FORT WORTH (CBSDFW.COM) – It’s a topic many view as a taboo. Conversations can get awkward when discussing low sex drive for women.
Angie Stoehr, Sally Raymond and Sarah Reid say it’s something that must be discussed because it is part of women’s health.
“There’s still this societal norm and acceptance that women shouldn’t be sexual,” said Stoehr, an OBGYN who has patients who suffer from low libido.
The three women agreed to let CBS 11 news record their discussion.
“There’s so much catered towards men,” said Reid, who uses an app called Rosy which has opened up conversations about women’s sexual health.
Rosy app
She believes the disparity between men and women’s sexual needs is quite apparent in our society.
“It makes me angry and annoyed that there’s not the same treatment for women,” said Reid.
According to a recent study, 31-million women in the U.S suffer from low sex drive.
Getting treatment can get tricky, partly because there is little conversation or awareness about this issue, says Dr. Lyndsay Harper, an OBGYN who has developed the app geared towards awareness.
“You can go to a lot of different types of healthcare providers and get medications for mens sexual dysfunction but none of those things are true for women,” she said.
The app is designed to be educational and open up conversations about women’s sexual needs.
The user answers questions to establish a sexual wellness score.
Then the app selects appropriate self-help videos and articles to understand sexual dysfunction and low desire.
There’s an anonymous discussion board and erotic literature which Dr. Harper says is an effective behavioral intervention that can help women overcome low libido.
“If we can get the wheels turning in the brain often times that will lead to renewed desire for sex,” she said.
Each month, users retake the wellness quiz to track improvement. Dr. Harper says low desire can affect not just the woman but the entire family
“Low sexual desire can result in infidelity, it can result in such marital discord that there is a resulting divorce and that’s a long-lasting family issue,” she said.
Dr. Harper says the work to be done goes beyond the doctor’s office. It’s also about a change in society.
“We see commercials for erectile dysfunction medication in the new york subway, we see them in the Super Bowl ads, they’re everywhere,” she said. “We get blocked with our ads on facebook because we’re advertising about women’s sexual problems.”
Dr. Harper said low sexual desire can be caused if you are taking certain medication, or when there are hormonal changes, typically during and after birth and during menopause and also behavioral.
Some women are diagnosed with hypoactive sexual desire disorder or HSDD which can be treated by medication.
