Chris's Sharebook 

A panel appointed by the American Psychiatric Association (APA) is in the process of revising the Diagnosis and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM), a guide to mental illnesses widely used by therapists and psychiatrists. One of the new disorders planned for inclusion in the guide is Sexual Interest/Arousal Disorder in Women, which is often called frigidity. The DSM V would guide professionals to assign this diagnosis when female patients report an absent or reduced interest in sex and erotic fantasies tied to distress. Recently, pharmaceutical companies have begun to promote testosterone medications to treat this "disorder."

Though low sex drive often coincides with mental illnesses such as depression or follows traumatic events such as rape, it does not require its own separate diagnosis. Many women, including asexuals, naturally have a lower-than-average sex drive and are satisfied with that aspect of their individuality. They should not have to worry about receiving treatment for it when seeking mental health for an unrelated distress issue.

Labeling low sex drive as a disorder will invite discrimination and overmedication for many women. Please sign this petition to keep "Sexual Interest/Arousal Disorder in Women" out of the DSM V.