Lack of male libido

Traditionally, in many cultures, men have portrayed themselves as love gods ever ready for sexual intercourse, and generally were not willing to admit socially that they might sometimes lack sexual desire for attractive women, as much of a man's ego and social status was bound up with his sexual prowess. In current, more permissive Western societies, problems such as male impotence are now more openly discussed, and ever more men admit that they are not always interested in sex. Counselling for loss of male sexual desire now exists.

A British marriage guidance network reported in 1997 that 7% of their male clients were complaining of loss of libido, which is double the proportion reported 10 years previously. The most frequent complaint, from 25% of the men, is difficulty obtaining an erection, and this is usually linked to loss of desire.

It is fairly normal for co-habitating partners to have sexual relations once a week, but many men admit that they feel the desire for sex less often than that, and anecdotes of co-habitating relationships in which partners have not had sexual relations in over a year are increasingly common.