written by
Anne Truong

Is My ED Mental or Physical?

podcast Emotions Brain 4 min read

Did you know that 90% of ED cases are physical and about 10% are psychological? If you're experiencing erectile dysfunction, there are a few things you can do to try and fix the problem. Physical erectile dysfunction can be caused by several factors, including age, health conditions, and medications. Psychological erectile dysfunction, on the other hand, is often due to anxiety or other psychological issues. However, both of them can be treated, you just need to determine the cause of the problem.

Is My ED Mental or Physical?

  • Episode Video
  • Introduction
  • The Difference Between Psychological ED and Physical ED
  • Figuring Out the Psychological Causes of My ED
  • Are Physical and Psychological Causes Related?
  • Figuring Out the Physical Causes of My ED
  • Final Thoughts:
  • Links and Resources

Is my ED Mental or Physical? Video

Introduction:

Have you ever wondered if your ED is either psychological or physical? Can you tell the difference? Oftentimes, when a man has ED, the first he thinks is that it might be something mental. However, 90% of the ED cases are physical and about 10% are psychological. In this episode, I’m going to show you ways to know the difference between both of them and how one gets physical versus psychological ED.

man holding his chin facing laptop computer
Photo: Unsplash

The Difference Between Psychological ED and Physical ED

There are different reasons why men are not able to get or maintain an erection. The number one cause of ED is excessive alcohol consumption. The second is age, so you start to notice ED probably around the late 30 and around probably middle forties because that's when testosterone levels start to dip. Other main causes of physical ED include high blood pressure, high cholesterol, diabetes, and obesity. Psychological erectile dysfunction, on the other hand, is often due to anxiety, depression, or other psychological issues.

Figuring Out the Psychological Causes of My ED

The psychological ED occurs abruptly; one day you're doing great, you’re not having any problems, and you can get a firm erection. But within a week or a month, boom you can't get an erection anymore. Even with foreplay, even taking Viagra, you just don't respond to it (30 to 40% of men do not respond to Viagra, but it doesn't necessarily mean that you have a psychological ED).

So if the ED is abrupt then it is more psychological because a physical thing would be over years. For instance, if a man tells me that one week or a month ago, he was a hundred percent fine and suddenly he's not I would start asking him if he has morning or nighttime erections. If the answer is affirmative, then physically he's actually okay. It’s just that he needs to clear some of the stuff that's going on in his head. Maybe it can be something related to stress, an issue at work, etc.

Are Physical and Psychological Causes Related?

Absolutely. When physically you cannot get an erection, it starts to affect your confidence and you start having performance anxiety that increases the physical part because you begin to feel more stressed and depressed, and you may take medication. Incidentally, medication for depression or anxiety medication affects ED which is not good for your erection.

Photographer: Louis Hansel | Source: Unsplash

Figuring Out the Physical Causes of My ED

You need to keep in mind that Ed is a gradual process. If you take medications like Viagra or Cialis, it will give you a sense of reassurance that there's nothing physical. But it actually gives you a false sense of security because it helps you to have a firmer erection but you’re still ignoring the real cause of why you’re not getting a firmer erection. In this case, the best you can do is go to the doctor and check your testosterone level, blood pressure, cholesterol level, etc, to discover the best course of action to take.

In addition, I’ll suggest looking at your diet. A Mediterranean diet is a good one to increase your testosterone level as well as help your erection. Try to not eat too much sugar or carbohydrates since the penis is very sensitive to a lot of sugar. Therefore, when you eat a lot of sugar, and I'm not talking about just sweet but carbohydrates like bread, pasta, and pastry, you become insulin resistant which means the insulin in your body doesn't bring down the sugar anymore, and that will actually affect your penis.

Final Thoughts:

To sum up, 90% of ED is physical and 10% is psychological. But the bottom line is that ED can be treated whether it's physical or even psychological, the most important is to determine the cause of the problem. Don't try to take a medication to cover up and band-aid the symptoms because this can worsen the whole situation.

Download My New e-Book For Additional Resources

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