Pill & sex drive question

[dawn515]

I've been on the pill since June. At first I had TERRIBLE side-effects, but they subsided after three months. Currently I'm on Ortho-Tricyclen, and the one lasting side-effect is that it's lowered my sex drive. I still have one, but it's considerably lower before I started taking the pill.

 

I don't like this!

 

I know there are other options out there with a lower dose of the hormones, minimizing side-effects like this one. Anyone else had this problem? Have you switched to a lower-dose Pill? If so, how has it worked for you? What do you take instead?

 

Any input would be greatly appreciated!

[birdgirl]

The Pill lowers my sex drive and makes me weepy and suicidal. I had even worse luck with depo provera. Depo made me completely lose my mind. The pill was really bad for me, too. The Ring (nuva ring) was the best for me, but it still messed me up. I would recommend the Ring for you.

 

As far as I'm concerned, I lost ten years of my life to the pill. I thought I had sexual/depression problems till I got completely off hormonal birth control and found I was fine.

 

Now I use condoms... and I hate them! But I figure I'll eventually have kids and my future husband will eventually get a vasectomy, and then I won't have to deal with them anymore.

 

To me, condoms are a small price to pay for my sanity and a sex drive.

[dawn515]

Hey birdgirl,

 

Thanks for your input. I have thought about the ring, but I don't know much about it.

 

I've never done Depro, but I have heard from other friends that it's horrible! Luckily for me, the Pill never made me suicidal, but I was "weepy" the first three months.. and nauseous, and moody, the list goes on...

 

These symptoms disappeared after a few months, so I seem to be tolerating it well thus far. The only problem is the sex drive. It's just not the same. I wondered if anyone else had luck with oral contraceptives that were a lower dose? I've heard about it but not tried it. It would be nice to have my old sex drive back!

[elaineska]

I'm on Ortho Tri-Cyclen LO and I've had no side effects to speak of. I've been on it for about 2 years and I think it's great.

[RayKay]

I was on Ortho Tri Cyclen for ten years, the last couple years was on the Lo. For the first couple, there was no changes, but increasingly my sex drive began to wane, and I had low grade depression and huge anxiety. I thought it was just my personality.....and then I started linking 2 & 2 together, and when I went off the pill last April I REALLY could see how it had impacted things. Turns out I have a rather high sex drive again, and that I am really NOT anxious and my moods are well, my moods again and not so "monotone" and low. Little things like memory also seem better. It does make sense, as extra hormones really do affect those things.

 

I went off it due to the breast cancer risk in my family (and my mother was just diagnosed in December last year) and a change in doctors that had me with a doctor whom actually listened to my concerns and did not dismiss them. However, I am SO glad I went off it for MANY more reasons!

 

 

I now use non hormonal birth control (copper IUD) and would never go back.