Dallas County Living Well Magazine March/April 2016 | Page 42

Middle Age Musings

Advice from Dr. Stanwix
Late 50s Low Libido

Dear Dr. Stanwix,
My husband and I have not made love
in over a year. We are both in our late
50s and both seem to be simply not interested in sex anymore. We are both
happy and enjoy each other’s company, but I worry that this might lead to
a dangerous trend in our relationship
where we may never have sex again.
Another concern I have is whether my
husband is simply not interested in sex
because I’m not interested. I can sincerely say that I am not interested in sex with
my husband or anyone else, period.
However, I don’t know 100% whether
my husband feels the same way.
Is this normal in couples our age or
should we be concerned? Should we
ignore the problem or talk about it?
Sincerely,
Late 50s Low Libido
Dear Late 50s Low Libido,
This phenomenon is quite common in
people in their late 50s. Male testosterone levels decrease and females expe-

rience menopause. At this point in our
lives our bodies begin to wind down
their sexual functions. Biology limits
our ability to procreate and therefore
a good deal of our sexual drive diminishes. However, most couples don’t
give up sex altogether once they’ve
reached this stage of Y