Your Sexual Health

Sex after 50 is great for your mind and body

Many people over the age of 50 are sexually active and pursuing sexually fulfilling relationships.

Sex in older age (and not just penetrative sex) can have wonderful benefits for your mind and body:

• Release of oxytocin and dopamine, chemicals that help you feel happy

• Arousal is good for the skin

• Strengthens the immune system

• Relieve physical and emotional stress

• Reduce symptoms of depression and feelings of isolation

• Good for the heart as sex is mild cardiovascular exercise

Sexual health for older adults is a big topic and it would be impossible to cover every topic in this article. 

This guide is for anyone over the age of 50 of any gender identity and sexual orientation. It covers starting a new relationship, health issues related to sexual well-being, and illness and its impact on your sex life. 

💊 1. Keep taking your medication(s)

For people living with HIV who are over the age of 50, It is important to keep taking your HIV medication every day and on time. 

Taking your HIV medication can help you have and maintain an undetectable viral load. With an undetectable viral load, there is no risk of transmitting HIV to your sexual partner. 

As you become older, you are also likely to develop other chronic conditions like cardiovascular disease, lung disease, bone loss, and certain cancers. Ageing and having HIV further increases this possibility. 

Taking multiple medications means that you have to be careful about possible interactions with your HIV medication. Make sure to consult your HIV specialist and the pharmacist about how and when to take your different medications. 

❤️ 3. Remember to practice safer sex

At the same time, it is important to practice safer sex. For people who can have children, pregnancy might not be an issue once they are over 50 years old. However, it is still necessary to practise safer sex to not contract or pass on sexually-transmitted infections (STIs). 

Condoms

The barrier method of contraception, a condom, is the only way to protect yourself against STIs. Other types of contraception methods will not physically prevent you and your partner’s sexual liquids from mixing with one another. 

STI/STD testing

Safer sex also means being regularly tested for STIs. Often, people do not get tested for STIs because they are not experiencing any physical symptoms. 

But many STIs do not present symptoms, and you can still pass on STIs to other sexual partners. For a comprehensive overview of possible STIs and places to get tested, please check out this page. 

While using a condom dramatically reduces the chances of contracting an STI, you might still contract an STI nevertheless (e.g. syphilis, herpes etc.). 

So, even if you have been consistently using a condom, you should still get tested for STIs on a regular basis. At the very least, we recommend getting tested every 6 months.

🩺 4. Erectile dysfunction can be treated

Getting older also raises the possibility of experiencing erectile dysfunction. That is okay, there are also treatment options!

For sexually active people who are living with HIV and experiencing erectile dysfunction, you should consult your HIV specialist about taking viagra. 

It is possible to use viagra and continue taking your HIV medication. But this depends on the drug class of your HIV medication, you must first consult your doctor and ask about the possibility of any drug interactions between your HIV medication and viagra.