What Keeps Couples Happy Long Term?

Some couples find it hard to maintain an interest in sex with one another over time. The thrill may not be completely gone, but it will take some cultivating to revive it.

One of the largest studies to date on sexual satisfaction in long-term relationships will be published in the Journal of Sex Research later this month. That study has found that couples with satisfying sex lives do a lot of communicating.

Incorporating variety in the bedroom can fuel your sex life. Reading articles on how to "spice it up" isn't as effective as actually trying out those tips.

The study found that sexually satisfied people:
  • Try new sex positions
  • Incorporate lingerie
  • Take a shower or bath together
  • Talk about or act out their fantasies
  • Give back rubs and massages
How can you maintain a healthy sex life for decades?

Sociology professor and sexuality researcher, Dr. Janet Lever, discusses how to have a long, pleasurable sex life.
What Keeps Couples Happy Long Term?
Featuring:
Janet Lever, PhD
Janet LeverDr. Janet Lever earned her PhD at Yale University and is Professor Emerita of Sociology at California State University, Los Angeles. Along with Dr. Pepper Schwartz she co-authored the “Sex and Health” column for Glamour magazine for a decade in the 1990s, and she continues to appear in national media as an expert in intimate relationships and sexuality. After leading teams of researchers that designed the three largest magazine sex surveys ever tabulated, Dr. Lever came to ELLE in 2002 to lead a series of annual surveys hosted on both the health and the business sections of NBCNews.com (formerly msnbc.com). Her Office Sex and Romance Survey; Work, Sex, and Power Survey; “Good Sex” Survey; and Sex and Money Survey are among the largest surveys on these understudied topics. Each of these internet surveys has been reanalyzed for social science, management, health, and medical journals.