The Birth Control Shot Has Left Her Feeling Anxious and Without Any Desire for Sex

Since starting birth control, she has become unaccountably anxious and lost her desire for sex. When she does engage, intercourse is painful rather than pleasurable. Other physical symptoms, resulting from a buildup of synthetic hormones, also plague her.

Case #: 876

Concern：

Three months ago, I started the birth control shot. One month later I was diagnosed with anxiety problems, so my doctor put me on Fluoxetine as well. Ever since the two have gotten into my system, I find that I cannot enjoy sex anymore. It also hurts to have intercourse. I have no sexual desire, and when it was time for my next birth control shot, my period lasted three weeks. During the last week, I started clotting really bad.

Discussion：

Hormones regulate a number of functions in the female body. They control reproductive processes, sexual responses and even emotions. Researchers speculate that women go through such a wide range of emotions during their menstrual cycles because of hormone fluctuations. Estrogen in particular can create feelings of calm or anxiety, depending on whether its levels are high or low.

Hormones, Mood and Birth Control

Estrogen and progesterone, the two primary female sex hormones, exist in a state of balance within the body. They offset each other’s functions – such as fat storage and blood clotting – to ensure each is in perfect proportion. This is not to say the body is in a state of perfection, but that hormones serve to stabilize its internal operations.

Chemicals within the body are concentrated, and even tiny quantities can significantly influence the way a person feels and thinks. Hormones also have specific functions so that one does not interfere or overlap with another. These traits are why women often feel so helpless to control their moods during their menstruation cycles.

Birth control shots prevent pregnancy by altering a woman’s body chemistry and ceasing ovulation. These combined effects, which typically lead to hormonal imbalances, cause one in three women to develop anxiety or depression. Women who experience mild forms of either disorder before starting birth control are even more susceptible. Anti-anxiety and anti-depressant medications can further throw the body out of whack and cause additional side effects.

Mood and Sexual Desire

A desire for sex starts surprisingly in the head, not the genitals, where neurotransmitters send complex messages throughout the brain. This is an oversimplified explanation, because in reality those messages require adequate hormone levels that transmit them in the first place. Without the hormones and synapses they ignite, a woman simply will not want sex.

Unlike men, the female desire for intercourse is more closely related to psychology than biology. This means a woman who is tired, frustrated or sad will have much more difficulty feeling aroused than a man who experiences those same emotions. A woman needs to be comfortable and in the “right” mood in order to want sex; a man wants sex much more frequently just because of his chemical composition.

Dips in estrogen levels usually account for a loss of libido in women. Those dips most often occur monthly, before a woman’s period, and at the onset of menopause. They can also be the result of birth control shots, which contain synthetic blends of estrogen and progesterone and disrupt natural hormone levels. Thus, the very contraceptive blends intended to prevent pregnancy can throw a wet sheet on a woman’s sex life.

Medications like Fluoxetine, which is classified as a selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI), also wreak havoc on a woman’s libido. SSRIs relieve anxiety and depression by increasing the amount of serotonin in the brain and reducing levels of dopamine. Dopamine is a neurotransmitter and responsible for healthy sexual responses. When these chemicals are influenced by medications, they instantly change a woman’s mood and her desire for sex.

Feel Sexual Desire Again

Repeated use of chemical-laden birth control can cause synthetic hormones to accumulate in your body. This buildup interferes with natural processes and keeps you from wanting sex. The solution, therefore, is a detoxification formula designed to help you expel toxins. Such herbs as Milk Thistle and Catuaba cleanse the liver and promote hormonal balances. (SEE: Rekindle Formula for Passion Revival) They also stimulate the growth of healthy genital tissues so you are once more filled with desire for intercourse.