While the changes to your sex life are not always at the forefront of your mind when you reach menopause, the hormonal fluctuations can cause changes to your vagina during menopause that may affect your intimate life.
But menopause doesn’t herald the end of your sex life, just changes to it – and vibrators can help, according to Mary Jane Minkin, MD, a menopause specialist at Yale Medicine’s Sexuality, Intimacy and Menopause Program at Smilow Cancer Hospital at Yale New Haven.
How Does Sex Change After Menopause?
Menopause marks the sharp decline of estrogen production in your body. Estrogen is a hormone responsible for many metabolic effects, including making erogenous zones more sensitive, encouraging blood flow to the genital area, and helping with mood regulation.
As estrogen levels go down, your body changes in ways that may make sexual arousal more difficult. Along with the drop in estrogen, the various unpleasantries inherent in aging can also literally slow down your sex life. Chronic illnesses and injuries can leave you depleted, and a changing body may make you feel less appealing.
This is not to say that menopause and aging means the end of your sex life – it just means your body is changing, and embracing those changes may help you achieve an even more satisfying sex life than before. How sex changes after menopause depends on each individual case. Being aware of the following physical changes that come with menopause can help you prepare and adjust:
Vaginal Dryness During Sex
A lack of estrogen means the vagina can produce less natural lubrication and reduce its ability to relax. This can result in painful sex if not properly lubricated.
A Lowered Sexual Response
Normally during arousal, blood flushes to the genital area, increasing sensitivity and arousal.
There may be a loss of sensitivity after menopause as blood flow to your genitals decreases due to the drop in estrogen, making the vaginal area less sensitive.
How Vibrators Can Help During Menopause
While vaginal dryness can be aided through the use of a feminine moisturizer and some sensitivity can be maintained through use of a kegel exerciser, one of the best ways to keep your body’s ability to enjoy intimacy in tip-top condition is, well, to continue enjoying the intimacy! Here are some ways vibrators can help keep your vagina – and your sex life – healthy and happy.
Enhance Blood Flow to the Vagina
The stimulation from a vibrator naturally causes blood to flow to the vaginal area. This can help alleviate vaginal dryness, as the blood flow stimulates vaginal lubrication, which in turn promotes the health of your vaginal wall, as a lubricated vaginal wall is less likely to tear.
When used in a way that makes you feel good, the pleasurable vibrations can stimulate the nerves and improve lubrication, reducing pain and discomfort when you’re having sex with a partner or pleasuring yourself with other toys.
Reduce Vaginal Atrophy
Vaginal atrophy occurs post-menopause due to a combination of the factors we’ve discussed above. Like any group of muscles, your vagina works best when it gets regular exercise. Using an internal massager can help with the more drastic changes of shape that may be responsible for painful penetration, but using a vibrator anywhere on the vulva will help stimulate the tissue and encourage blood flow.
As Dr. Minkin explained in an interview with Fab Over 50:
“Women who use vibrators regularly have increased blood flow to their vaginas and increased lubrication. That’s especially important for menopausal women who can experience lack of blood flow to the vagina due to lack of estrogen. Lack of blood flow contributes to vaginal atrophy, which we’ve talked about before. When it comes to your vagina: Use it or lose it! Sounds corny, but it’s true.”
Vibrators Boost Libido
Menopause, and aging in general, can cause you sexual desire to decline. Just the very act of choosing to use a vibrator in solo or partner intimacy can boost your libido by turning you on – whether from the novelty alone, or the fact that you chose to prioritize your pleasure – increasing pleasure and arousal for you (and hopefully your partner, if you’re using it with one).
Vibrators offer intense sensations and can help achieve orgasms through clitoral stimulation, enhancing overall sexual satisfaction. The more orgasms you have, the more likely you’re going to want another one.
Strengthen Pelvic Floor Muscles
Vibration training has recently garnered popularity as an effective way of improving pelvic muscle function and strength. One recent study exploring how whole-body vibration effects pelvic floor muscle activity suggests that vibration training can support better pelvic floor muscle function, making it a holistic and pleasurable way to address pelvic floor issues that become common as women (particularly those who have given vaginal birth) age.
The gentle vibrations offer a form of mild resistance to your pelvic floor muscles, and the tension of orgasm is a natural kegel. All of this helps strengthen and tone the pelvic floor muscles. You’re working your inner muscles out just like you would work out any other set of muscles.
Stronger Intimate Relationships
Of course, using massagers to cope with bodily changes isn’t just for solo pleasure. Experimenting with a partner can be even more fun. Think of it as rediscovering each other’s bodies for the first time, and an opportunity to break out of your normal routines. Perhaps you treat each other to a sensual massage, without penetrative sex, or take turns showing each other exactly how you give yourself pleasure.
Emphasis on adequate foreplay (not forgetting the ever-important use of moisturizer), and openness to rediscovering what sensuality means to you is a recipe for sexual success at any age!
