Whether the problem is big or small, there are many things you can do to get your sex life back on track. Your sexual well-being goes hand in hand with your overall mental, physical, and emotional health. Communicating with your partner, maintaining a healthy lifestyle, availing yourself of some of the many excellent self-help materials on the market, and just having fun can help you weather tough times. The word can evoke a kaleidoscope of emotions. From love, excitement, and tenderness to longing, anxiety, and disappointment—the reactions are as varied as sexual experiences themselves. On one level, sex is just another hormone-driven bodily function designed to perpetuate the species. Of course, that narrow view underestimates the complexity of the human sexual response.

The physical transformations your body undergoes as you age also have a major influence on your sexuality. Declining hormone levels and changes in neurological and circulatory functioning may lead to sexual problems such as erectile dysfunction or vaginal pain. Such physical changes often mean that the intensity of youthful sex may give way to more subdued responses during middle and later life.

It's not uncommon to have some anxieties about how well you're performing in the bedroom. And while whatever sex you and your partner are comfortable with is "good" sex, there is always some room to improve the mood. While you might be content having sex on your same old Ikea sheets in a room draped in unwashed laundry, if you want better sex, you may want to improve your environment. Take some time, clean up your space, light a candle or at least spray some air freshener and strike up some mood lighting.