Prejudices about the sexual problems of the elderly

　　In order to maintain the patriarchal system in the family, the "Biography of Martyrs" or moral concepts in Taoism and Neo-Confucianism such as "preserve natural principles and destroy human desires" and "death is a small matter, and indiscipline is a big matter" are used as educational means. In the long history of feudal society of more than two thousand years, these concepts have been repeatedly strengthened through social ethics, religion, feudal patriarchy and other channels, forming a huge force that makes men and women different, giving and receiving. ； It has formed an extremely repressive attitude towards sex, forcing people to accept unequal sexual moral concepts such as "a good woman will not obey her second husband". In our country, due to the long period of feudal society, this misconception about sex is relatively deep-rooted. elderly This is especially true when it comes to sexual issues.

　　Currently, there are the following types of prejudices against the sexual problems of the elderly:

　　(1) The view that sex is reproduction. From this point of view, people who believe that they cannot have sex except for the purpose of pregnancy, and thus cannot get pregnant.-- infertility patient, amenorrhea The sexual lives of later women and the elderly were denied.

　　(2) Many elderly people always think that they are old and can no longer do this. Because the traditional concept is that people's interest in sexual activities declines with age, until it eventually disappears ； After people enter middle age, they should gradually become tired of sex life, while the elderly should have no sexual desire. Also, many people regard sexual activities between older men and women as vulgar and "immoral" activities. There are also many people who believe that sex is obscene and obscene, and refer to sexual organs as "shame" and vulva, which they consider to be unclean.

　　(3) Distort the image of the elderly and believe that the elderly still have sexual desire or that sexual life is harmful to the elderly. Many experts on geriatric issues (including doctors, psychologists, nursing home staff, etc.) are ignorant of the sexual issues of the elderly and hold an anti-scientific attitude. In the relevant academic literature, there are only a few words about sexual issues, passing by in passing, and they are limited to explanations of abnormal sexual desire. It is generally believed that young people who are more open-minded and radical are also biased in this regard. Children do not believe that their parents would "do this". The prevalence of this misconception can be seen from a survey in the United States: This study surveyed 640 college students on their views on their parents' sexual activities. It was found that about a quarter of the people believed that their parents had stopped having sex, but in fact their parents were still between the ages of 40 and 50. ； Half of people think that their parents have sex only once a month, or even less. This estimate is actually too low. This is the case for American college students. In our country, the influence of feudal ideas is much more serious than for them. If many adult children find out that their parents still have sex, they will think it is "a scandal."“ ； If their father remarries or their mother remarries, they will be furious.

　　Modern sexual medicine has proven that neither physical sexual ability nor psychological sexual requirements are lost after entering old age, and the sexual activities of the elderly do not actually stop. Therefore, whether it is the elderly themselves, or the workers and young people who serve the elderly, they should abandon the above-mentioned erroneous views on the sexual issues of the elderly that are still very common around us.