Sex & Romance
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Our tech team has launched updates to The Nest today. As a result of these updates, members of the Nest Community will need to change their password in order to continue participating in the community. In addition, The Nest community member's avatars will be replaced with generic default avatars. If you wish to revert to your original avatar, you will need to re-upload it via The Nest.
If you have questions about this, please email help@theknot.com.
Thank you.
Note: This only affects The Nest's community members and will not affect members on The Bump or The Knot.
Sex and Zoloft
So, I've been on a moderate daily dose of Zoloft for several years now and I feel like it has a DETRIMENTAL affect on my sex life. My husband and I just got married and I can already tell we have a bummer sex life because I am almost never in the mood. Decreased libido is definitely one of the major side affects and zoloft, but my husband thinks it's all in my head...
Does anyone have any advice or experience with zoloft and its sexual side affects? I know I can switch to Wellburtrin or something with less side affects, but I really don't want to make a major medication switch when I've been doing so well on zoloft for so long. Is my hubby right? Is it mostly in my head? What can I do??
Re: Sex and Zoloft
Well, I've never been on that type of medication, but I have been on some birth controls that have made my libido go down to non-existent for years. So, thank goodness, I FINALLY told my doctor about it and we switched me over to a different type of contraceptive (IUD) that has given me my sex drive back. If you haven't already, definitely have a discussion with your doc about what's going on.
During the years that I was not wanting to be sexual, what really helped me was being creative. One of the only places I wanted to even be sexual was in the shower with my hubby. Something about the water and soap just pushed a button in me. Also, my hubby would spend a good amount of time applying lotion all over my body and just taking it slow with me. That really helped to get me in the mood. Hopefully your hubby will take the time to do the same for you until you figure things out.
Your H is totally wrong. SSRIs and SNRIs are notorious for ruining sex drive and sexual response. You may be doing well on Zoloft, but there are a few other medications you can try that may not have this effect for you.
I've tried Effexor, and while it "worked", I was twice as depressed about the loss of my sex life. I asked to switch to Wellbutrin and I feel so much better. You need to decide how important sex is to you and your H.
No particular advice to impart, other than I will absolutely verify that Zoloft can put a dent in your sex drive. I'm on it, my BF is on it, as many friends and family members. It's definitely a thing. So don't put too much blame on yourself--part of it is chemical.
Is your doctor aware that this is a problem? The point of taking Zoloft is to be happier and more balanced, and it sounds like this is a big piece keeping you from that. It might be a PITA to switch, but if it makes your life better in the long run, wouldn't you rather? If it fails, go back on Zoloft and be back at square one in a matter of weeks.
initially after starting zoloft i had some problems. Taking it at night really helped. Since that is when we most often had sex and the drug is at its lowest level in my system.
If you aren't already taking it at night...give that a try. Good luck!
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I agree with everyone else abut talking to your doctor about switching. There are soo many SSRI's out there that can combat the low sex drive problem. I know that some people have also found that doing a combination of 2 different SSRI's sometimes can help curb the side effects - my BF is on Lexapro and Wellbutrin, for example.
I also think that it's important for your H to understand what's actually going on in your body due to the SSRI. Most people that aren't on this type of medication don't know much about it or how it works. Try going online or getting some pamphlets with information about the sexual side effects of SSRI's to help explain to him. I can't imagine that feeling like your H thinks it's all in your head is doing anything positive for your sex drive either.