Losing an erection during intercourse can be a stressful, worrying experience. A variety of reasons can cause you to lose your erection during sex, from sexual performance anxiety to alcohol consumption. We’ve listed these causes in more detail below, as well as your options for treating weak or inconsistent erections and improving your sexual performance.
How to Stop Losing Your Erection During Sex
A large variety of treatment options are available to help you maintain your erection during sex, ranging from lifestyle changes to medication.
Before we look at treatment options, it’s important to differentiate between occasionally losing your erection and losing your erection frequently.
It’s quite normal to occasionally lose your erection during sex. If you’re feeling tired, or if you can’t fully concentrate on sex because something else is on your mind, you might notice that your erection is weaker than normal, or that it doesn’t last for as long during sexual activity.
This doesn’t necessarily mean that you have erectile dysfunction. Most of the time, losing an erection becomes erectile dysfunction when it becomes consistent or noticeable to you.
It’s quite normal to occasionally lose your erection during sex. If you’re feeling tired, or if you can’t fully concentrate on sex because something else is on your mind, you might notice that your erection is weaker than normal, or that it doesn’t last for as long during sexual activity.
This doesn’t necessarily mean that you have erectile dysfunction. Most of the time, losing an erection becomes erectile dysfunction when it becomes consistent or noticeable to you.
Causes
To get an erection, your brain, nerves, hormones, and blood vessels all need to work together. If something gets in the way of these normal functions, it can lead to erection problems.
Disease:
• Diabetes
• High blood pressure
• Heart or thyroid conditions
• Clogged arteries (atherosclerosis)
• Depression
• Nervous system
disorders, such as multiple sclerosis or Parkinson disease
Medicines:
• Antidepressants
• Blood pressure medicines (especially beta-blockers)
• Heart medicines, such as digoxin
• Sleeping pills
• Some peptic ulcer medicines
Other physical causes:
• Low testosterone levels. This can make it difficult to get an erection. It can also reduce a man’s sex drive.
• Nerve damage from prostate surgery.
• Nicotine, alcohol, or cocaine use.
• Spinal cord injury.
In some cases, your emotions or relationship problems can lead to ED, such as:
• Poor communication with your partner.
• Feelings of doubt and failure.
• Stress, fear, anxiety, or anger.
• Expecting too much from sex. This can make sex a task instead of a pleasure.
Disease:
• Diabetes
• High blood pressure
• Heart or thyroid conditions
• Clogged arteries (atherosclerosis)
• Depression
• Nervous system
disorders, such as multiple sclerosis or Parkinson disease
Medicines:
• Antidepressants
• Blood pressure medicines (especially beta-blockers)
• Heart medicines, such as digoxin
• Sleeping pills
• Some peptic ulcer medicines
Other physical causes:
• Low testosterone levels. This can make it difficult to get an erection. It can also reduce a man’s sex drive.
• Nerve damage from prostate surgery.
• Nicotine, alcohol, or cocaine use.
• Spinal cord injury.
In some cases, your emotions or relationship problems can lead to ED, such as:
• Poor communication with your partner.
• Feelings of doubt and failure.
• Stress, fear, anxiety, or anger.
• Expecting too much from sex. This can make sex a task instead of a pleasure.
Lifestyle Changes
In our guide to naturally protecting your erection, we list eight steps that you can take to improve your erections naturally. They are:
Maintaining a healthy body weight
Staying on top of your blood pressure
Maintaining a healthy diet
Adding aerobic exercise to your daily routine
Checking for lower-than-normal testosterone levels
Avoiding cigarettes and other products that contain nicotine
Drinking alcohol in moderation and avoiding drugs that may affect your ability to get an erection.
Limiting your consumption of porn
Maintaining a healthy body weight
Staying on top of your blood pressure
Maintaining a healthy diet
Adding aerobic exercise to your daily routine
Checking for lower-than-normal testosterone levels
Avoiding cigarettes and other products that contain nicotine
Drinking alcohol in moderation and avoiding drugs that may affect your ability to get an erection.
Limiting your consumption of porn
Summary
If you often lose your erection during sex, find it difficult to stay hard, or think that your sexual performance isn’t as good as it used to be, it’s often worth seeking out an option for treatment.
