Sexuality Across the Lifespan discussion postings

I have listed three discussion postings about sexuality across the lifespan. I need to know your view on each posting and whether you agree or disagree and why...and also discuss: “Does sexuality have a time limit?” Justify your responses with rationale. 1)Claire stated: Sexual health is important at any age and the desire for intimacy is timeless (Mayo Clinic). There seem to be a negative reaction to the sexually active elderly population, but everyone needs love and affection regardless of age. As men and women grow older they may experience sexual problems which can be caused by illness, medicines (side effects), and or disabilities. However, this population can and should be able to engage and enjoy their sexual life if they so choose without being judged, but rather encouraged to fulfil their sexual lives. Safe sex should be encouraged, if there is more than one partner, they are still vulnerable to STIs. Stress can affect one's ability to feel emotions relating to their sexuality - some people cannot feel intimacy if their basic needs are not met such as food, shelter, income, and not being able to provide for themself or family. Health can also affect their ability to have a sexual life, however, due to advance medicines, treatments, and therapies more of the elderly are able to enjoy and extend their sexual life. Do we ever get too old to have sex or to be seen by ourselves and others as sexual beings? (Katz 2012). Society tends to be very judgemental which in turn affects a person's perception regarding their sexuality, unfortunately, even our culture can influence the way we percieve sex and the elderly as taboo. Each individual is responsible for their own sexual fulfilment and they should be encouraged to live their life to the fullest. As a registered nurse, I would be open minded, try to make the older adult feel comfortable talking about sex, use clear and simple terms/language, be an active listener, show respect without being judgmental - sex and love is not only for the young. Lastly I would encourage the elderly to discuss any concerns and or issues regarding sex with their physician. 2) Lorene stated:Reproductive Health across the life span: Impact of age: Freud believed that humans are sexual beings from the beginning of life (Webber and Delvin, 2013). Young children, teens, adults, and the elderly are all sexual beings. The differences are associated with how the sexuality is experienced at the different ages. Sexuality normally becomes most prominent in the population after puberty in most cases and tapers off in later years. This tapering is due to many different factors such as health, culture, availability of a partner, society and lifestyle. The bottom line is that even the elderly can have satisfying sex lives as long as they want and are able to. Impact of economics: The impact of economics at first seemed rather strange an impact to me until I started to understand how it played a major role in sexual relations in both the adult and elderly categories. Young and middle aged adult couples who were struggling financially tended to have more discord in their relationships as well as less mental and physical energy to devote to the physical side of their relationships. Many elderly couples who were in lower economic brackets tended to also live in nursing homes where sexuality is not normally encouraged amongst residents. On the flip side, couples who were in a higher economic bracket tended to be more involved in community and social projects well into their elderly years and also tended to have more favorable outcomes with their sexual relationships. Impact of Health and lifestyle: Health and lifestyle really go hand in hand with the sexual health of individuals and couples. Health conditions like heart disease, diabetes, stroke, as well as others can play a large role in diminishing sexual health at any age. Medications to treat these conditions can also have negative impacts on sexual health. Generally the better health a couple experiences the better chance they will be more active in their lives and have better sexual relations. Impact of society: Let's face it we would all prefer to not know if our parents and grandparents are still sexually active. Probably just about as much as our children do not want to know that about us. Our society is youth based. The young have the beautiful bodies, the strong muscles, the energy, the sexuality. The reality is that older couples still want to be sexual beings as well as younger ones. The problems that our society image places on the sexual relationship are primarily due to how the older generations see themselves in comparison to the younger ones. Feelings of inadequacy and fear of disappointing partners can be a strong negative towards being sexually active for many older individuals. Impact of Culture: The cultural impact on human sexual relations is very strong. It is especially so in areas like the south where I live. It is very common for women to live longer than men and therefore more common to have women who are still sexual beings who do not have marriage partners. Our society is much more open to the older man/younger woman couple but not nearly as open for the reverse. This leaves many women literally in competition for a decrease number of prospects. Also in the southern culture it is frowned on for older women to co-habit without marriage. Therefore many women just chose to not be sexually active once their partner dies. Other cultural impacts could be religion, gender roles, ethnic cultural ideals and age related cultural impacts. Role of Registered nurse working in a family clinic: The role of the registered nurse working in a family clinic should include open discussion with all sexually active ages about their sexual health. Many times people are reluctant to bring up sexual problems due to embarrassment or not understanding that help may be available. If the nurse is open and professional this does not have to be an awkward conversation. The RN should not only include discussion on sexual satisfaction in their relationship but also about the need to use protection against STD's if they are not in a committed monogamous relationship. I actually feel that the RN should include a reproductive health plan for all patients who are able to be sexually active. Just because they are past child bearing age does not mean they are past sexual satisfaction age or have lower risks of STD's. 3)Courtney stated: Describe what impact, if any, age, economics, health and lifestyle, society and culture may have on a person's perception of their own sexuality. Age impacts individualized sexuality in regards to specific age groups with issues, risk factors, and pre-diagnostic testing. Ages 19-39 can have pelvic, breast, contraceptive, and sexual behavior issues. Risk factors for developing these issues include poor hygiene, nutrition, exercise, immunizations, stress levels, and the use of alcohol, drugs, and tobacco. Pre-diagnostic testing can include Pap smears and STD screenings per individual plan of care. Ages 40-64 can have the same issues as the previous age group with the addition of menopause. This age group's risk factors are the same as the previous age group with the addition of bone loss. Pre-diagnostic testing for the issues can include Pap smears, mammography, cholesterol and lipid profile, colorectal cancer screening, bone material density testing, TSH testing, and hearing and eye exams. For the last age group, ages 65 and over, issues of concern are pelvic and breast issues. The risk factors are the same as the first age group, with the pre-diagnostic tests being the same as the previous age group. (Med/Surg Book, ch. 46, p. 1401) Society plays a part in influencing one's own sexuality. The media portrays sex as being for the younger population, which makes the majority of people believe that the older adults or geriatric population do not engage in sexual activities. Everyone seems to see it as a disgusting act when the older or geriatric population and sex are referred to in the same sentence. How do these factors affect your role as a registered nurse working in a family health clinic? The RN needs to accomplish five tasks when it comes to sexuality issues in a family health clinic: (1) Ask questions regarding a change in sexuality, concerns, self problem-solving, what the patient wants to do, how issues are affecting patient's life and relationships, how changes have made patient feel about themselves or their body image. (2) Make sure to reassure the patient by making a statement to to ensure them that the issue(s) are more common than they may think. (3) Give the patient factual information regarding the issues at hand. (4) Suggest people to talk with regarding guidance for possible medication and treatment consequences when engaging in sexual activity. (5) Refer the patient to the appropriate people (therapists or counselor) for issues beyond the RN's scope of practice. (From article)