About 41% of women experience sexual dysfunction, compared to 31% of men. And yet there are at least six brand-name drugs to treat erectile dysfunction — and only two approved to treat the most common sexual disorder in women. That gap is not an accident, and it is not acceptable.

Romance Awareness Month lands in August — and it's a useful occasion to think honestly about intimacy, desire, and what gets in the way of both. Stress, fatigue, and anxiety are real libido disruptors. Here's what the research says, and what you can actually do about it.