From a sexual health perspective, which couples adjust well and which do not after breast cancer and why?
One of the most important predictors of sexual vitality after breast cancer is sexual vitality before breast cancer. Couples who were able to “handle” life events such as child rearing, work or financial stressors, moves, and illnesses are typically able to adjust their sexual styles to accommodate for the changes associated with breast cancer.
However, even if a woman’s sexual life was not optimal before breast cancer, she is not destined for failure. By mobilizing the myriad of available healthcare and other support services (e.g., reading this book with a partner), women can secure future physical intimacy and sexual vitality.
For success in coping with sexual changes, women and their partners must be flexible and keep a sense of openness in the relationship. Although sex might be different in some ways, change does not mean inferior-just different.
Survivors who are most successful at reclaiming their sexual vitality are able to maintain a strong sense of “sexual self-esteem.” Doing so, however, may require exploring new methods of pleasuring oneself or a partner, taking extra time to “prepare” for sex (with lubricants, moisturizers, creams, and arousal aids), trying new sexual positions, and limiting the amount of time that a penis or self stimulator/ vibrator is inside the vagina. These changes, although minor, can facilitate sexual communication and a healthy overall adaptation after breast cancer.
Term:
Penis – The erectile, sexually erotically sensitive organ in males. The penis serves a sexual function and also mediates the voiding of urine.
