May 2000 Impotence by Dr. Rob Hicks Impotence is at last something that can be discussed out in the open. For years, millions of men in the UK have been suffering in silence and making their situation worse. Thankfully, the subject of impotence is no longer a taboo subject or one that only raises a smile when mentioned. It's now one where men are quite rightly asking for help. It's defined as the inability to achieve or sustain an erection that is hard enough or lasts long enough to have satisfactory intercourse.
Most men experience temporary failure of their erections at some time in their lives.
However, for around 1 in 10 men in the UK, impotence persists. If a man has early morning erections and can masturbate to climax then the cause is likely to be psychological, which makes up the remainder of cases. It's very easy for a man with impotence to become stressed and depressed about his situation and this makes matters worse. Men being men tend to suffer in silence and are often too embarrassed or ashamed to talk about the problem to anyone. So even if the cause was physical to start with, the psychological effects will compound the problem.