I believe it is well documented that the pill can lower the sex drive in a percentage of women. From what I’ve read, it appears that medical professionals used to believe that if you stop taking the pill, the libido would return to normal. There now appears to be studies that indicate this can be a longer term change.
My question is, if you are a woman who experiences decreased libido as a result of taking the pill, but you wanted to continue on the pill, does dosage/brand/type have any impact on the sex drive? In other words, could changing pills cause a bounce back up of the old libido? Any women here on SDMB who have experienced this?
Thanks,
MeanJoe - Who is a guy but is trying to understand potential reasons for his ex-girlfriends low sex drive.
I’m kinda curious myself. My gf was on birth control for years, and a few months ago decided to go off for a while - for about 2-3 weeks she was horny as hell, then gradually went back to her usual libido (which isn’t super high, as is more below average I would say). She is back on now, but plans to switch to another kind after these packs are gone, so we’ll see if anything changes.
People talk about “the birth control pill” but in reality there are over 40 brands with different combinations of different synthetic hormones, each affecting each individual woman differently. In my experience, the first move a prescriber will make on hearing a report of reduced libido, is switch to a “low dose” pill that is as similar as possible in formulation to the existing pill, for example, if using Ortho Tricyclen, switch to OrthoTricyclen Lo.
If that doesn’t work, or if no comparable low-dose pill is available (or if low dose pills don’t work out because of spotting between periods) then you have to try a new formulation, which can be a shot in the dark (although I had one doc – actually a Nurse Practitioner – who had a “Nurse’s Oral Contraception Troubleshooting Guide.” I have no idea if it’s widely available.)
But, again, in my personal experience, switching brands can have a strong positive effect on libido. Noting,however, that you have to give it 3 months to “settle in” – changes are not always felt immediately.
Wow, I was actually just about to start a thread on this very topic!
Decreased libido as a result of taking Yaz is something I’m dealing with right now. This pill works wonderfully for me now, expect for this one side effect. I can’t switch to a different pill because Yaz is the only pill that has a progesterone which acts as a diuretic which I need to not get really bloated. (I tried other pills, they just made me bloat 10 pounds).
The problem with decreased libido is that is doesn’t bother YOU, it bothers your partner. So, it’s a side effect that effects other people. I don’t miss having sex, because I’m not feeling into it. However, I know it bothers my boyfriend, so I feel bad. I’ll have to take a look at these studies which indicate the change can be long term. Do you have a link to these?
I joke that the low libido is the reason for the pill’s efficacy. It’s much harder to get pregnant if you’re not having sex.
The side effects of hormonal contraception vary hugely from woman to woman. I suppose it’s possible that there is a pill out there that will kill one woman’s libido and not affect another woman. Unfortunately it’s really hard to jump from brand to brand since you need several months for evaluation. Libido is a difficult thing to quantify. You end up wondering if you don’t want sex because of the birth control, or if it’s because you’ve had a really stressful month at work, or if it’s because your boyfriend was acting like a jerk, or do you just think your boyfriend is acting like a jerk because the horomones have made you crazy and you hate the world and want to kill everyone. (Nuva ring made me homicidal)
I suspect that if a manufacturer came up with a pill that could legally claim to have no negative impact on libido, sales would be through the roof. The tricky parts are finding such a drug and proving it scientifically.
Yes, this exactly! I was so frustrated all the time because she just didn’t seem to have any interest. No “drive” to have sex. If I started it, she would respond but if I did not, well… nothing.
Now just to be clear - I’m not jumping to a conclusion that the pill was WHY this was the case. I suspect there are other factors too.
Has anyone had luck by changing pills and seeing an increase in libido? Or is the likely only by switching to a different birth control method entirely?
Sorry I wasn’t clear – I switched to a low-dose pill in a different formulation and the effects were marked (although not immediate as I described above).
