Are You In A Sex Slump? Here’s How To Escape It

If you’re in a long-term relationship, you may have found your sex life bearing the brunt of your familiarity and comfort levels. It can be difficult sometimes to make sex exciting and passionate when you spend all of your time with someone, but the effort is well rewarded when you do! There are loads of ways to make sex more passionate, and one of the easiest ways to get back in the mood is to talk about when you first met and the things which made you fall in love in the first place – these feelings of nostalgia almost always bring the passion back to your relationship immediately. Once you’re there, what can you do to make things more interesting? Here are some tips on how to combat those excuses for why the passion has gone, and how to make sex feel more exciting again.

There’s too much else going on

In between, work, the kids and your social life, sex is invariably the last thing on your mind. But while it may sound counterintuitive, eyeing up a handsome stranger could be just the thing to spike your libido. Checking out other people puts sex back in your mind, getting you thinking about the next time you’ll have the chance to get steamy in the bedroom with your partner. So don’t be afraid of eyeing up that cute barista at your local coffee place or flirting with the guy on the bus – it could be the best thing that’s ever happened to your sex life. Just remember that the rule is to look, not touch!

You’re never in the mood

There’s always an excuse, such as a headache, a deadline at work or looking after the kids all afternoon that’s made you tired. It’s no surprise that with so much going on, we’re not really interested in having sex. But sometimes the best thing to clear your mind and help you relax could be just that. Sex is renowned for being a great stress buster, it can perk you up, and it can help you to feel more connected to your partner as well which is great for increasing intimacy. No-one ever feels bad having sex once they’ve done it, so next time you feel the excuses piling up, just ignore them and do it anyway – you won’t regret it!

You’re in roommate mode

When you’re spending all your time doing chores around the house, dealing with the finances and taking care of the kids, you wind up feeling more like housemates than lovers. That’s to be expected, but there are ways you can overcome this and get back to being the passionate couple you once were. Making out with your partner can help you feel like love-filled teenagers again, and can remind you that you’re in a relationship rather than a friendship. Often, the amount of time people spend kissing when they’re in a relationship decreases over time as they settle into a long term relationship. So make the effort to keep up the make-out sessions and enjoy the feeling of romance entering your relationship again.Regular date nights are a great way to do this, as it strengthens your relationship and the passion, and also forces you to make the effort to set time aside for each other each week – something that can be easier said than done when you’re in a long-term relationship.

Categories: Advice, feel, Long term, mind, relationship, Relationships, Sex, sex life, term relationship, time, ways

12% of Women Suffer Semen Allergy – Does That Mean No Sex?

If you ever needed an excuse to get out of going down on your partner, this may be it: a semen allergy. According to a new report from Dr. Michael Carroll, a lecturer in Reproductive Science at ManchesterMetropolitanUniversity, this is actually a real thing that affects the sexual health of approximately 12% of women. Carroll asserts that this is more likely to have an impact on your wellness if you’re between the ages of 20 and 30. But how do you know if you have a semen allergy?

 

Semen allergy presents with certain symptoms immediately or up to 60 minutes post exposure. While the symptoms of semen allergy can vary depending on who you are as an individual, a number of symptoms can impact your wellbeing, including:

 

• itching


• irritation


• welts and hives


• dizziness


• difficulty breathing


• vaginal swelling


• painful urination

 

Award-winning wellness writer Hope Gillette adds, ‘Some women can also experience eczema and in extreme cases… anaphylactic shock—a life-threatening condition—is possible.’ However, there can be a just as problematic emotional impact from semen allergy. In an interview with ABC’s Good Morning America, Katie and Nathan (names changed), a North Carolina couple, detailed their experience with the condition. ‘In a normal romantic relationship, you want to feel attractive to your partner and want to do things that make you feel sexy,’ Katie explained. I feel like we actually started to define ourselves — minimizing things to avoid sex. Funny, I started thinking I wouldn’t wear sexy underwear. … What seemed like medical problems had bigger effects.’

 

The problem with semen allergy is that it often goes undiagnosed. Gillette notes, ‘Though rare, allergy to sperm is no different in basic form than other allergies; the body’s immune system—for an unknown reason—reacts violently to an outside substance, flaring up defences and causing a range of symptoms. While it’s impossible to know why a woman has a semen allergy, awareness of the condition may help more women seek treatment. Most women, especially those who haven’t been in a long-term relationship, experience burning or pain after intercourse and immediately think they’ve contracted a sexually transmitted infection (STI) or they are dealing with a UTI. These women may seek STI or UTI testing, and when results come back negative they may forget about the incident, because by that time most minor symptoms have passed. Women with more severe symptoms and those who are in long-term relationship are most likely to seek medical treatment and therefore be diagnosed.’

 

Once you’ve confirmed with your doctor that you are allergic to semen, ColumbiaUniversity states that the best method of prevention is avoidance. ‘This is relatively easy if the couple is willing to use a condom during intercourse,’ Gillette comments. ‘If this is not possible for some reason (attempting to become pregnant, for example), a woman is advised to take an antihistamine about an hour before semen exposure. This can help in the most mild situations but may not prevent all symptoms from occurring. It is not advisable either to make an habit of this practice.’

 

However, pregnancy is still possible without semen-to-skin contact. Gillette advises, ‘Artificial insemination is an excellent option for women with a semen allergy. If that is not possible, in vitro fertilization is also an option, and a semen allergy does not affect a woman’s overall fertility.’ Carroll adds, ‘There are numerous cases published of successful pregnancies achieved naturally and through assisted reproductive technology in women with this condition. We were able to reassure our patients that HHS (hypersensitivity to human semen) does not cause infertility.’

Categories: allergy, Long term, nbsp, pregnancy, Research, Semen, semen allergy, Symptoms, term relationship, Women