In this theatricalized lecture, we will take a journey through sexuality via the myths that cinema has provided throughout history. This journey will allow us to reflect on how we perceive sexuality in maturity, and particularly in old age. How does desire, arousal, or orgasms evolve with age? What is intimate communication like between people when youth has long abandoned the body? Is the decline of the physical body a sign of the end of sexuality?
Let’s not be sold movies! Because it’s not in the body where the source of desires and passions resides. The brain is the true engine of sex. It decides what and how. The brain has no age and is incredibly plastic and influenced by stimuli that can either release or repress our sexuality. Education, moral impositions or religious beliefs, and of course, culture—where cinema and television play a starring role—create images that accompany us throughout our lives. These images are pure fiction and can be a misleading reflection of our daily realities. How do these fictions make us feel and experience sex? How do they influence us?
This entire journey is nothing more than an excuse to dare to talk about the challenges of sexuality in Alzheimer’s disease, for both patients and caregivers.
