Could PTSD
be Causing Your Sagging Sex Life?
By Dr. Jamie Turndorf, Ph.D.
Recently, I began reflecting on a hunch that most people with PTSD also suffer sexual dysfunction.
This idea came to me because I know that PTSD is caused by HPA-Axis dysfunction. (The HPA-Axis refers to the primary neuro-biochemical stress response network that involves both the central nervous and endocrine systems. HPA-Axis dysfunction, hippocampal volume, and endogenous opioid function are technical terms that describe total adrenal burnout. Burnout is the end result of the body being trapped too long in fight-flight mode--also known as sympathetic arousal.)
Because I know that HPA-Axis dysfunction is linked to sexual dysfunction, I was sure that I would find a lot of research discussing the concurrence of PTSD and sexual dysfunction.
But, when I began digging into the research, I was alarmed by what I uncovered: a notable lack of scientific research on the topic of PTSD and sexual dysfunction.
I found one small mention of the concurrence of PTSD and sexual dysfunction on the VA website:
"PTSD impairs sexual functioning across multiple domains: desire, arousal, orgasm, activity, and satisfaction. The most commonly reported problems were erectile dysfunction, premature ejaculation, and overall sexual disinterest.”
https://www.research.va.gov/currents/spring2015/spring2015-3.cfm
Though it is more common than not for those with PTSD to experience sexual dysfunction in all aspects of sexual functioning including desire, arousal, activity, orgasm and satisfaction, I began to wonder why the American Psychiatric Association (APA) and the DSM-5 don’t even mention sexual dysfunction in their extensive list of PTSD diagnostic criteria symptoms, especially considering that research shows that 85% of male combat veterans diagnosed with PTSD reported erectile dysfunction, compared with a 22 percent rate among male combat Veterans without any mental health diagnosis.
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/12429320/
Another study of 90 male combat veterans with PTSD found more than 80 percent were experiencing sexual dysfunction.
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/9018683/
To complicate matters, most of the limited research focuses on sexual dysfunction among male veterans.
What about female veterans and sexual dysfunction?
Winning the War on PTSD