Many menopausal women misled over womanhood, experts say

Leo Wahyudi S, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Many menopausal women have been misled by the deceptive feeling that they failed to perform their role as women, said Asman Boedisantoso R., a noted endocrinologist, on Saturday.

"They (the menopausal women) still have the usual sexual drives," Asman stated, despite their physical deficiency.

By nature, all women still have the possibility of enjoying a sex life regardless of the physiological stage they have reached, as long as they receive a habitual sexual stimulus, Asman said in a symposium on a happy life in one's fifties at the launching of the male and female clinic at Siloam Gleneagles Hospital, Tangerang.

Women live longer than men so sexually they have more opportunity to address this illusion of inadequacy, he said.

Should sexual activity lose its satisfaction, the couple might lack proper knowledge of how to overcome it, he said, adding that sexual ability implied that the couple had the possibility of achieving sexual pleasure.

However, he warned that physiological differences too often turned the situation upside down.

A report said that men reached orgasm much quicker than women, who tend to have their first experience of orgasm from 11 to 28 years of age.

"Should the husband manage to stimulate his wife appropriately, she will likely reach a climax six to 12 times in one session," Asman added.

Budijanto Chandra, an obstetric gynecologist, said that women could experience unusual symptoms in their menopause due to the decrease in hormones.

They endure both physical and psychological discomfort during the phase, which is prone to give them an incorrect impression of their love lives, he said. Headaches, being moody and feeling vulnerable, as well as a less lubricated vagina and painful intercourse are common complaints.

"They might be sexually uninterested due such discomfort," Budijanto said.

In their 50s, women customarily stop menstruating and such a feature extends their life expectancy to more-or-less 75 years. Thus, they spend a quarter of their lives in such a state.

However, there is no major medication available deal with the sexual problems.

In a bid to cope with the problem, Asman suggested that they should take regular exercise to maintain a healthy shape because at that stage they are prone to cardiovascular problems, osteoporosis or alzheimer's disease.

"Hormonal boosters can also be used if necessary," Budijanto said.