Hormone Replacement Therapy For Low Sex Drive In Women
Hormone pills have also been widely prescribed by doctors to improve libido. But pills also have to be remembered every day and can also cause a roller coaster effect of fluctuation hormones. Additionally, hormone pills are typically one-dose-fits-all prescriptions that are not customized for the patients unique and specific hormone imbalances.
However, a newer and more effective way to treat a reduced libido caused by menopausal hormone decline is 100% natural SottoPelle Method Bioidentical Hormone Replacement using subdermal pellets.
What Is The Role Of Testosterone In Women
Testosterone is known as the male sex hormone, but women also have it. The ovaries produce testosterone, along with estrogen and progesterone. Testosterone is involved in the production of serotonin and dopamine in the brain, influencing a womans sex drive. Testosterone also helps keep bones and muscles strong, maintains energy levels, and boosts memory and concentration.
F Female Androgen Insufficiency
The pharmaceutical industrys interest in androgen therapies for the treatment of low libido in women is fueled in large part by the concept of female androgen insufficiency. In June of 2001, experts in the field of womens sexual health convened in Princeton, New Jersey, to consider the role androgens play in womens health and well-being, with a particular focus on womens sexual functioning . The Princeton Conference released a consensus statement introducing the diagnosis of female androgen insufficiency, defined as a pattern of clinical symptoms associated with low levels of bioavailable testosterone . Androgen replacement therapy was logically recommended as a treatment for female androgen insufficiency, although there were no Food and Drug Administration approved androgen therapies for women available at the time . It was noted, however, that the symptoms of female androgen insufficiencywere based on clinical observations and expert opinion, and that there were no epidemiological data establishing that the symptoms of female androgen insufficiency was actually associated with low levels of circulating testosterone .
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Does Hrt Boost Sex Drive
Low libido and absence of sexual desire is a common problem for aging men and women. However, it should not be accepted as a normal part of the aging process and can in fact be treated. Studies have proven that men and women over the age of 50 actually experience a more fulfilled sex life than the younger population. A portion of this fulfillment is linked to the intimacy and sexual confidence that comes with a long-term relationship, but when men and women achieve hormone balance, sexual satisfaction and desire improves dramatically as well, promoting sexual well-being for the individual and the relationship.
How Is Hypogonadism Diagnosed
Your healthcare provider will assess your symptoms and perform a physical exam. Women may also have a pelvic exam.
You may get one or more of these tests:
- Blood test: A blood test can check levels of sex hormones, thyroid hormones, prolactin and iron. Youll get this test in the morning, when hormone levels are at their highest.
- Imaging tests: An MRI or CT scan can identify tumors in the pituitary gland or brain. An ultrasound can check for problems like ovarian cysts or polycystic ovary syndrome .
- This test measures sperm count.
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A Graceful Journey Through Menopause
Keeping Your Sex Drive Alive
While declining female hormones may lead to a loss of sexual desire, difficulty becoming aroused, and the inability to reach , these changes do not happen to all older women. And if you do experience problems with sexual function over time, there are treatments that can help you stay sexually active well into your later years.
Treatment options for hormone-related female sexual dysfunction include:
- Estrogen therapy. Taking estrogen hormone therapy can help relieve symptoms of low estrogen levels, including vaginal dryness. For many women, estrogen therapy can make sex more comfortable and enjoyable. However, since estrogen therapy has been associated with an increased risk of endometrial cancer, it is recommended that women with an intact uterus take progesterone along with estrogen, to reduce this risk.
- Topical estrogen. Another way to deliver estrogen to your body is through vaginal estrogen creams. These creams are thought to help increase vaginal lubrication and sexual arousal in postmenopausal women.
- Testosterone therapy. Many studies have looked at using testosterone supplementation to help improve sexual desire in women with female sexual dysfunction. Researchers have found that testosterone therapy may improve sexual desire in postmenopausal women who have problems with sex drive and sexual satisfaction as well.
What Are The Sex Glands And Sex Hormones
Testicles in the male reproductive system produce testosterone, the main male hormone. Hypogonadism in men is the result of low testosterone.
Ovaries in the female reproductive system produce estrogen, progesterone and testosterone. Women with hypogonadism are often low in estrogen and progesterone.
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Limitations Of Testosterone Rcts To Date
One of the co-authors of the testosterone patch studies has addressed the question of clinical relevance of the documented statistically significant benefit , in women involved in two of the patch studies . The study was underpowered given that it was estimated that 200 women would be needed to detect a 20% difference between the groups, whereas 132 women were studied. Some 52% of the women receiving active drug reported meaningful treatment benefit compared with 31% receiving placebo. On subanalysis of three areas , differences were not significant. Confirming a meaningful therapeutic benefit in some women does not negate the concern that using current understanding of women sexual response , both pre- and post-therapy the women’s sexual responses were within normal limits. The typical psychological profile of women who present with desire concerns such that they are diagnosed with having HSDD must be borne in mind: even when carefully excluding women with clinical depression, there is evidence of higher numbers of depressed and anxious thoughts, more mood lability, and low self-image . Put very simply: would happier mid-aged and older women be distressed to have only close to three sexually satisfactory sexual experiences per month?
Hormone Therapies For Low Libido In Postmenopausal Women
Researchers have invested a great deal of effort over the past three decades in assessing whether estrogen or androgen therapies are more effective at increasing sexual desire in postmenopausal women. In 2004, Alexander et al. reviewed all double-blind randomized controlled trials to date examining the effects of estrogen and/or androgen therapies on sexual desire and/or functioning in postmenopausal women . The authors concluded that certain estrogen therapies were associated with an improvement in female sexual functioning, but that androgen therapies were only effective at improving female sexual functioning when administered in combination with an estrogen . We analyzed the ten studies included in the Alexander et al. review, focusing specifically on circulating hormone levels produced by treatment and their relationship to sexual desire. In addition, we analyzed five studies excluded from Alexander et al. because they were not double-blind randomized controlled trials , and eight double-blind randomized controlled trials published after 2004 that investigated the effects of estrogen and/or androgen therapies on sexual desire in postmenopausal women . Table 1 provides details of all studies included in the following review.
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How Do Hormone Levels Affect A Womans Sex Drive
Falling hormone levels during menopause cause several symptoms, including weight gain, sleeplessness, hot flashes, and mood swings. These can all affect a womans libido, in addition to repressing her natural sexual desire. Even though most people associate menopause with lowered estrogen levels, other hormones such as progesterone and testosterone also dip during this time.
Restoring Your Hormone Levels
HRT helps reverse your loss of libido by replacing some of the hormones your body no longer makes.
Here at Virtuosa GYN, we opt to use bioidentical HRT for loss of libido and other menopausal symptoms. Bioidentical HRT uses natural hormones from plants rather than synthetic hormones.
This treatment provides estrogen, progesterone, and in some cases, testosterone, all of which are molecularly identical to the hormones that your body produces.
Dr. Crockett believes these natural hormones are more effective than their synthetic counterparts because your body can metabolize them more effectively.
If we recommend bioidentical HRT and you choose to avail yourself of this therapeutic option, you go through testing to determine your own personal hormone profile and the specific makeup of the HRT you should receive. That way, you get the precise hormone restoration that you need.
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Visits With A Sex Specialist
Personal experiences can stack up over time, leading to diminished sex drive and discomfort with intimacy. Talking with a sex therapist gives patients a safe space to discuss past trauma, current difficulties, and relationship issues without judgment. A therapist can help you understand why these situations are decreasing your libido and help you find healthy pathways to start feeling better.
Psychosexual counseling is another avenue that can help women and their partners understand how the mind and body interplay with regards to intimacy. In these sessions, the therapist works with the patient or couple to express their feelings, discuss medical concerns that are interfering with sex, and find workable solutions to satisfy their personal and relationship goals.
Attention Women: Low Sex Drive Testosterone Wont Help
For women seeking treatment for low sex drive, the idea of a quick fix probably sounds appealing. Testosterone therapy and boosting supplements are among those widely marketed options that might seem too good to be true because for most women, they are.
Low testosterone products for women such as pills, injections, or supplements like dehydroepiandrosterone claim to boost energy, mood, and sexual desire. However, low-T as the root cause for low sex drive is rare in women, especially before menopause.
The Endocrine Society stated in 2019 that while trying testosterone therapy is generally safe for post-menopausal women with hypoactive sexual desire disorder not wanting sex and not being OK with feeling that way they do not support low-T therapy for other female health conditions. Side effects from testosterone therapy in women can include:
- Deepening of voice
- Abnormal fetal development during pregnancy
One in three women struggle with low sexual desire, and most patients start noticing libido changes after menopause. However, low libido can occur at any age and is often caused by problems that arent directly linked with the bedroom, such as anxiety, stress, medications, or undiagnosed chronic conditions.
The first step is to pinpoint the source or sources of sexual frustration. From there we can design a personalized treatment plan that can help improve overall health along with libido.
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Hormones To Boost Your Libido
During menopause, it is common for many women to experience an imbalance of hormones and loss of libido. Loss of libido can be extremely upsetting for women for a number of reasons. Not only do some women feel as though they are missing out on something that was previously very important to them, loss of libido can have a negative impact on relationships. Many couples are left struggling to adapt when a menopausal women experiences loss of libido. However, there are different treatment options menopausal women can turn to for help with their loss of libido.
What Is Low Sex Drive
To begin, it is important to clarify what wemean by sex drive. There are infinite valid reasons for a woman to not want tohave sex, either in specific instances or more generally. But when we aretalking about a woman with low sex drive, we mean someone who would like tofeel sexual desire, but just doesnt. In severe cases that result insignificant distress, you may be diagnosed with hypoactive sexual desiredisorder. However, lack of sex drive doesnt have to reach the point of adiagnosable condition to be troubling and warrant attention.
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Sexual Desire After Surgical Menopause
Whereas natural menopause per se does not alter intracrine or ovarian testosterone production, surgical menopause obviously removes all ovarian testosterone, ovarian DHEA and A4 production. Interestingly, cross-sectional epidemiological data in HSDD show that surgically menopausal women are distressed by lowered desire more than are age-matched women with intact ovaries . However, they do not have a higher prevalence of low desire per se . Moreover, prospective studies of elective bilateral salpingo-oophorectomy along with a necessary elective perimenopausal hysterectomy do not identify any decrease in women’s sexual function when they are followed for up to 3 years . It would seem the cross-sectional epidemiological studies likely include some women whose oophorectomies were unchosen to then impose infertility, and/or were associated with malignant disease. Thus, in some instances the thematic context of bilateral oophorectomies is likely to impair sexual desire and function.
Advantages And Disadvantages Of Testosterone Use In Women
Several randomized, controlled trials of exogenous testosterone therapy in postmenopausal women suggested improvements in sexual desire, sexual responsiveness, and frequency of sexual activity.11-14 With the exception of a particular testosterone-alone arm in one study that included no data on adverse events, these trials combined testosterone with either estrogen therapy or, for women with an intact uterus, estrogen-progestin therapy.11-15 However, despite findings of short-term efficacy for testosterone therapy in women, reviews of safety in long-term studies are lacking.
Possible beneficial effects of testosterone therapy, such as reduced fracture risk and improved cognitive function, require further research. It is difficult to know which route of administration is more advantageous however, transdermal application has several advantages over other forms of administration. When testosterone is taken orally, there is extensive first-pass metabolism in the liver that would be prevented with topical application. IM injections are invasive, but topical gels are painless and easy to apply. There are peaks and troughs associated with injections, whereas the topical method remains constant. With patches, there is a limited amount of exposure to the medication, but this modality is often associated with application-site reactions, and the patch is visible on the skin.16
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How Did Hrt Affect Your Sex Life
Sonya* is a cisgender woman in her late teens whos been taking Tri-Lo-Sprintec and a weekly estrogen shot to treat a thyroid condition over the past couple of years.
Sonya reports feeling hypersexuality up until she started HRT. She was surprised not only by the change in her libido, but also that her preference for women shifted over mostly to men.
Overall, though, she shares: To me it hasnt changed my sexual habits much other than my libido dropping some, because it mostly was to treat my facial hair growth, weight gain, and body odor, but its been enough to notice.
Then theres Matt*, a 34-year-old queer, married cisgender man whos been taking testosterone for around two years. He started HRT when his partner requested he see a doctor to help battle his fatigue and moodiness. He identified as a serial monogamist who enjoyed intimacy most in committed relationships.
After T, though, Its like someone had totally rewired my brain and I wanted to f*** EVERYONE. I got married young, and the T led to this weird crisis of Wait, is this how everyone else felt in high school and college? Is this how anonymous sex happens? This makes so much sense now!
I also spoke to Frankie*, a transfeminine queer person whos been taking Estradiol since 2017. Before hormones, Frankie says Sex was complicated. I was not sure what I wanted to do or what I felt. I would defer a lot to the other person.
In the meantime, Im going to go take a cold shower. Again.
Why Am I Experiencing Loss Of Libido
There are many reasons for women to experience loss of libido. However, for menopausal women it is usually because of changing hormone levels. Shifting levels of estrogen and progesterone hormones in the body can leave women with a low sex drive. For example:
Estrogen HormonesProgesterone HormonesTestosterone Hormones
Loss of libido can also be due to emotional issues. If women are experiencing tension within a relationship, they will have less desire to be close to their partner, and loss of libido can occur.
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What Are The Types Of Hypogonadism
Two glands in your brain, the hypothalamus and pituitary, send signals to sex glands. These signals tell your body to make sex hormones. When you have hypogonadism, something within the brain or sex glands interferes with hormone production.
Healthcare providers look at the cause to determine if hypogonadism is:
- Primary hypogonadism: A problem within the sex glands slows or stops hormone production.
- Secondary hypogonadism: A problem with brain signals affects hormone production.
D Womens Sexual Desire Across The Menstrual Cycle And Following Oophorectomy
The earliest researchers to investigate womens sexual behavior across the menstrual cycle relied on intercourse frequency as a proxy for womens sexual desire, and reported that intercourse frequency did not meaningfully fluctuate across the menstrual cycle . However, unlike most female nonprimate mammals, women are physically capable of engaging in sexual intercourse under any hormonal condition, and irrespective of their levels of sexual desire . In consequence, intercourse frequency does not necessarily reflect womens sexual desire women can engage in sexual intercourse for reasons other than their own sexual desire, and frequency of heterosexual intercourse may be heavily influenced by male sexual motivation . Furthermore, humans are capable of modifying their sexual habits to accommodate a wide range of cultural conventions . For example, sexual intercourse is often intentionally avoided during menstruation in response to cultural taboos , and at midcycle in an effort to avoid pregnancy . In Western nations, intercourse frequency has been shown to vary consistently with external factors such as the days of the week, and to increase around celebrations/holidays . Given the many influences on intercourse frequency, it is perhaps not surprising that the relationship between sexual intercourse and the menstrual cycle is not consistent, but varies with social and cultural context .
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