Skip to main content Accessibility help

We use cookies to distinguish you from other users and to provide you with a better experience on our websites. Close this message to accept cookies or find out how to manage your cookie settings.

Close cookie message
×
Hostname: page-component-78c5997874-g7gxr Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-02T20:41:27.224Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false

Chapter 6 - A Sexual Therapy Primer for Fertility Counselors

from II - Therapeutic Approaches

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  24 November 2022

By
Erika Kelley  and
Sheryl Kingsberg
Edited by
Sharon N. Covington
Sharon N. Covington
Affiliation:
Shady Grove Fertility, Rockville, MD
Get access

Summary

Sexuality, including sexual functioning, is an important part of health and well-being. Sexual dysfunction is the persistent impairment in a domain of sexual function (desire, arousal, or orgasm) or sexual pain that is associated with significant personal distress. The relationship between infertility and sexual dysfunction is not well understood, though evidence suggests that this relationship is likely bidirectional and individuals with infertility have higher rates of disruptions in sexual functioning. The etiology of male and female sexual dysfunction is most commonly multifactorial and treatment for sexual dysfunction typically requires an interdisciplinary approach. Routine screening for sexual dysfunction is recommended. Infertility mental health professionals are well-suited to screen for sexual dysfunction, and therapeutic interventions for the management of sexual dysfunction exist. Commonly used existing approaches that are summarized here include cognitive–behavioral therapy, sensate focus sex therapy, mindfulness-based behavior therapy or mindfulness-based cognitive–behavioral therapy, and directed masturbation training.

Keywords

sex therapysexual dysfunctionsexual responsesensate focussexual functioning
Type
Chapter
Information
Fertility Counseling: Clinical Guide , pp. 68 - 78
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2022

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

World Health Organization. Defining sexual health: report of a technical consultation on sexual health. 2006.Google Scholar
Masters, WE, Johnson, VE. Human Sexual Response. Boston, MA: Little, Brown & Co., 1966.Google Scholar
Kaplan, HS. Disorders of Sexual Desire and Other New Concepts and Techniques in Sex Therapy. New York, NY: Brunner/Hazel, 1979.Google Scholar
Basson, R, Leiblum, S, Brotto, L, et al. Definitions of women’s sexual dysfunction reconsidered: advocating expansion and revision. J Psychosom Obstet Gynaecol 2003;24:221–229.Google Scholar
Kingsberg, SA, Clayton, AH, Pfaus, JG. The female sexual response: current models, neurobiological underpinnings and agents currently approved or under investigation for the treatment of hypoactive sexual desire disorder. CNS Drugs 2015;29:915–933.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Perelman, MA. Clinical application of CNS-acting agents in FSD. J Sex Med 2007;4(suppl):280–290.Google Scholar
Parish, SJ, Goldstein, AT, Goldstein, SW, et al. Toward a more evidence-based nosology and nomenclature for female sexual dysfunctions: part II. J Sex Med 2016;13:1888–1906.Google Scholar
American Psychiatric Association. Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders: DSM-5, 5th ed. Washington, DC: American Psychiatric Publishing, 2013.Google Scholar
McCabe, MP, Sharlip, ID, Atalla, E, et al. Definitions of sexual dysfunctions in women and men: a consensus statement from the Fourth International Consultation on Sexual Medicine 2015. J Sex Med 2016;13:135–143.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Parish, SJ, Hahn, HR, Goldstein, SW, et al. The International Society for the Study of Women’s Sexual Health. Process of care for the identification of sexual concerns and problems in women. Mayo Clin Proc 2019;94:842–856.Google Scholar
Lewis, RW, Fugl‐Meyer, KS, Corona, G, et al. Definitions/epidemiology/risk factors for sexual dysfunction. J Sex Med 2010;7:1598–1607.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Lotti, F, Maggi M. Sexual dysfunction and male infertility. Nature Rev Urol 2018;15:187–307.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Rosen, RC. Prevalence and risk factors of sexual dysfunction in men and women. Curr Psychiatry Rep 2000;2 :189–195.Google Scholar
Shifren, JL, Monz BU, Russo PA, Segreti A, Johannes CB. Sexual problems and distress in United States women: prevalence and correlates. Obstet Gynecol 2008;112:970–978.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Latthe, P, Latthe, M, Say, L, et al. WHO systematic review of prevalence of chronic pain: a neglected reproductive health morbidity. BMC Public Health 2006;6:177.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Starc, A, Trampus, M, Jukic, DP, et al. Infertility and sexual dysfunctions: a systematic literature review. Acta Clin Croat 2019;58:508–515.Google ScholarPubMed
Althof, SE, Rosen, RC, Perelman, MA, Rubio-Aurioles, E. Standard operating procedures for taking a sexual history. J Sex Med 2013;10:26–35.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Brotto, LA, Basson, R, Smith, KB, Driscoll, M, Sadownik, L. Mindfulness-based group therapy for women with provoked vestibulodynia. Mindfulness 2015;6:417–432.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Weiner, L, Avery-Clark, C. Sensate Focus in Sex Therapy: The Illustrated Manual. New York, NY: Routledge, 2017.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Andersen, BL. A comparison of systematic desensitization and directed masturbation in the treatment of primary orgasmic dysfunction in females. J Consult Clin Psychol 1981;49:568–570.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed

Save book to Kindle

To save this book to your Kindle, first ensure [email protected] is added to your Approved Personal Document E-mail List under your Personal Document Settings on the Manage Your Content and Devices page of your Amazon account. Then enter the ‘name’ part of your Kindle email address below. Find out more about saving to your Kindle.

Note you can select to save to either the @free.kindle.com or @kindle.com variations. ‘@free.kindle.com’ emails are free but can only be saved to your device when it is connected to wi-fi. ‘@kindle.com’ emails can be delivered even when you are not connected to wi-fi, but note that service fees apply.

Find out more about the Kindle Personal Document Service.

Available formats
×

Save book to Dropbox

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Dropbox.

Available formats
×

Save book to Google Drive

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Google Drive.

Available formats
×