# The Pill That Kills Your Sex Drive



## Skate Daddy 9 (Sep 19, 2011)

There is an article on Mens Health called “The Pill That Kills Your Sex Drive” and I think a lot of people who come on this site complaining about mismatched sex drives should consider reading it. I will not post the whole article but here are a few interesting quotes from it:
“These drugs do their work in the brain, which is why they can influence not just erections but also affection, connection, love, and attachment. That can leave you wondering if your lover's indifference derives from her heart, her head, her med, or a jumble of all three.”

“The drugs also affect the way you think, feel, and relate to others. By raising serotonin, SSRIs overload receptors designed to keep dopamine activity high. That means less dopamine between neurons that serve as reward pathways of the brain. It is this neurotransmitter that makes possible thoughts like I want her, I need her, and even I love her. Depleting dopamine might distort, delay, or doom relationships.”

“The effect has a clinical name: emotional blunting. We have known since the late 1980s that antidepressants can induce apathy and indifference. Emotional blunting can be helpful in reducing feelings of sadness in depression, or fear and anxiety. But blunting also diminishes the kind of positive emotions you need to make a genuine connection with a romantic partner.”

The article is interesting because instead of just telling you that Zoloft kills your sex drive it tells you why it is hard for people on them to make any real emotional connection.


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## Anon Pink (Jan 17, 2013)

Which is why people should not take anti depressants unless they are also in therapy. 

Good post.


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## tacoma (May 1, 2011)

Anon Pink said:


> Which is why people should not take anti depressants unless they are also in therapy.
> 
> Good post.


Too many people consider the medication the "fix" for their problem.

The medication should be a "temporary relief" until they can get a handle on it themselves, usually through therapy.


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## Noble1 (Oct 25, 2013)

Sad to say, but I've seen too many people rely on a 'magic pill' and won't put in the real effort needed to make real changes.

Both mental and physical changes.


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## Sbrown (Jul 29, 2012)

If it wasn't for the side effects I'd take thus hoping to at least knock the edge off my drive. I've always been hd but ever since I've gotten my t levels back to normal I feel like a sex crazed maniac. It consumes my every waking thought. So frustrating.
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## jay1365 (May 22, 2013)

The best pill for killing a sex drive and making you happy is oxycontin, bar none. Spoken from experience.


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## WellyVamp (Apr 26, 2013)

It's not just anti depressants that kill your libido. I've had to start taking another epilepsy med and I can't orgasm on it. It has really killed my sex drive.


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## jorgegene (May 26, 2012)

I was on prozac for about a year after the death of my brother at age 43 I went into a deep depression. It helped get me through the worst and was a real blessing.

As far as sex on it, it did have an affect. I could get hard quite easily and normally, but couldn't come. Very hard to come. I could please my lady because I could last so long without coming, but eventually, it bothered her that I couldn't come.

that was 2007. 

more recently, I found that antihistimines affect my performance.
There is no warning on the bottle, but after some online research I found evidence that it can indeed induce ED.

I try to stay off of it except for very occasional use.


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## onedge (Nov 27, 2013)

My husband has taken a ssri intermittently in the past. Yes for us it has been a romance killer, marriage killer, finance killer. It literally left him indifferent. When he told the doctor about not giving a crap about anything, the doc said but you don't have panic attacks anymore. I never really understood why he was put on an ssri for occasional panic attack. He literally would have an episode maybe 3 times a year. The first time he was put on them, we ended up in financial ruin. By the time, I realized what was happening it took several years to dig our way back out. He promised not to go back on them after that but he did two more times. Each time, it destroyed all the work we put into our marriage within a few weeks of starting them and I couldn't figure out why. He kept the Rx a secret each time and this last time I told him it is the pills or my trust in him.

I do agree that taking an antidepressant should involve therapy because the side effects could outweigh the benefit and it needs to be monitored.

Jorgegene...I think the non orgasm side effect is rather downplayed more than it should be. It can create a new set of problems that feeds the depression or anxiety. Interesting on the antihistimines.


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## highwood (Jan 12, 2012)

I agree! H was on Effexor for 3 years or so and was weaned off of the pills in December 2011. Still to this date (2 - 1/2 years later) has side effects from it.

It is called POST SSRI sexual dysfunction..sometimes can be permanent. I wish doctors would notify patients about this prior to prescribing. Very nasty stuff...yet doctors prescribe them like candy.


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## jorgegene (May 26, 2012)

highwood;

what are the enduring side effects?

fortunately, I have no permanent side effect from the prozac.

After I weaned myself slowly off, the symptoms (difficult orgasm) gradually dissapeared.


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## Hicks (Jan 14, 2011)

The most effective sex drive killer known to man is a wedding ring.


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## highwood (Jan 12, 2012)

jorgegene said:


> highwood;
> 
> what are the enduring side effects?
> 
> ...


Basically still no sex drive and ED...and remember this is 2-1/2 years after he stopped taking the Effexor.

Do a google search of Post SSRI sexual dysfunction.


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## waylan (Apr 23, 2014)

Evil Stuff. Also known to make folks suicidal.


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## committed_guy (Nov 22, 2011)

Skate Daddy 9 said:


> There is an article on Mens Health called “The Pill That Kills Your Sex Drive” and I think a lot of people who come on this site complaining about mismatched sex drives should consider reading it. I will not post the whole article but here are a few interesting quotes from it:
> “These drugs do their work in the brain, which is why they can influence not just erections but also affection, connection, love, and attachment. That can leave you wondering if your lover's indifference derives from her heart, her head, her med, or a jumble of all three.”
> 
> “The drugs also affect the way you think, feel, and relate to others. By raising serotonin, SSRIs overload receptors designed to keep dopamine activity high. That means less dopamine between neurons that serve as reward pathways of the brain. It is this neurotransmitter that makes possible thoughts like I want her, I need her, and even I love her. Depleting dopamine might distort, delay, or doom relationships.”
> ...


Perfect description of what I am experiencing with my wife. She is the one on SSRI's and has absolutely no sex drive.

I've kinda given up and thought about asking my doc for the same thing. Then at least I would be happy without sex, right? But I don't want that on my medical record.


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## WellyVamp (Apr 26, 2013)

Has anyone else found that doctors and consultants aren't very sympathetic about this problem? My neurologist's attitude seems to be that the medication is doing its job, so I should stop moaning and suck it up.


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## hookares (Dec 7, 2011)

WellyVamp said:


> Has anyone else found that doctors and consultants aren't very sympathetic about this problem? My neurologist's attitude seems to be that the medication is doing its job, so I should stop moaning and suck it up.


They all seem to possess tunnel vision. I experienced a fall after slipping on a tile floor and striking my head. It bled enough that my friend panicked and she called 911 and off to the hospital tied down on a board so tight that I couldn't expand my lungs. A cat scan showed quite a bit of bleeding inside my head so three days later I found myself taking Keppra twice a day. Talk about indifference, I now know it well. My problem now is that although I frequently get sexual feelings, nothing comes from it as far as completion for me. My gal friend seems to lose interest after about thirty minutes regardless of how it comes out for her.
I get a cat scan again in two weeks and if the excess free blood is gone, I will be making my views in regards to this "wonder drug" known to the witch doctor.


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## jorgegene (May 26, 2012)

WellyVamp said:


> Has anyone else found that doctors and consultants aren't very sympathetic about this problem? My neurologist's attitude seems to be that the medication is doing its job, so I should stop moaning and suck it up.


being on medication always has negative side effects. you've got to weigh the positives against the negatives.

clinical depression is one of the worst things anyone can go through. the drugs can do wonders just to get you through the worst. you've got to heal yourself but it takes time.
I found in my case the benefits outweighed the side effects.
I didn't care that much that it was hard to come. I was ok that I could still get hard and perform.

Absolutely doctors are often just 'pill doctors', not real physicians. Not to knock them to much, but a lot of them are just too busy, don't care enough and too 'high and mighty'.
We have put them on a pedestal and they have forgotten they are first and foremost healers.

Just got to search I guess until you find one that's sympathetic.
I did years ago when I had a weird throat issue. I kept looking to a dr., went through about six of them until I found healer.

Either that or seek alternatives. i.e. eastern medicine, natural healers, chiropractics, et. they sometimes work better than pill doctors.


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## kag123 (Feb 6, 2012)

I started my own thread about my medical struggles over in the general section. One of my struggles is mental - depression/anxiety...history of suicidal ideations and panic attacks and ER visits. 

As a result I have been taking SSRI'S for over 2 years. Negative side effects are those listed on this thread: sex killer, no drive, no O. Less emotion.

Positive attributes: I no longer think about killing myself and planning for it on a daily basis. I am functional and am able to keep my job and mother my children. I can use my brain for reason and logic again, instead of being stuck in a swirling mess of fear/panic/racing thoughts. 

That being said - I have absolutely no plans to go off the meds anytime soon. Maybe ever. After dealing with my mental illness thru all of the other non - medicated channels and seeing no improvement, I'm sticking with the meds. I'm convinced that it's an actual brain chemistry problem after trying so hard to convince myself it wasnt. 

Do I think SSRIs are over prescribed? Yes. For sure. 

But if you've been there and lived it yourself, you might find that the side effects are worth it and a necessary evil. My current thought process is: Im alive and functioning. That's a huge upswing from where I was. 

If that means I gave up full enjoyment of sex, then for right now I will take it. Views may change with time.


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## kag123 (Feb 6, 2012)

*Re: Re: The Pill That Kills Your Sex Drive*



kag123 said:


> I started my own thread about my medical struggles over in the general section. One of my struggles is mental - depression/anxiety...history of suicidal ideations and panic attacks and ER visits.
> 
> As a result I have been taking SSRI'S for over 2 years. Negative side effects are those listed on this thread: sex killer, no drive, no O. Less emotion.
> 
> ...


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## ThinkTooMuch (Aug 6, 2010)

tacoma said:


> Too many people consider the medication the "fix" for their problem.
> 
> The medication should be a "temporary relief" until they can get a handle on it themselves, usually through therapy.


I have to agree in theory and disagree in practice. 

There are several far too common neurological conditions - Multiple Sclerosis is one, Parkinson's another, google will show many others - where depression is one of the many effects of the disease. 

For those who are dealing with situational depression therapy can be extremely helpful - I speak from personal experience.

The problem with therapy is there are a huge number of people calling themselves "counselors", "therapists", etc that are incompetent when dealing with a client's issues. Among them, IMO, my ex w, a MSW with the highest level of certification. 

I could add several other "counselors" that I and my partner have seen over the years - we are both 65, we met three years ago. Most of these folks did not have Ph.Ds in psychotherapy or psychiatry, but several did. 

Since this discussion is about Pills, it isn't only anti-depressants that kill sex drive. I know that several meds given to breast cancer patients with estrogen sensitive tumors will have a similar impact. I'm willing to bet a nickel that the meds for prostate cancer have similar effects.

I'm sure there are many others and strongly recommend extensive reading when you are Rx'd a med.

More important, there are several very effective anti-d's that are almost impossible to stop. Effexor (venlafaxine HCl) is one of them which I tried to stop with my dr's help. Got my dosage down as low as possible, almost to the point where Dr. J was ready to Rx Wellbutrin which is easier to stop, but my brain couldn't let go. 

The moral of this story is I "strongly recommend extensive reading when you are Rx'd a med" especially when it is an anti-depressant.


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