The Mormon Therapist
The following statistics come from a study conducted in 1994: The Social Organization of Sexuality: Sexual Practices in the United States by Laumann, Gagnon & Michaels. They show the frequency of sexual dysfunction in the general population in the US and the results are fairly consistent with other studies that have been conducted since then.
Women unable to lubricate: 20%
Men unable to keep an erection: 10%
Climax too early: women 10% and men 30%
Anxiety about performance: women 10% and men 17%
Lacked interest in sex: women 35% and men 15%
Unable to achieve orgasm: women 25% and men 7%
Sex is not pleasurable: women 23% and men 7%
Experience pain during sex: women 15% and men 3%
What these numbers represent for therapists such as myself, is that almost every couple coming to therapy has a high probability of having a major sexual problem. We as therapists need to make sure we are addressing sexuality in our practice – even if it does not come up as part of the “presenting problem.”
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