9 Things That Happen to Your Body If You Stop Having Sex

A bout of celibacy won’t have lasting effects on your overall health, but you still could be in for some unexpected changes.

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You may feel a change in your libido

Sex is a powerful thing. According to the Cleveland Clinic, benefits of a healthy sex life range from burning calories to helping your immune system. It can even make you live longer. But what if you’re not having regular sex—or any sex at all?

The health effects of celibacy vary based on your health, how old you are, and even what kind of sex you were having but you will likely see some impacts, says Sari Cooper, LCSW, certified sex therapist. For starters, you may feel either a loss of sex drive—or an increase in libido! “For some people who refrain from sex, they begin to feel more sluggish, with less vitality and hunger for sex,” Cooper says. “Out of sight out of mind is how some of my clients describe the scenario.” Because it’s not on your radar, you may tune out sexual desires. On the other hand, for some people, not having sex could make it even more desirable. “You might not be thinking about it as much, or you might be thinking about it all the time,” says Lauren Streicher, MD, author of Sex Rx: Hormones, Health, and Your Best Sex Ever. “It’s really variable.” Try to boost your libido using these 31 natural remedies to rev up your sex drive again!

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You may feel more down in the dumps

Sex is part physical, part mental. “When people have sex they’re usually having skin-to-skin contact, and this kind of contact is the first primal way we as humans get comforted [as babies with our mothers],” Cooper says. “Sexual connection give partners loads of skin-to-skin caressing and touch and can help to regulate one another’s moods,” through the release of the feel-good hormone oxytocin.

Dr. Streicher also says sex can help boost your spirits through mood-elevating endorphins. Without the benefit of these natural pick-me-ups, you might be prone to feeling low—but that doesn’t mean you’ll become clinically depressed. Although studies have shown that depression and a lack of sex are linked, experts say that reflects an association, not cause and effect. “If you are a healthy person and you stop having sex, you’re not going to become depressed because of it,” Dr. Streicher says.

13 Reasons Why Sex Is Good For Your Health

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You may have less lubrication

For older women, the vagina can also have a hard time getting lubricated when you do start having intercourse again. As with thinning of the vaginal walls, this happens as women age because of the lack of hormones such as estrogen. “If you take a young woman who’s 20 or 30 years old she’s going to have plenty of estrogen around to make sure those tissues stay healthy, elastic, and lubricated” when she’s not having sex, Dr. Streicher says. “If you take someone who’s 60 and has no estrogen, she has lost that piece of it.”

Cooper says it’s important to keep things flowing, even in the absence of a partner: “The vaginal lubrication lessens with age, and if you’re not being turned on through self-pleasure, erotic books, videos, or a partner, the lubrication can begin to lessen more quickly.”

12 Ways Sex Is Different After Menopause

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You may have more discomfort during sex

According to the North American Menopause Society, regular intercourse is important for vaginal health after menopause. “Without regular frequency of intercourse as you get older, the walls of your vagina thin out and can lead to painful sex when you finally get back into the sack,” Cooper says. Less frequent intercourse also provides less physical stimulation, which produces lubrication. Vaginal estrogen creams may help slow or reverse this process.

13 Surprising Reasons Your Partner Doesn’t Want Sex

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You may feel more—or less—stressed

Like the other psychological effects of a lack of sex, this one is tricky. “People who are less stressed tend to have more sex, but again it’s an association, not cause and effect,” Dr. Streicher says. That said, if sex is a stress reliever for you, not having could it cause an increase in your stress level. But, Dr. Steicher says, “for some women sex is actually stressful for a variety of reasons: It may be painful, or it could be one more thing on their to-do list.”

13 Things Your Vagina Secretly Wants to Tell You

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You may lower your risk of UTIs

It might not be a surprise that the risk of sexually transmitted infections go down if you’re not having sex, but the rates of urinary tract infections may decrease as well. But this depends on the kind of sex you’re having. “It’s intercourse that’s responsible for potentially increasing the risk of recurrent bladder infections,” Dr. Streicher says, due to the spread of bacteria that can occur. Eighty percent of UTIs in premenopausal women occur within 24 hours of having sex, and frequency of sexual intercourse is the strongest predictor of recurrent urinary tract infections, according to research published in American Family Physician. If you’re not having intercourse, you avoid these risks.

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You may have worse menstrual cramps

You may have heard that sex can help alleviate cramps during your period. Although it hasn’t been well studied, Dr. Streicher says the rationale is sound. “The uterus is a muscle and many women will actually have a uterine contraction when they orgasm, which will cause the blood to expel more quickly, which will in turn decrease menstrual cramps,” she explains. “Also, there may be an increase in endorphins, which also will help with menstrual cramps.”

This is an unexpected benefit you lose if you’re not having sex—but fortunately, this one doesn’t require a partner to remedy. Here are 8 Budget-Friendly Sex Toys Worth Trying, with Wisdom from Clinical Sex Specialists.

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You may become less intelligent

Okay, you might not exactly be losing IQ points, but sex does affect our cognition. People who engaged in more regular sexual activity scored higher on tests that measured their verbal and spatial skills, according to a study published in The Journals of Gerontology. In addition, people who reported having sex scored higher on cognitive tests than those who had not had sex recently. The researchers think the brain boost may have to do with the hormones released during sex.

Here’s How Often Your Brain Needs Sex, Says Science

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You can still comfortably slip between the sheets

Although some groups, such as menopausal women, may have long-term effects from not having sex, generally your body remembers how to do it when you jump back in the saddle. “I think that’s reassuring to people to say, ‘Hey, we’ve been on hiatus but it’s not like it’s going to shrivel up and die,’” Dr. Streicher says. “Things are going to work just fine. If they worked before they’re going to keep on working, even if you’ve had a break.”

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Sources
Medically reviewed by Tia Jackson-Bey, MD, on September 25, 2019

Tina Donvito
Tina Donvito is a writer, editor, and blogger who writes about health and wellness, travel, lifestyle, parenting, and culture. Her work has been published online in The New York Times, The Washington Post, Cosmopolitan, Good Housekeeping, and Parents, among others. Chosen by Riverhead Books and author Elizabeth Gilbert, her writing appears in the anthology Eat Pray Love Made Me Do It: Life Journeys Inspired by the Bestselling Memoir. Tina was previously editor-in-chief of TWIST magazine, a celebrity news title for teen girls with an emphasis on health, body image, beauty, and fashion.
Miranda Manier
Miranda is the Associate Editor for TheHealthy.com and The Healthy section of Reader's Digest magazine. Previously, Miranda was a producer at WNIT, the PBS affiliate in South Bend, Indiana; and the producer in residence for Minneapolis TV news KARE 11, where she won an Upper Midwest Regional Emmy Award for producing gavel-to-gavel coverage of the Derek Chauvin trial. Miranda also interned at Chicago’s PBS station, WTTW, and worked as the managing editor at the Columbia Chronicle at Columbia College. Outside of work, Miranda enjoys acting, board games, and trying her hand at a good vegan dessert recipe. She also loves talking about TV—so tell her what you’re watching!