Assessment
Listen
Define what has changed and what outcome would be meaningful.
Look for contributors
Review health conditions, medicines, stress, pain and relationship context.
Test selectively
Use examination and tests only when they answer a specific clinical question.
Plan together
Choose options that fit the likely cause, preferences, risks and follow-up needs.
A useful assessment looks at the person, not only a single symptom.
Assessment
- A short timeline: when it started, whether it was sudden or gradual, and whether it is constant or situational
- A complete medicine list, including supplements, over-the-counter products and anything bought online
- Any relevant diagnoses — cardiovascular, metabolic, hormonal, neurological or psychiatric
- Recent test results if you have them, with dates
- What you have already tried, and what happened
- The two or three questions you most want answered, written down
Assessment
The symptom itself
Onset, pattern, whether it occurs in all situations, and what makes it better or worse.
General health
Blood pressure, diabetes, cholesterol, thyroid, surgery, pelvic or prostate history, and neurological conditions.
Medicines and substances
Prescriptions, supplements, alcohol, tobacco and recreational substances, all of which can contribute.
Mood and sleep
Low mood, anxiety, sleep quality and stress load, which affect sexual response in both directions.
Pain
Where, when, how severe, and whether it occurs at entry, during, after or independently of sex.
Context
Relationship circumstances, privacy, safety and what outcome would actually matter to you.
Assessment
| If the concern is | A clinician may consider | Because it helps answer |
|---|---|---|
| Possible infection or recent exposure | Targeted STI testing appropriate to the exposure and site | Whether an infection is present, including when there are no symptoms |
| Erectile change with cardiovascular risk | Blood pressure, glucose or HbA1c, lipids | Whether a vascular or metabolic contributor is present and untreated |
| Low desire with fatigue or other systemic symptoms | Thyroid function, and hormonal tests where clinically indicated | Whether an endocrine contributor explains part of the picture |
| Pain, bleeding, lumps or skin change | Physical examination, and imaging or swabs if indicated | What is causing the physical finding, which a conversation cannot establish |
| Symptom that began after a new medicine | Medicine review rather than a new test | Whether the treatment itself is the contributor |
Assessment
A working explanation
In plain language, including the degree of uncertainty and what is still unknown.
A first step you agreed to
With its purpose, how to use it, and what it is not expected to do.
A review point
A specific time to reassess, rather than an open-ended instruction to continue.
A contact route
Who to contact for a result, a side effect or a new symptom, and how quickly.