I'm 77 years old, male retired from sevice. I'm staying in an old age home after my wife refused to have intimate living. I suffer from diabetes and hypertension. I control them with diet, medicines and walking. I still have some libido left in me. Please suggest me some means to get rid off libido

If you have chosen to practice celibacy, there are certain methods that yogis used to implement to focus their energies on meditation and other goals.

Yog recommends a Sattvik diet to enhance the sattva element in our body, ie to bring a balance in energies that leads to calmness, mental clarity and eventually bring us true happiness.

A Sattvic diet consists of ample fresh fruits and vegetables -- cooked and consumed with love and gratitude.

It can include certain nuts and legumes which are easy to digest.

Also, if you do not have any major ailments, try taking neem (crush 3-4 leaves with some water, strain and drink) or bitter gourd juice first thing in the morning for a detox.

Do this for 21 days. However, please discontinue if you feel any discomfort.

To further balance your energies and keep your mind calm, you can do light exercises in the morning. Follow this with the Anulom Vilom pranayama, starting with five minutes and eventually doing it for a minimum 20 minutes every day.

Before going to bed, you can do deep breathing in the Dhyaan mudra to get a peaceful and deep sleep.

Post menopause, women do have to cope with several hormonal changes and sometimes lose interest in sex.

You need to explain your frustration to your wife and hear her side of it.

If you say you had a good sex life with her up until just two years ago, that means a particular issue has definitely triggered this situation.

Have a frank conversation and take steps to remedy it. Maybe she can speak to her gynaecologist about it as well; she’s certainly not the first middle-aged woman to go off sex at this juncture in life.