One of the first questions every couple has after tying the knot is: Will they live happily ever after?

Increasingly, in today’s stressful lives, fairy-tale endings are mostly for the textbooks. To make matters worse, there are no ready answers and, except their basic instincts, couples have nowhere to turn to.

But things may change. If Dr. John Gottman of the Family Research Lab at the University of Washington is to be believed, the results of a free marriage quiz that he has come up with can be a pointer to the success or failure of a marriage. And, he claims, 90 percent of his predictions are accurate.

Gottman, who has been studying what he calls the “masters and disasters” of marriage, has designed this quiz based on his predictions after measuring heart rates, observing facial expressions, and evaluating how couples talk about their marriage.

According to what a panel of medical specialists said in Jeddah last week, whether the couples will make it or not depends to a large extent on their sexual life.

And the bad news is: A Pfizer-sponsored Sexual Health and Overall Wellness (SHOW) survey, which interviewed a total of 500 men and 500 women from Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Egypt, Lebanon, Algeria, Morocco and South Africa, shows 53 percent of men and 37 percent of women from these countries are unhappy with their sex lives.

The survey, which was commissioned to gain insight into sexual wellbeing and the unmet sexual needs of those who responded, threw these startling figures. Sex is clearly important to both men and women. From a list of 17 life priorities, including aspects such as family life, work or career, social life, and physical health, sex was highly rated by men (placed third) and only slightly less so for women.

“While 72 percent of men and 64 percent of women expressed an interest in improving their sex lives, surprisingly only 8 percent of men sought advice from a health care professional to enhance their sexual performance,” said UK-based Dr. John Dean, president of the International Society for Sexual Medicine (ISSM).

He added: “Sexual health and intimacy is crucial to the overall wellbeing and quality of life of married couples.”

The SHOW survey also highlights a clear correlation between physical satisfaction and better sex, he said.

“The general misconception for men above the ages of 35 is that they are not young and should be satisfied with grade 3 erection,” said Hassan Farsi, professor of urology and head of urology department at King Abdul Aziz University Hospital and head of the Saudi Andrology Group. “This is absolutely wrong and men should address this issue. Many unpreventable ailment and life stressors, including diabetes, high blood pressure or even regular everyday stress from work, finances or family may cause a man not to acquire G4 erection.”

Commenting on the results of the survey, professor Tarek Anis, chairman of Egypt-based Pan-Arab Society for Sexual Medicine Middle East, said: “Men and women from countries in the Middle East and Africa are telling us that sex is very important to them, but that there is a lot of scope for improvement. We now also know that hardness of erection is one of the most important attributes to enjoying a good sexual experience.”

He went on to add: “Due to lack of sexual confidence, some men may be missing out on the ability to please their partner. These men may also find themselves at risk of depression, anxiety and low self-esteem. However, chances for improving erection has become greater following the introduction of erectile dysfunction (ED) medicines in 1998 that help improve erection and gain G4 hardness.”

Hard facts indeed. Pardon the pun. But, if couples truly want their marriage to succeed, they can’t afford to take things lying down anymore.