Why Do I Keep Losing My Erection During Sex?

Occasionally losing your erection during sex is common. It can happen for multiple reasons, like if you’re stressed or tired. However, if you struggle to get and stay hard every time you have sex, it could be a sign of erectile dysfunction. Let's have a look at some factors that may cause you to lose your erection, what erectile dysfunction is and how you can treat it.

Article Summary:

• Losing your erection occasionally is normal, but frequent difficulty getting or maintaining an erection may be a sign of erectile dysfunction (ED).
• Your mind and body work together to cause an erection, so it’s important for both to stay healthy in order for you to perform sexually.
• ED is treatable through medications like PDE5 inhibitors, lifestyle changes, therapy, and in some cases, medical procedures.

How Do Erections Happen?

The systems controlling your brain, hormones and blood flow all work together to help you perform during sex. Sexual arousal sends a message to the blood vessels of your penis, telling them to relax. This improves blood flow to your penis, which helps erectile tissues (two chambers called the 'corpora cavernosa') to fill with blood. This increased blood pressure helps you become hard enough for penetrative sex.

What is Erectile Dysfunction (ED)?

Erectile dysfunction is the regular inability to achieve or maintain an erection that is firm enough for penetrative sex. Many physical and emotional factors can disrupt the process of getting an erection. It can also be an indicator of some underlying health issues, including cardiovascular disease and metabolic conditions such as diabetes.

Here are some common causes:

• Factors like anxiety, stress, fatigue may interfere with arousal signals from your brain, which makes it more difficult to get a firm erection.
• Excessive alcohol intake and some recreational drugs can cause you to have weaker erections.
• Changes in hormone levels, high blood pressure or heart conditions can affect blood flow to your penis.

How Can You Treat Erectile Dysfunction?

There are many medications you can take to treat erectile dysfunction and improve your sexual performance.

PDE5 inhibitors are a type of oral medication used to treat erectile dysfunction. They help to relax the blood vessels at the base of your penis, increasing blood flow and helping you achieve a firm erection when you’re aroused.

Viagra, or sildenafil, is one of the best known PDE5 medications. You typically take one tablet around an hour before you plan to have sex, and it can help you get and maintain strong erections during a four-hour period. You can find out more about what to expect when taking Viagra here.

Cialis, or tadalafil, is another commonly used PDE5 inhibitor. Unlike Viagra, it comes in two forms: on-demand and daily. You take the on-demand doses an hour before sex, and they can give you reliable erections over a 36-hour period. It won’t make you have a continuous erection, but it will help you get an erection in response to sexual stimulation at any point during that time. The daily dose maintains a small amount of the medication in your system, which helps you get erections whenever you're aroused.

You can explore the difference between tadalafil and sildenafil here.

Other Treatments for Erectile Dysfunction

Some lifestyle habits can also help you improve your sexual performance, including:

• Reducing how much alcohol you drink
• Quitting smoking and illegal drugs
• Lowering stress and improving your mental health
• Introducing aerobic exercise into your routine, if medically advised

If erectile dysfunction is caused by performance anxiety or other psychological reasons like relationship issues, you can seek the advice of a sex therapist for further support.

For people who cannot take oral medications, there are other treatment types that can be taken, such as penis pumps (or 'vacuum pumps'), penile injections, and penile implants. It's important to note that invasive options like penile implants are a last resort to treating ED, and it's best to find out if lifestyle changes and PDE5 inhibitors can help you first.

Get Help With Erectile Dysfunction

Erection issues are common, and can be caused by a variety of factors; from health conditions to performance anxiety. The good news is, there are many clinically proven erectile dysfunction treatments available to help you achieve healthy erections and take control of your sexual health.

Want to improve your sex life? Find out which erectile dysfunction treatment is best suited for you on our website.