Alcohol, Sex, and Poly-behavioral Addiction
By James Slobodzien

Many people assume they need to consume Alcohol to have Good Sex?

For most Americans, consuming alcohol seems to be part of our cultural heritage. We drink at weddings, funerals, birthdays, and pretty much to celebrate anything and everything. We learned from a young age by watching our parents and other adults, that drinking is a sign of maturity. Many people, especially young adolescents, expect that alcohol use will lower tension and anxiety and increase sexual desire and pleasure in life (Seto & Barbaree,1995). About 1 in every 7 adults in the United States meet criteria for alcohol dependency, according to a large NIMH epidemiological study (Grant, 1977). Men are four times more likely than women to be heavy drinkers and are twice as likely to be alcohol abusing or alcohol dependant.

Most males and many females find it difficult to imagine not drinking any alcohol at least on weekends and find it almost impossible to think of having sex without previously having a few drinks. These fundamental values appear to be deeply embedded in our culture. Somewhere along the line, we got the message that we need alcohol to have good sex.

Does Alcohol Enhance or Hurt our Sexual Performance?

I recently heard a stand-up comedian refer to the term, “Whiskey – Dick” when describing his “friends who had drank too much and had difficulties with orgasm even while using Viagra. Shakespeare once said that excessive drinking, “provokes the desire but takes away the performance.” Alcohol reduces inhibitions and gives us a mellow feeling. It makes us more relaxed and more talkative. It can make shy people fe//el confident and bold. These effects can facilitate our sexual desires by developing our social skills. However, these positive effects are only present in the early stage of intoxication i.e. when we’ve consumed 1-2 drinks (assuming you haven’t already developed a tolerance for alcohol).

Sexual Impotence

On the other hand, alcohol’s negative effects on sexual performance have been widely documented. Men and women who have several drinks may find it very hard to achieve orgasm. Difficulties with achieving orgasm after alcohol consumption can be understood because alcohol dilates small blood vessels all over the body so that there is less engorgement of blood in the sexual organs. This leaves the penis flaccid or only partially erect so that sexual penetration is difficult. Women may find that they have decreased vaginal lubrication making sexual intercourse unpleasant and sometimes painful (Raff, 2006). Impotence is the constant inability of a man to maintain an erection for sexual purposes. It is estimated that impotence affects over 30 million men in the United States (NIHCS, 1992).