1995 Lexus ES 300 Stiff Steering

Does the engine have a kind of whine when running? If so then the system probably is either low or empty on power steering fluid. Or the system needs to be bled by turning the steering wheel from stop to stop.

Thanks soo much for the quick reply. The engine does not make any kind of noise. I will definitely try to turn the wheel at every stop. Is this a normal issue or is this something that may need to be repaired?

If bleeding the system does not fix the problem I would say that it needs to be repaired. The proper way to bleed a power steering system is while the engine is running & transmission in park or neutral turn the steering wheel all th way to the left until it stops, then all the way to the right until it stops. That is what I meant by from stop to stop. Sorry for the confusion.