Distress tolerance skills from Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) help you survive low sexual desire crisis without making things worse.
TIPP Skills for Acute Low Sexual Desire
Temperature: Cold water on face activates the dive reflex, rapidly reducing low sexual desire intensity
Intense exercise: 20 minutes of vigorous exercise discharges low sexual desire physiological activation
Paced breathing: Slow the breath (especially exhale) to activate parasympathetic system
Progressive muscle relaxation: Systematic tension-release reduces low sexual desire physical symptoms
ACCEPTS Skills for Riding Out Low Sexual Desire
Activities that engage attention away from low sexual desire Contributing to others shifts focus from low sexual desire Comparisons that provide perspective on low sexual desire Emotions opposite to low sexual desire — deliberately generated Pushing away low sexual desire temporarily when you can't act on it now Thoughts that replace low sexual desire rumination Sensations that provide strong alternative input
When Distress Tolerance Is the Right Skill for Low Sexual Desire
Use distress tolerance when low sexual desire is intense but the situation can't change right now. The goal is surviving without making things worse — not solving low sexual desire.