including desire, arousal, lubrication, orgasm, and pain during sex. The most affected domain in postmenopausal women is low desire,  followed by arousal and orgasm challenges.

The specific physical changes that drive these shifts include:

•  Vaginal atrophy and genitourinary syndrome of menopause (GSM). Declining estrogen causes the vaginal walls to thin, become less elastic, and produce less natural lubrication. The vestibular tissue at the vaginal entrance becomes more fragile. The result is often vaginal dryness, a burning or itching sensation, and pain during penetration. A 2023 study on genitourinary syndrome in menopause found over 50% of postmenopausal women experience sexual symptoms related to GSM, including dryness, dyspareunia, and impaired arousal. Unlike vasomotor symptoms such as hot flashes, which often improve over time, GSM does not improve without treatment and frequently worsens as the years since menopause increase.

•  Changes to arousal and engorgement. Estrogen plays a role in the blood flow that underlies genital engorgement during arousal. After menopause, arousal may take longer, feel less intense, or produce less visible and tactile response. Clitoral sensitivity can change. The vaginal walls may expand less during arousal than before.

•  Changes to orgasm. Some women notice that orgasms are less intense, take longer to reach, or occur less reliably after menopause. Pelvic floor muscle changes, reduced nerve sensitivity, and altered blood flow all contribute. This is common and rarely discussed openly.

•  Increased risk of urinary symptoms. GSM affects the urethra and bladder as well as the vagina, and postmenopausal women frequently experience increased urgency, frequency, or discomfort with urination. These symptoms can make sexual activity feel less appealing and are often part of the same hormonal picture.

What Does and Does Not Change About Desire

Desire after menopause is often discussed as though it follows a single trajectory downward. The research tells a more varied story.

Hormonal changes do affect desire, particularly the decline in testosterone, which plays a role in sexual motivation for women as well as men. However, desire is shaped by far more than hormones: relationship quality, stress, sleep, mental health, body image, the presence or absence of pain, and how much a woman expects sex to feel good all contribute. Some women report increased desire after menopause, freed from concerns about pregnancy and from the hormonal fluctuations that made perimenopause unpredictable.

It is also worth revisiting the distinction between spontaneous and responsive desire, which are often presented as psychoeducational tools in sex therapy. Many postmenopausal women find that their desire becomes more responsive meaning it does not arise unprompted the way it might have at age 30, but it does emerge reliably once physical closeness and the right conditions are present. This is not low libido. It is a shift in desire pattern that, once understood, calls for a different approach rather than a clinical intervention.

What is worth addressing clinically is desire that causes significant distress, either to the woman herself or within her relationship, or desire that has changed markedly in a way that feels disproportionate to life circumstances. For those situations, both medical and psychological options exist.

Medical Options That Are Worth Knowing About

There are several evidence-based medical treatments for the physical changes menopause produces in sexual function. These are worth knowing about and worth raising with a gynecologist or menopause specialist if they are relevant to your experience.

•  Vaginal estrogen. Low-dose vaginal estrogen, available as creams, rings, or suppositories, restores moisture and elasticity to vaginal tissue, reduces dyspareunia, and improves lubrication without the systemic absorption concerns associated with oral or transdermal hormone therapy. It is one of the most effective and well-tolerated treatments available for GSM and is appropriate for most postmenopausal women, including many who cannot use systemic hormone therapy.

•  Vaginal DHEA (prasterone). Intravaginal dehydroepiandrosterone converts locally to both estrogen and testosterone in vaginal tissue, improving dryness, dyspareunia, and aspects of sexual function. It is an option for women who prefer not to use estrogen directly.

•  Systemic hormone therapy. For women with broader menopausal symptoms, systemic hormone therapy may address both vasomotor symptoms and sexual function, though the decision involves a careful risk-benefit discussion with a physician.

•  Testosterone therapy. Testosterone therapy for postmenopausal women with low sexual desire has the strongest evidence base among hormonal options for desire specifically, supported by a meta-analysis of 36 randomized controlled trials. It is not currently FDA-approved for this use in the United States, but it is prescribed off-label and discussed in evidence-based clinical guidance.

•  Lubricants and moisturizers. Non-hormonal vaginal moisturizers used regularly, and lubricants used during sexual activity, are first-line options for managing dryness and discomfort and can be used alongside or instead of hormonal treatments depending on individual preference and clinical situation.

What Pelvic Floor Therapy Offers

One of the most underutilized and evidence-supported options for postmenopausal sexual function is pelvic floor physical therapy. Many women associate pelvic floor work with incontinence or prolapse, but the research shows clear benefits for sexual function as well.

A 2025 study examining pelvic floor muscle training (PFMT) in postmenopausal women found a significant positive effect on total sexual function scores, with particular improvements in orgasm, arousal, and satisfaction. A 2021 study published in the Journal of Sexual Medicine found 12 weeks of supervised PFMT decreased sexual dysfunction among postmenopausal women.

Pelvic floor therapy addresses the physical changes to muscle tone, nerve sensitivity, and tissue health that contribute to pain during sex, reduced orgasm, and altered arousal. A trained pelvic floor physiotherapist can assess what is happening specifically in your pelvic floor and tailor a program accordingly. This is a meaningful clinical intervention, not a wellness add-on.

What Sex Therapy and Psychological Support Offer

The physical changes of menopause do not occur in a vacuum. They land in a body that carries history, in a relationship or a life with its own context, and in a culture that sends a great many messages about women’s sexuality after midlife, most of them unhelpful.

Sex therapy addresses the dimensions of postmenopausal sexual change that neither estrogen cream nor pelvic floor exercises can fully reach: the grief that sometimes accompanies a changed body, the anxiety about sex being painful before you have even tried, the communication breakdown that occurs when a couple does not have language for what is shifting, and the internalized belief that sexual vitality after menopause is simply not available to you.

A 2025 study of mindfulness-based interventions for sexual health in menopause found mindfulness-based approaches reduced sexual distress and demonstrated positive effects on sexual desire, arousal and sexual function in menopausal women. Mindfulness approaches are particularly relevant for the anticipatory anxiety and attentional interference, the tendency to monitor rather than experience, that commonly develop when sex has become associated with discomfort or disappointment.

Relationship therapy may also help couples navigate the relational dimensions of postmenopausal sexual change: a partner who does not understand what has shifted, a dynamic where frequency has declined and both people have stopped initiating, or the more subtle work of finding new ways of being sexual that account for changed needs and bodies without assuming the old framework no longer applies.

When to Seek Support

You do not need to be in significant distress to benefit from professional support for postmenopausal sexual changes. Curiosity, the desire for accurate information, or the sense that you want to understand your options are all sufficient reasons to reach out.

Specific circumstances that particularly warrant professional attention include:

•  Pain during sex that has not responded to lubricants or that is severe enough to make penetration impossible or aversive.

•  A significant change in desire or arousal that is causing you or your partner distress.

•  Avoidance of sex or intimacy that has become entrenched rather than situational.

•  Shame, grief, or a sense of loss around your sexual self that feels persistent and hard to shift alone.

•  A relationship where the sexual changes have created distance, conflict, or hurt that has not resolved with time.

If pain is a significant part of your experience, such as vulvodynia or vaginismus, sex therapy can help. Many of the same treatment approaches apply, and a sex therapist who works with painful sex conditions is a relevant resource even when the primary cause is hormonal rather than neurological.

Sex After Menopause Can Be Good. Really Good.

The women who have the best sexual experiences after menopause tend to share a few things: they have accurate information about what has changed and why, they have addressed the physical aspects of those changes with appropriate support, and they have a relationship with their own sexuality that does not depend on their body performing exactly as it did at 35.

That last piece is where sex therapy is most useful. Therapy can offer a space to understand what your sexual life looks like now, what you want it to look like, and how to build toward that with the body and the life you actually have.

At Embrace Sexual Wellness, our Chicago-based sex therapists work with women navigating postmenopausal sexual changes with clinical knowledge, genuine warmth, and without any assumption that sexual vitality has an expiration date. We also collaborate with medical providers and pelvic floor physiotherapists when a coordinated approach serves you best.

If menopause has changed your sexual experience and you are ready to understand what can be done about it, we invite you to schedule a free 10-minute phone consultation today!

What Is Vulvodynia and Can Sex Therapy Help?

What Is Vulvodynia and Can Sex Therapy Help?

Many women who experience pain during sex spend years searching for an explanation before they find one. They see multiple providers. They are told nothing is wrong. They are told to use more lubricant, to relax, to try a different position. Some are told the pain is in their head. By the time they receive a diagnosis, if they ever do, many have already begun avoiding sex altogether, withdrawing from intimacy, and quietly wondering whether this is simply how their body works.

If any of this resonates, it is worth knowing about vulvodynia. It is one of the most common and most underdiagnosed causes of painful sex in women, and it has evidence-based treatments that most people never learn about. A 2025 review found vulvodynia affects an estimated 10% to 28% of individuals worldwide, yet it remains significantly under-recognized and underresearched relative to its prevalence and the burden it places on women’s lives.

Sex therapy is one of those evidence-based treatments. Understanding what vulvodynia is, why it persists, and how psychological intervention fits into comprehensive care can be genuinely life-changing for women who have been living with this condition without adequate support.

What Is Vulvodynia?

Vulvodynia is defined as chronic vulvar pain lasting at least three months without a clearly identifiable cause such as infection, skin disease, or neurological disorder. The pain is typically described as burning, stinging, rawness, or sharp discomfort localized to the vulvar region, and it can occur spontaneously or only in response to touch or pressure.

The most common subtype, particularly in premenopausal women, is provoked vestibulodynia (PVD), sometimes also called vulvar vestibulitis. PVD involves pain specifically at the vulvar vestibule, the tissue at the entrance to the vagina, triggered by contact such as sexual penetration, tampon insertion, or gynecological examination. For many women, this pain makes sexual intercourse impossible or so aversive that they stop attempting it entirely.

Despite how common this is, the diagnosis is frequently delayed or missed. A 2013 study found among women meeting diagnostic criteria for vulvodynia, only 1.4% had ever been formally diagnosed. Women were experiencing this condition in significant numbers while most remained undiagnosed and untreated.

This is not a failure of the women. It is a failure of awareness, training, and the historical tendency to dismiss female pain as psychological or exaggerated rather than clinical and worthy of investigation.

What Causes Vulvodynia?

Vulvodynia does not have a single identified cause, which is part of what makes it clinically complex and part of why it has historically been misunderstood. Current research points to a multifactorial picture involving several interacting factors:

•  Central and peripheral sensitization. Research increasingly supports a neurobiological model in which the nervous system becomes sensitized to pain signals in the vulvar region, meaning that stimuli that would not normally produce pain are experienced as painful. This is not imaginary pain; it reflects measurable changes in how the nervous system processes sensation.

•  Pelvic floor dysfunction. Many women with vulvodynia have elevated tension or hypertonicity in the pelvic floor muscles, which contributes to pain with penetration and can develop as a protective response to anticipated or experienced pain.

•  Psychological and relational factors. Anxiety, pain catastrophizing, a history of trauma, and relationship distress are consistently associated with vulvodynia and with its severity and persistence. These are not causes in isolation, but they interact with physical factors in ways that can maintain and amplify the condition.

•  Hormonal and inflammatory factors. Low-dose hormonal contraceptives, recurrent yeast infections, and inflammatory processes at the tissue level have all been identified as potential contributors in some cases, though the evidence base continues to develop.

This multifactorial picture is important because it shapes treatment. There is no single cure for vulvodynia precisely because there is no single cause. The most effective approaches address several of these dimensions simultaneously.

How Vulvodynia Affects Sexual and Relational Wellbeing

The impact of vulvodynia extends well beyond the physical experience of pain. Research consistently documents significant effects on sexual function, psychological wellbeing, and intimate relationships:

•  Avoidance of sex and intimacy. When sex is painful, avoidance is a natural protective response. Over time, avoidance can generalize beyond penetrative sex to any form of physical intimacy, including touch that carries no risk of pain.

•  Reduced sexual desire. Anticipatory anxiety about pain suppresses desire. The brain begins to associate sexual contexts with threat rather than pleasure, and desire can diminish significantly as a result.

•  Shame and self-blame. Many women internalize their pain as a personal failure, feeling inadequate as a sexual partner or broken in some fundamental way. These feelings are both common and entirely understandable given how poorly vulvodynia is understood and communicated in mainstream healthcare.

•  Relationship strain. Partners are also affected, experiencing their own distress, confusion, and sometimes guilt around sexual encounters. Desire discrepancy, communication breakdowns, and emotional distance frequently develop when a couple has no framework for understanding what is happening or how to navigate it together.

•  Depression and anxiety. Chronic pain conditions are closely associated with depression and anxiety, and vulvodynia is no exception. The psychological toll of living with undiagnosed or undertreated pain, compounded by the intimate nature of the affected area, can be profound.

Where Sex Therapy Fits Into Treatment

Comprehensive treatment for vulvodynia typically involves a multidisciplinary team that may include a gynecologist, a pelvic floor physiotherapist, and a sex therapist or psychologist specializing in sexual health. Each discipline addresses different dimensions of the condition, and research consistently shows that combined approaches produce better outcomes than any single treatment alone.

Sex therapy and psychological intervention address the dimensions of vulvodynia that neither medication nor physiotherapy can fully reach: the anticipatory anxiety that precedes sexual encounters, the pain catastrophizing that amplifies the pain experience, the avoidance behaviors that have developed over time, and the relational and emotional impact on the couple.

The evidence for psychological treatment is strong. A randomized pilot study from 2016 comparing cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) with physical therapy for provoked vestibulodynia found that 70% of participants in the CBT group demonstrated a clinically meaningful reduction in vulvar pain of 30% or more after treatment, with significant improvements also seen in psychosexual functioning. A 2020 clinical trial comparing CBT to mindfulness-based cognitive therapy (MBCT) found that both treatments led to statistically and clinically meaningful improvements in sexual function, quality of life, and genital pain, with gains retained at both six and twelve month follow-up assessments.

In clinical practice, sex therapy for vulvodynia may draw on several specific approaches:

•  Cognitive restructuring. Identifying and challenging thought patterns that amplify pain perception or fuel avoidance, such as the belief that pain is inevitable, that something is permanently wrong, or that a partner’s needs cannot be met.

•  Mindfulness-based techniques. Cultivating present-moment awareness during sexual activity to interrupt the cycle of anticipatory anxiety and hypervigilance that can intensify pain responses.

•  Graduated exposure and sensate focus. Structured, pressure-free exercises that help women and their partners gradually reintroduce intimacy at a pace that does not trigger pain responses, rebuilding positive associations with touch and physical closeness.

•  Psychoeducation. Understanding the neurobiological basis of vulvodynia and how anxiety, avoidance, and pain interact can significantly reduce shame and help both partners approach the condition with clarity rather than fear.

•  Couples work. When a partner is involved, incorporating them into therapy helps rebuild communication, address relationship strain, and ensure that both people feel supported rather than isolated in the experience.

What to Do If You Think You Have Vulvodynia

If you experience pain during sex, pain with tampon insertion, or chronic discomfort in the vulvar area, the first step is a medical evaluation with a gynecologist who is knowledgeable about vulvar pain conditions. Not all gynecologists have specific training in vulvodynia, so it is worth asking directly about their experience with the diagnosis before your appointment.

A formal diagnosis opens the door to a coordinated treatment plan. From there, connecting with a pelvic floor physiotherapist and a sex therapist who specializes in painful sex conditions gives you access to the two disciplines that address the physical and psychological dimensions most directly.

You do not have to have been formally diagnosed to reach out to a sex therapist. If you are avoiding sex because of pain, experiencing anxiety around intimacy, or noticing the relational and emotional ripple effects of a pain condition, those are legitimate and sufficient reasons to seek support.

You Do Not Have to Accept Painful Sex as Your Normal

Vulvodynia is not a life sentence. It is a clinical condition with real, effective treatments. The research is clear that psychological intervention is a meaningful part of that treatment, and women who access comprehensive, multidisciplinary care consistently see significant improvements in pain, sexual function, and quality of life.

At Embrace Sexual Wellness, our Chicago-based sex therapists have experience working with women experiencing painful sex conditions, including vulvodynia and provoked vestibulodynia. We take a warm, clinically grounded approach that addresses both the physical and emotional dimensions of your experience, and we collaborate with medical providers when appropriate to ensure your care is coordinated and complete.

If painful sex has been affecting your life, your relationship, or your sense of yourself, we invite you to take the first step. Schedule a free 10-minute phone consultation today and let us help you find a path forward.

Hormones and Low Libido: When to See a Doctor vs. a Sex Therapist

Hormones and Low Libido: When to See a Doctor vs. a Sex Therapist

You have noticed that your interest in sex has dropped. Maybe it happened gradually, over months or years. Maybe it seemed to shift after a major life event, a health change, or a new medication. Maybe you cannot point to anything specific at all, only the quiet awareness that something that used to feel natural now feels distant or absent.

The first question most people ask is some version of: is this a physical thing or a mental thing? Is something wrong with my body, or is something going on in my head? And the honest answer, supported by a large and growing body of research, is that it is almost always both to some degree, and that separating the two cleanly is often neither possible nor particularly useful.

That said, understanding where the primary driver seems to be is a genuinely helpful starting point. It shapes where you go first, what questions to ask, and what kind of support is most likely to make a real difference.

The Role Hormones Actually Play in Sexual Desire

Hormones do matter for libido. That much is well established. Testosterone, in particular, plays a meaningful role in sexual desire for people of all genders, not just men. Estrogen, progesterone, thyroid hormones, prolactin, and cortisol all have documented effects on the sexual response system as well.

For men, the evidence is fairly direct. A 2022 narrative review found a significant correlation between testosterone levels and libido in men, with desire declining in a dose-dependent manner as testosterone dropped. For men with confirmed low testosterone, hormone therapy consistently showed improvements in sexual desire across multiple meta-analyses.

For women, the hormonal picture is more nuanced and has historically been underresearched. Testosterone plays a role in female desire too, though the relationship is not as straightforward. A 2019 review examining testosterone and low female sexual desire found that nine out of ten studies failed to identify a significant correlation between total testosterone levels and sexual desire in women, underscoring that hormones are one piece of a more complex picture. That said, testosterone therapy has shown meaningful benefits in specific populations. A 2022 article on testosterone replacement therapy in postmenopausal women with HSDD found consistent improvements in sexual desire and satisfying sexual activity, particularly when testosterone was used alone or alongside estrogen in surgically or naturally menopausal women.

Recommendations from the 5th International Consultation on Sexual Medicine (ICSM 2024) reviewed the broadest available evidence base and confirmed that testosterone therapy has demonstrated short-term efficacy for postmenopausal women with HSDD, supported by a meta-analysis of 36 randomized controlled trials and over 8,000 participants. The evidence for premenopausal women remains insufficient for a routine recommendation, and systemic estrogen alone has not been shown to significantly improve sexual desire independent of its role in managing menopausal symptoms.

What this means practically is that hormones can be a real, treatable driver of low libido, but hormonal status alone rarely tells the full story, and particularly not for women. Even when a hormonal factor is present, psychological and relational variables frequently amplify or maintain the problem long after any physical cause has been addressed.

When the Cause Is More Psychological Than Hormonal

Sexual desire is generated in the brain before it is expressed in the body, and the brain is extraordinarily sensitive to psychological and emotional states. Research suggests using a biopsychosocial approach supports women’s sexual function at midlife, confirming that biological factors, psychological variables, relationship quality, and sociocultural context all interact dynamically to shape sexual desire over time. No single factor operates in isolation.

Some of the most common psychological and relational drivers of low libido include:

•  Depression. Research consistently finds that low libido is among the most common symptoms of depression. The relationship runs in both directions: depression suppresses desire, and persistent low libido can deepen depression, particularly when it affects relationships or self-image.

•  Anxiety and chronic stress. The sympathetic nervous system response that governs the stress reaction is physiologically incompatible with sexual arousal. When the body is in a sustained state of threat or overwhelm, desire is among the first things to go offline.

•  Relationship distress. Unresolved conflict, emotional distance, resentment, or a breach of trust can suppress desire in ways that no hormone panel will detect. Desire does not exist in a relational vacuum.

•  Body image and shame. Negative feelings about one’s body, internalized sexual shame, or past trauma can create a chronic internal environment that is incompatible with felt desire, regardless of hormone levels.

•  Medication side effects. SSRIs and other antidepressants, hormonal contraceptives, antihypertensives, and several other common medications are documented contributors to reduced libido. This is a medical variable, but one that often requires both medical management and psychological support.

When to See a Doctor First

There are specific circumstances where a medical evaluation should be your first stop, before or alongside any psychological support:

•  The change was sudden and unexplained. A sharp drop in libido with no clear psychological trigger, particularly if accompanied by other physical symptoms such as fatigue, weight changes, mood shifts, or irregular cycles, warrants a medical workup.

•  You are in a known hormonal transition. Perimenopause, menopause, postpartum recovery, thyroid disease, or a history of conditions affecting hormone production all make a medical evaluation a logical first step.

•  You have not had a recent physical. Low libido can be an early signal of thyroid dysfunction, diabetes, cardiovascular disease, or other conditions worth ruling out before assuming a psychological cause.

•  You are on medications with known sexual side effects. If your libido declined after starting a new medication, talking to the prescribing provider is the most direct next step. Dose adjustments or medication changes can sometimes resolve the issue without further intervention.

If you are seeing a physician for low libido, ask specifically about hormone panels including testosterone (total and free), estrogen, thyroid function, and prolactin levels. General practitioners do not always run these tests routinely, and having a clear picture of your hormonal baseline is useful regardless of what the results show.

When to See a Sex Therapist First (or Simultaneously)

A sex therapist is the appropriate first or parallel stop when any of the following apply:

•  The change is clearly tied to a life event. A shift in desire that followed a stressful period, a relationship rupture, a major loss, or a change in life circumstances is more likely to have a significant psychological component from the outset.

•  You have been cleared medically but nothing has changed. If you have had a full workup, your labs are within normal range, and your libido is still low, the primary drivers are almost certainly psychological, relational, or contextual.

•  You and your partner have very different levels of desire. Desire discrepancy is one of the most common presenting concerns in couples therapy. It is rarely resolved by medical treatment alone and almost always has relational and psychological dimensions that benefit from therapeutic work.

•  You feel shame, anxiety, or dread around sex. These emotional experiences are clinical presentations in their own right. They will not resolve with hormone treatment, and they respond well to evidence-based psychological intervention.

•  Your desire functions differently in different contexts. Situational patterns, such as desire disappearing with a partner but present during solo activity, or fluctuating with stress levels, are strong indicators of psychological rather than purely hormonal drivers.

Why the Best Outcomes Come from Both

The field of sexual medicine has moved decisively toward what researchers call a biopsychosocial model: the recognition that biology, psychology, relationships, and culture all shape sexual function simultaneously. A 2025 review on the biopsychosocial model in sexual medicine reports addressing only the biological dimension of sexual dysfunction, while ignoring psychological and relational factors, consistently produces weaker and less durable outcomes.

The ICSM 2024 consensus on HSDD explicitly recommends that all available therapies for low sexual desire, hormonal and non-hormonal, medical and psychological, be used through a biopsychosocial framework. Psychological treatment, including cognitive behavioral therapy and mindfulness-based approaches, has its own strong evidence base for improving sexual desire, independent of any medical intervention.

In practice, this often means working with a physician and a sex therapist in parallel rather than sequentially. Both providers contribute something the other cannot fully replace, and clients who access both tend to see more complete and more lasting results.

Where to Start If You Are Not Sure

If you are uncertain which door to walk through first, a sex therapist is a reasonable starting point for most people. A clinician trained in sexual health can conduct a thorough assessment that helps clarify whether your situation warrants a medical referral, a psychological approach, or both. That assessment alone can save significant time, reduce confusion, and help you feel like someone finally understands the full picture of what you are experiencing.

At Embrace Sexual Wellness, our Chicago-based sex therapists are experienced in assessing and treating low libido across its full range of causes. We take a biopsychosocial approach that considers your hormonal context, your mental health, your relationship dynamics, and your personal history. We also collaborate with medical providers when appropriate, so that your care is connected rather than siloed.

If you are ready to understand what is driving your low libido and explore your options, we invite you to schedule a free 10-minute phone consultation. You do not need to have it figured out before you call.