You need your prescription, but you still want to have great sex. Can you have it both ways? Read on to find out what to do if you think your prescription might be inhibiting your sex life.
Pre-existing Conditions May Come Into Play
Since antidepressants and anti-anxiety meds are some of the most common prescriptions that can diminish your sexual pleasure, it can be hard to tease apart what’s going on because of the medication and what you were dealing with before due to your mental health. Put simply: anxiety and depression can cause you to lose interest in sex, so it may be difficult to notice when your sex drive dips a little deeper thanks to a med. You may have already been having a hard time having sex.
Making matters more complicated is that a dip in your sex life can make you more anxious or depressed. Your sexual health is a delicate balance that relies on several factors, and untangling the pre-existing roadblocks can help even while you remain on the prescription. The medication may simply be amplifying difficulty that was already there, so it’s important to throw everything at it that you can. No matter where you are on the spectrum of high libido to low libido, working with a medical team to get the most out of your sex life can be helpful.
Check With Your Doc
Some of the most commonly prescribed drugs can contribute to your low libido. Not only can your sex drive take a hit, but you might have noticed difficulty achieving orgasm. If you take medication and have noticed a decrease in your sexual function, it’s worth asking your doctor if your prescription could be the culprit.
One of the problems is that your doctor may not have warned you beforehand that taking your medication will have sexual side effects. Or, if you were warned, you may still be unsure exactly what that looks like. These side effects may feel deeply personal, so if your doctor didn’t bring them up first, it can be a little intimidating to mention them yourself. Your doctor can’t guess whether it’s bothering you, so speaking up is essential. Further, your doctor doesn’t know how important sex is to you until you tell them. It may be a crucial factor in your quality of life, or it may be a minor inconvenience.
Speaking Up
Honing the ability to advocate for yourself won’t just help you right now but throughout your life. As we age, doctor’s appointments and medical interventions often become more frequent. If you can tell your doctor how you’re feeling, you’ll have crafted a lasting skill. Practicing with your best friend or partner before you go in so you know precisely what you want to communicate can be helpful. That way, you won’t have to come up with something on the spot.
If it feels impossible to tell your doctor, you may be with the wrong doctor. Unfortunately, changing doctors may prove difficult depending on where you live and your insurance coverage. If you can, try somewhere else where you feel you can be more open about your symptoms, sexual or otherwise. Ideally, you’ll feel like you’re partnering with your doctor to make the best possible decisions about your health, and that starts with you vocally advocating for yourself and letting them know what side effects are unacceptable to you.
Tell Your Lover
Communicating with your partner is key, too. If you leave them in the dark, they may come up with a worst-case scenario that leads to a disconnect in your relationship. For more information about how to communicate with your partner about sex, watch my video:
The good news is that most medications don’t have permanent sexual side effects. Typically, you’ll return to your normal level of sex drive after the prescription leaves your system.
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Bio: Dr. Nazanin Moali is a clinical psychologist and sex therapist in the Los Angeles area. She works with various individuals to understand and improve their sexuality. Dr. Moali conducts personal consultation sessions in her Torrance and Hermosa Beach offices, or via a secure, online video-counseling platform. Click here to take the sex quiz for women.