Odd Question - Can't find answers anywhr

iVillage Member
Registered: 11-24-2004
Odd Question - Can't find answers anywhr
3
Wed, 01-26-2005 - 11:15am

I have always have low sexual sensation. Intercourse feels good but not foreplay. The sensations are dulled. I also have low sexual desire most of the time. I have low progesterone. I was on the pill for a long, long time and it completely killed my sex drive and the little sensation I had. Then my pill was switched and my sex drive skyrocketed and the sensations were so good I'd never felt anythig like it. It felt like that was the way it was supposed to be. Then after a few months on the new pill things went back to "normal" again....sensations dulled, desire low. After 3 years of that I went off the pill altogether on got the Mirena IUD. My desire has improved very slightly but sensations are still dulled. Right now it's back to being like before I was on any birth control.

I know low desire can sometimes be caused by physical things like hormones, but is dulled sensation caused by anything physical? Could hormones be affecting the way I feel things physically too? I'm trying to find out if my problems are soley psychological or if there is a physical problem that could be causing this that can be treated medically.

Thank you for any help. This has been a problem my whole life and after having such a wonderful experience for a few months I now know what I'm missing and want it back! I have to add I'm having some current marital problems which could contribute to it but since I felt this way even before my current issues I wonder if there's more to it....

iVillage Member
Registered: 03-27-2003
Wed, 01-26-2005 - 11:58am

MY only thoughts are that I have noticed similar changes...and have actually wolked a similar path BC wise (I have a paragard IUD however)...I do not believe my changes are physcological....I believe they are a sign of my body changing with age.

I first noted these changes in my mid-thirties...they have progressed over the last few years (I am now 44).

Of note...I do not see this as a insurmountable change...yes, I am finding my responses are changed...but there are ways to work with that, and I am please to report I have had some experiences lately that are very encouraging! I say all this to just encourage you that if you determine these changes are age related...there is still good sex!!!

Sandy

iVillage Member
Registered: 11-24-2004
Wed, 01-26-2005 - 1:53pm

Thanks for the reply Sandy. :)

I don't think it's age related because I always had dulled sensation even when I first became sexually active in my teens. The ONLY time I enjoyed the sensation of foreplay and had a high libido was for about 5 months when my pill was changed. Then it eventually went back to the way it was. Low sensation, low libido. I understand low libido is a common problem with many possible causes but what about low physical sensation? Do you think there's a medical/physical reason for this? If so, what could it be?

(BTW - I'll be 41 next month)

iVillage Member
Registered: 12-30-2003
Wed, 01-26-2005 - 10:01pm

Hi tigress223, welcome!

"Then my pill was switched and my sex drive skyrocketed and the sensations were so good I'd never felt anythig like it."

I'm not a doctor but that you had a higher libido for a while after switching pills suggests to me that your problem may be hormonal. Have you had you hormone levels checked recently? A common side effect of hormonal contraceptives is a reduced libido as a result of the hormones decreasing the amount of free Testosterone in your system. If I were you I'd ask your doctor about your condition and see if s/he can suggest a method of treatment. Some articles that you may find of interest are:

What is female sexual dysfunction?
http://www.health.harvard.edu/hhp/article/content.do?name=WN0504f
This article is particularly interesting as it gives a list of conditions that can cause decreased libido and arousal.

Sexual dysfunction in women: Find your way back to intimacy http://www.mayoclinic.com/invoke.cfm?id=WO00066

Testosterone testing: http://www.labtestsonline.org/understanding/analytes/testosterone/test.html

Let us know what you find out and how you’re doing, ok?

Good luck,

      Jill