Mens Health Blog. Medical Blog

Dressing Successfully: The Ten Commandments 9

Keep clothes clean

Nothing gives a clearer picture of an unsuccessful man or contributes more to the impression of a man whose life is going slowly downhill and falling apart than dirty clothes. Or clothes that permanently look crumpled, creased or un-pressed.

No man today can complain of having a problem keeping his clothes in good order as excellent cleaning facilities exist in every neighbourhood. Suits can be cleaned and retextured, trousers pressed, sweaters freshened. And at home shirts can be properly washed and pressed and shoes cleaned. The moment a stitch unfastens or a heel looks worn shoes must be taken to a cobbler.

Besides looking better because of the care and attention, clean clothes will last longer. At the end of each season clothes should be cleaned and then put away wrapped until they are needed. This is particularly important with winter clothes that will hang for six months before they are worn again.

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Comments (0) Mar 12 2009

This recommendation to change the style of the haircut is also right for men whose hair is noticeably thinner now than it was. Go to a stylist who can cut the hair into a balanced shape, closer to the head, so that the lie of the hair looks natural and the hair itself is manageable and trouble-free. A good cut will make the remaining hair look healthy and draw attention away from the balding area.

By and large the shorter the cut, the better the look. It gives the face new strength and dimension and creates a look that is individual. Men who grow their remaining hair longer than normal make their bald patch look worse. The contrast between hair and no-hair makes the patch doubly obvious.

If you cannot face life without some form of covering think hard before you consider surgery or before you invest in either a hairpiece or hairweaving. No matter how persuasively consultants talk nor how much you pay for the piece, both cover-up systems show. Which is preferable, showing a false head of hair or a balding patch? The choice is strictly personal but remember as you continue to lose hair so the hairpiece or weave will have to be changed and made larger.

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Comments (0) Mar 12 2009

‘Concentrate on yourself,’one. therapist says. ‘Sort out your life to your satisfaction. Apart from certain goals affecting careers, for most of us we have been trained in our lives to look outwards but now the new rule is: look inwards. Consider yourself first. Give yourself new priorities and aims. Get into new projects or travel or hobbies that will improve your life satisfaction. Do not accept that for you life has no meaning or has to be dull and boring. If it is, you only have yourself to blame.

‘If life begins at forty — and why shouldn’t you begin again? — start out by being yourself. Be honest. Look for personal affection and contentment. Let your humour come out. Try mocking yourself. Have fun.’

A conclusion to draw is that although middle-age may be around the corner and life is undoubtedly, if subtly, going to be different, the difference should be of your making and on your terms. By your choice and by making revisions about yourself and your expectations.

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Comments (0) Mar 12 2009

During a man’s forties heart problems, both real and imaginary, start taking shape. A large number of men will have all the symptoms of something wrong and have a check-up only to find nothing is.

However, heart disease does account for a high percentage of deaths in the forty-plus age group.

In Britain it has been estimated that one man in four will have coronary disease before he is sixty and one man in ten will die from it. Fortunately it has also been calculated that at least fifty per cent of men who go to their doctors complaining of heart pains have, in reality, chest pains caused not by heart disease but by stress and anxiety — so there could be good news waiting not just bad.

(Stress is today regarded a major factor in the cause of heart disease. However it is being suggested that doctors may have over-emphasized its effects as stress produces its own additional subconscious hypochondria and manifests itself, in particular, in all the symptoms of heart disease in an otherwise healthy heart.)

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Comments (0) Mar 12 2009

Because life seems to be taking on a negative form, almost every aspect of it seems wrong and requires deploring verbally at every opportunity. There is a relentless need to complain about anything impinging on his life whether major or minor. Sometimes he will complain with good reason — about noise, the neighbour’s children, television programmes — but mostly the complaints are far reaching taking in every aspect of his daily life. He has little good to say about his children, family, home cooking, restaurants, holidays, public transport, money. Mention a ubject and he will find a point to complain about. Refer to his work and ‘e will tell of his resentfulness to its rat-race qualities, how he has poor reward or appreciation and if it were not for family responsibilities how quickly he would chuck it all in. He is no longer fun to be with.

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Comments (0) Mar 12 2009

For many years withdrawal of the penis from the vagina just before ejaculation has been used to avoid pregnancy. In several investigations, made in the days before the pill became available, it was found to be the most usual method adopted. It relies, of course, on the ability of the man to recognize the sensations which occur in his genitals just before ejaculation, and for him rapidly to withdraw his penis from the vagina and ejaculate outside. This requires great self-control, as the man will often want to keep his penis in the woman’s vagina for as long as possible to obtain the greatest amount of pleasure. As the first spurt of semen, which contains the most spermatozoa, may either be ejaculated during withdrawal or may spurt into the vaginal entrance, the risk of pregnancy, is high, and the pregnancy index is 35 per 100 woman-years.

Coitus interruptus has been said to lead to pelvic discomfort in the woman, who is stimulated but not relieved, and in the man, who has to withdraw at a moment when he would penetrate more deeply. Over long periods it was said to cause mental disorders. There is no evidence that coitus interruptus leads to either of these diseases, or indeed to any disease at all, but it is not a very satisfying method for men or women. If a couple have used coitus interruptus successfully for years and it suits their particular sexual needs, there is no reason for them to change, but they should remember that the method is not very efficient, because spermatozoa are often found in the secretions which seep out of the penis before ejaculation occurs.

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Comments (0) Mar 11 2009

Many people believe that a ‘stroke’ is only a problem of old age. It is not. In an investigation in Victoria, Australia, it was found that one out of every five people who had a stroke was under the age of 65 and that at least one-third of victims of stroke had untreated (or inadequately treated) high blood pressure.

What should you do to?

As I have mentioned, a single high blood pressure reading does not mean you have high blood pressure, because anxiety, fear, and stress can raise your blood pressure. But if the readings remain high, that is above 160/95, on three measurements taken at least two weeks apart, you have high blood pressure.

If your doctor finds that you have hypertension, he will want to do some tests to try and find if there is an underlying cause, and to try to estimate more accurately the state of your heart and arteries. He will listen to your heart with a stethoscope and will examine the back of your eyes with a small instrument. He will take an X-ray of your chest and do an electrocardiogram. He will also order some laboratory tests. In these ways he will be better able to advise you what to do.

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Comments (0) Mar 11 2009

In addition to the people who are exclusively homosexual, a much larger number are homosexual (or bisexual) for a period and in certain circumstances, but become heterosexual in their erotic relationships when the circumstances change. When men and women are forced to live together in conditions where there is an absence of heterosexual contacts, homosexuality as a means of emotional contact, or for the relief of physical tension, is not uncommon.

If so many people are exclusively homosexual, it would suggest that the stereotype of a homosexual – the mincing, lisping, flamboyant, limp-wristed man, or the ‘butch’ woman – is inaccurate. In fact, only a tiny minority of homosexuals – probably less than one in twenty – fit the popular stereotype. This minority may be compensating for social rejection, or perhaps ‘advertising’ for a partner, or may be so disgusted with the attitudes of straight’ society that they act out a flamboyant homosexual role, or may enjoy behaving in this way.

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Comments (0) Mar 11 2009

The investigation is simple and painless. The man spends a night in a room in the laboratory, and a soft band is placed around his penis. This is connected to a recording instrument. When he has an erection during sleep, the band is stretched and the erection is recorded. The next morning the results are discussed with the staff and advice is given.

Because impotence may be an early sign of disease, a man who develops this distressing sexual dysfunction should seek medical help and should not be embarrassed or ashamed to admit that he has become impotent. There is definite evidence that the earlier impotence is treated, the better the success rate. Once his doctor has excluded any serious disease, the man can then receive treatment for his sexual dysfunction.

The desire to increase sexual function, and especially to relieve impotence, is of great antiquity, as is the use of drugs. Over the centuries a variety of treatments have been advocated for
impotence. The fact that there have been so many suggests that none has been successful. One drug, of particular interest in Asia, is rhinoceros horn. Powdered rhinoceros horn was used as an
aphrodisiac, particularly to reverse ‘waning sexual strength’. Its use is an example of sympathetic medicine, which has a long history. The horn of a rhinoceros resembles an erect penis. Therefore the failure to obtain an erection could be overcome by drinking powdered rhinoceros horn.

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Comments (0) Mar 11 2009

After three non-genital pleasuring sessions, genital pleasuring can begin. The breasts and genital area can now be touched and fondled.

The session starts with five minutes of the non-genital pleasuring the couple practised in the first three days. First one and then the other plays the active role.

Following this they begin genital pleasuring. It has been found that sexual dysfunction appears to resolve more quickly if the person who has the dysfunction is the active partner first. If the man has the sexual dysfunction, he should pleasure the woman first.

He starts by exploring and playing with her breasts and particularly with her nipples. He should find different ways in which they can be caressed – he may lightly flick them, suck them gently or hard, or press them with his fingers or his lips – the choices are wide! As with the non-genital pleasuring exercises, the woman tells the man the pleasure she gets from each experience by relating it to the scale.

Then he begins to pleasure her genitals, particularly her clitoris. Again he has a wide variety of choices. He may look at, stroke, fondle, rub – even pinch – her vulva and clitoris. And all the time she tells him by words, by movements, or by sounds what gives her most pleasure and what she dislikes, so that he can learn what she likes and what she dislikes.

After fifteen minutes or so it is the woman’s turn to be the ‘pleasurer’. She looks at, fondles, strokes, kisses her partner’s penis, scrotum, and testicles, searching for ways which give him the most pleasure. He tells her what he likes best and what he dislikes, using the five-point scale.

These general sexual exercises prepare the couple for undertaking the specific exercises needed to resolve the particular dysfunction, which will be discussed in the next two chapters.

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Comments (0) Mar 11 2009