Erectile Dysfunction and Stress Management

Everyone experiences stress. Our bodies are designed to feel stress and react to it. It keeps us alert and ready to avoid danger. But, when stress persists, the body begins to break down and problems, like erectile dysfunction, can occur. The key to coping with stress is identifying those conditions in your life causing the stress and learning ways to reduce them.

What Is Stress?

Stress is your reaction to any change that requires you to adjust or respond. It's important to remember that you can control stress because stress comes from how you respond to stressful events, not the events themselves.

What Causes Stress?

Stress can be caused by anything -- good and bad. Your body reacts to these changes with physical, mental, and emotional responses. We all have our own ways of coping with change, so the causes of stress can be different for each person.

Common causes of stress include:

Death of a loved one

Confrontations

Marriage

Deadlines

Legal problems

Job loss

Divorce

New job

Retirement

Money problems

Illnesses

Parenting

When you are not sure of the exact cause of your stress, it may help to know the warning signs of stress. Once you can identify these signs, you can learn how your body responds to stress. Then you can take steps to reduce it.