From the moment you walk into the adult world after puberty, your sexuality is a vital, deep, and personal part of what makes you who you are. Finding the things that make you happy in that intimate space with others is a hard enough road to navigate without having to worry about erectile dysfunction, which can make the seemingly simple act of getting erect seem impossible.
This can lead to feeling embarrassed and emasculated, and it takes a heavy toll on your self-esteem, but getting help means reaching out, despite these issues, to improve your personal life. Let’s explore the difficulties of this problem by examining what erectile dysfunction is, the mental health effects it can have, and how to start on the path to treatment.
If you live in the Fort Lauderdale, Pompano Beach, or South Florida area and you’re suffering from erectile dysfunction in silence, Drs. Craig Herman and Steven Kester and their dedicated staff at Urology Center of Florida can help.
This form of sexual dysfunction is also referred to as impotency and is defined as the inability to get or maintain an erection long enough to have sex. It is a complex issue that has both psychological and medical causes, including circulatory, endocrine, and nervous system conditions, hypertension, diabetes, cardiovascular disease, kidney disease, atherosclerosis, low testosterone, stroke, and epilepsy.
Reported estimates indicate that over half of men between 40 and 70 are trying to cope with this condition, but the actual number is underreported because many men don't come forward about it out of fear and embarrassment.
Many men don’t seek help for a number of reasons, including misconceptions about the problem, an inability to be open about it with intimate partners, and resulting isolation that can make the situation worse. Hiding this problem from others is in large part due to not wanting to be seen as lesser or weaker in the eyes of your partners. That, combined with the outdated, flawed notions that men must handle their problems on their own and must always be ready for sex, decreases your chances of seeking help.
This can lead to more isolation and leave you frozen in place with nowhere to turn. The masculine ideals about what men are supposed to be can make getting help for a medical or psychological problem far harder than it should be.
If you’re having problems maintaining an erection, please take the first step and admit there’s a problem that needs to be resolved. Feeling depressed, angry, and frustrated is entirely natural, but if you bottle up those feelings and don’t share what you’re going through with people who can help, it will only get worse. Communicate with your partner and seek medical help to get properly diagnosed and treated.
We have years of experience helping men with erectile dysfunction, so when you’re ready to get the help you need, make an appointment online or over the phone with Drs. Herman or Kester and their team at the Urology Center of Florida.
