What is Impotence? - Discussion

What is impotence?

Approximately 1 in 10 men will be affected by impotence at some point in their lives. Also called erectile dysfunction (ED), impotence is often associated with aging in men.

Generally, both psychological and physical circumstances can lead to the development of ED. Impotence is defined as the inability to achieve and / or maintain an erection. An extremely frustrating condition, it leads to sexual difficulties, and often comes with a number of psychological and interpersonal issues.

In order to understand what is impotence, one must understand the process of achieving an erection. Essentially, the simplest way to understand the development of an erection is by separating it into three stages: sexual arousal, erection stage one, and erection stage two.

Each stage involves its own psychological and physiological components, and ideally, they occur in cascade. However, something could go wrong during any one of these stages, thereby interfering with the development of the erection.

"Stage one" is the sexual arousal phase that begins the process of initiating an erection. Through sensory stimuli and thoughts, arousal occurs. In this stage, a number of psychological factors can lessen a person’s ability to experience arousal.

The next phase is marked by communication; the body sends messages that arousal has occurred, and the body reacts by increasing blood flow to the penis. Again, a number of psychological issues can inhibit the brain’s ability to focus on the arousal, and thereby incapacitate erectile activity. Furthermore, this stage can also fail to occur due to physiological causes - although these are most likely to contribute primarily to the next stage.

The third stage occurs when the blood vessels that supply blood to the penis fill it with a large amount of blood. Many of the physical problems that cause erectile dysfunction become a factor in this stage. If blood flow in the body is somehow insufficient, or if processes in other parts of the body divert the body’s ability to focus on providing an adequate supply of blood to the penis, erection cannot occur. Because most ED has both physiological and psychological contributors, psychological difficulties can affect this stage as well.

Basically, these stages present a relatively delicate balance of reactions that must take place and if any of them are disrupted, erectile difficulties will occur.

Impotence can be either acute or chronic, and indeed, it is fairly common for an individual to have erectile problems on occasion. On the other hand, as impotence becomes a more frequent occurrence, it is important to recognize the negative impact it can have on oneself and one’s fulfillment, relationships, etcetera.

Erectile dysfunction is fairly common, but many people do not realize the wealth of options that are available in terms of intervention. The inability to achieve erection does not need to be an embarrassing issue, nor is it something that must be "dealt with"; it is important for individuals dealing with impotence to seek treatment.

Having now had a better understanding of what is impotence, you may also want to read about various possible natural treatments and remedies for erectile dysfunction.

Read More: More on Erectile Dysfunction / Impotence | Natural Health Remedies for Various Ailments and Conditions | Home Page | Site Search

Click here to learn how to stop erectile dysfunction and start having naturally stiff, powerful, repeat erections tonight.

Click here for natural, herbal and homeopathic remedies for erectile dysfunction or impotence.

	Get Quality Natural Health Supplements at Reasonable Prices. $5 or $10 discount for new customers
Get natural, herbal and homeopathic remedies for hundreds of health conditions and ailments. GO.

New! Comments

Have your say about what you just read. Leave a comment in the box below.

Some Related Erectile Dysfunction / Impotence Pages

Click here for more pages and articles on Erectile Dysfunction / Impotence.