Natalie Wilton, a therapist who specializes in senior sexuality, says it's no surprise that people feel pessimistic about sex as they age. Also, 'sexually optimistic' individuals who acquired physical limitations they didn't have ten years before – such as pain that made it harder to lift groceries or exercise – reported having more frequent sex than people who had lower sexual expectations and no such limitations. Participants who were optimistic about their sex lives reported having significantly more frequent and more satisfying sex than those who had lower expectations. Their findings seem to demonstrate the power of positive thinking. Researchers then checked in with the participants a decade later.

Īs part of the MIDUS (Midlife in the US) study, hundreds of partnered adults ages 45 and up were asked to rate how satisfying they expected their sex lives to be 10 years in the future. To get more stories like this delivered to your in-box, click here to subscribe. This story was adapted from the April 30 edition of NPR Health, a newsletter covering the science of healthy living.

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