Making sure intimacy stays part of ageing well

As people grow older, moments of intimacy, of emotional and physical affection, are just as important as ever - but they can also be more fleeting and unreliable: partners die, couples separate and friendships fall away. Why isn’t there more personal support to help older people maintain those moments of intimacy which are so important to health and wellbeing? A group of colleagues at The Open University is leading a project that aims to come up with practical ways forward.

A lack of human intimacy in later life - anything from close bonds of attachment and the comfort of physical touch to sexual relationships - is known to be a cause of feelings of loneliness and depression. In turn, loneliness has long been recognised as playing a part in higher rates of heart disease, stroke, dementia and poor mental health.

With the proportion of people in Britain over the age of 65 expected to reach 22% by 2032, ‘ageing well’ is becoming a central issue to the health of the nation. Until now, however, there has been little attention paid to intimacy among older people and how it can be best be supported.

Professor Naomi Moller said: “People’s lives change, and the kinds of intimacy they have been so used to can be interrupted or fall away. Bereavement, divorce and separation, the need to take on more of a caring role for partners and worsening physical and sexual health can all lead to deep-rooted feelings of disconnection from the world."

Co-researcher Dr Andreas Vossler, added: “For society as a whole, more intimacy in older people’s relationships means an improved quality of life, and more quality of life for longer, as well as reduced health and social care costs and greater community cohesion.”

The aim of the Open Societal Challenges work - which involves a multidisciplinary group of researchers that also includes Dr Rebecca Jones, Dr Diana Teggi and Dr Ann Grand - in this area is to make it easier for older adults to access personalised help - particularly the kind of support that involves talking, counselling, therapy and involvement in social groups rather than the prescription of drugs. With this approach, researchers believe there is the opportunity to raise awareness of the issues around older people and intimacy, reduce loneliness as well as stigma and increase understanding about intimacy and wellbeing. Evidence suggests, for example, that there continues to be a stigma around older people and sex, including assumptions that older people are asexual.

Work includes a review of current evidence around non-pharmaceutical interventions for sustaining intimate relationships; followed by two new research surveys developed in collaboration with partners including residential care homes and third sector organizations working with the elderly. One will involve hearing from older people about their experiences through one-to-one interviews and focus groups (including the involvement of LGBTQ+ people). The other will look at the perspectives of the professionals who work with the elderly, such as residential care home staff, social workers and medical staff. The insights will be used to inform thinking and develop new pathways of support, help train health professionals in the issues involved, and most importantly, help older people be part of intimate relationships that work and are right for them.