Sleep and sexuality are important components of health.
Sexual health is not only physical but also involves emotions, relationships, and broader quality of life.
Sleep also has far-reaching effects on well-being. It is a pillar of health that is critical to nearly every process and system.
Fortunately, though, expanding knowledge in health sciences has started to reveal an important, bidirectional link between sex and sleep.
While there is more research to be done, evidence so far demonstrates that quality sleep can promote a better sex life, and a healthy sex life can facilitate improved sleep.
Elements of Healthy Sleep and Sex
Sleep and sexuality are complex and involve both the mind and body.
Sleep
Sleep is essential for recuperation, and sleeping well requires getting a sufficient amount of rest, which is at least seven hours of sleep per night for most adults.
Sleep quality is also vital. A typical night’s sleep is made up of several sleep cycles, each of which is composed of individual sleep stages. Continuous sleep without interruption allows these stages to unfold properly, enabling truly restorative sleep.
Although sleep shares many central characteristics in both men and women, there are gender- and sex-based differences in how sleep works that can influence the ability to sleep well.
Sex
Like sleep, sex is made up of several different elements. In healthy sexual function, both sexes experience the following four stages:
- Desire for sex, also known as motivation for sex, or libido.
- Excitement or arousal, which involves physical reactions, such as blood flow to the penis or clitoris.
- Orgasm, which is the point of maximum excitement. In men, ejaculation, another stage in this process, typically occurs with orgasm.
- Resolution, which involves relaxation and positive feelings after orgasm and a gradual transition to a non-excited state.
When one or more stages of this process become disrupted, it can cause sexual dysfunction.
Sexual problems can affect anyone, but the causes and symptoms are frequently distinct in men and women. Studies estimate that around 33% of men and 45% of women experienced at least mild sexual problems in the last year, and around 13% of men and 17% of women had more serious issues that caused them distress.
Examples of sexual dysfunction include a loss of interest in sex, a lack of arousal, an inability to experience excitement or orgasm, and sex that is painful or not enjoyable. Sexual health problems can be primarily physical but are commonly tied to mental, emotional, or relationship issues that interfere with normal sexual activity.
How Does Sleep Affect Sex?
Research studies have found multiple ways that nightly sleep can affect sex.
Sleep deprivation has been associated with reduced sexual desire and arousal in women. As a result, insomnia, one of the most common sleep disorders, may be a risk factor for sexual dysfunction. A lack of sleep and disrupted sleep have also been linked to a higher risk of erectile dysfunction.
Perhaps surprisingly, short-term sleep deprivation has been found to cause increased sexual arousal in women the following day, which may be tied to changes in rapid eye movement (REM) sleep. However, this lack of sleep was not found to increase the likelihood of actually having sex, which may reflect how sleepiness and fatigue can interfere with sexual activity.
Several sleep disorders have been connected to sexual problems. Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), which involves recurring pauses in breathing that disrupt sleep, has been associated with a significantly higher risk of erectile dysfunction. Studies have also shown that OSA is tied to sexual dysfunction in women.
Working non-standard hours, known as shift work, also has been linked to erectile dysfunction. Shift work can throw a person’s circadian rhythm out of alignment with the day-night schedule, interfering with numerous bodily processes. The risk of sexual problems has been found mostly in shift workers who report poor sleep.
Poor sleep can also hinder sex because of its effect on mental health. Insufficient and fragmented sleep can exacerbate conditions like depression and anxiety. These disorders are often related to sexual dysfunction in women. and men because of their influence on sexual desire and arousal.
Besides mental health disorders, poor sleep can lead to emotional and relationship problems that can hinder sexual health. For example, a lack of sleep can make conflict with a partner more likely, fostering an emotional state that heightens stress, reduces intimacy, and detracts from a satisfying sex life.
Another way that sleep may affect sexual health is through impaired decision-making and impulse control. Sleep deprivation may raise the risk of risky sexual behavior that can lead to sexually transmitted infections or unplanned pregnancy.
How Does Sex Affect Sleep?
Sexual activity can often contribute to better sleep. After an orgasm, the body releases hormones, like oxytocin and prolactin, that can induce pleasant and relaxing feelings. Sex also reduces levels of the hormone cortisol, which is associated with stress.
Studies indicate that these hormonal changes can cause drowsiness and make it easier to fall asleep. This effect can occur with masturbation as well as sex. Around 50% of both men and women say that an orgasm from masturbation helps them fall asleep and improves their sleep quality.
Sex with a partner may enhance this hormonal response and facilitate greater feelings of closeness and intimacy that are conducive to sleep. In heterosexual partners, research has found this effect to be greater in men than women, which aligns with a popular social conception of men quickly falling asleep after sex.
However, when both people achieve orgasm during sex, the difference in sleepiness is no longer statistically significant. In this way, the association of sleepiness and sex for men in heterosexual relationships may, in part, reflect a disparity in satisfaction and orgasm achieved during sex with a partner.
