As people grow older, they will notice changes in sexual arousal and response patterns. In this section we briefly summarize some of the more common variations that occur in the sexual response cycles of women and men.
The Sexual Response Cycle of Older Women
In general, all phases of the response cycle continue to occur for older women but with somewhat decreased intensity (Masters & Johnson, 1966; Segraves & Segraves, 1995). A recent study of almost 2,000 women ages 45 to 80 reported that 60% were sexually active (Harvard Women’s Health Watch, 2012). Another study of 806 sexually active older women found that sexual satisfaction actually increased with age for many of the women in this survey (Trompeter et al., 2012). Still another study found that sexual desire decreases among older women in long-term relationships with sexually dysfunctional partners (McCabe & Goldhammer, 2012).
Excitement Phase
The first physiological response to sexual arousal, vaginal lubrication, typically begins more slowly in an older woman. Instead of taking 10 to 30 seconds, it may take several
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minutes or longer before vaginal lubrication is observed. In most cases the amount of lubrication is reduced (Nusbaum et al., 2005). When lubrication and vaginal expansion during sexual response are considerably diminished, uncomfortable or painful intercourse can result (Mansfield et al., 1995). In addition, some women report decreased sexual desire and sensitivity of the clitoris, both of which interfere with sexual excitement. Hormone therapy, estrogen creams applied to the vagina, and vaginal lubricants can often help these symptoms (Kingsberg, 2002).