taking Zoloft, low sex drive

[sterlingW]

Hi, this is my first post. My questions are: I have been taking Zoloft for a couple of months now and I have noticed that I have a low sex drive. I am sure that breastfeeding, being on zoloft and being a new mommy has something to do with this, but I dont know if changing meds would help me and what can I take since I am breastfeeding my baby. I want something that wont reduce my milk or harm the baby. I was taking lexapro but had to switch to Zoloft because lexapro was causing my newborn to sleep when I needed to nurse him when he was first born, the lexapro was drugging him so I went off that and switched to Zoloft. I am taking 100miligrams and I am doing well on it besides the no sex drive. I dont know if zoloft is the reason why I dont have a sex drive or its other things as well, for example being a bew mom, being a stay at home mommy and wife to my husband that I have only been married for a year and half. Does anybody have any advice for me? Thanks, Sterling
mommy to son 2/17/04

[Red Sonja]

hi, welcome to mdc!

i started taking zoloft during my pregnancy and my sex drive disappeared. i just switched to pamelor yesterday, i'm going to taper off the zoloft soon. i'm still taking the zoloft for now, last time i tried to stop taking it i became really unstable and had disturbing thoughts. as i'm taking the meds for migraines and not for depression this really worried me. i'm hoping once i'm off the zoloft my sex drive will return.

nak
lb

[MamaPear]

Sterling...I totally can relate. I am taking Zoloft too...I would tell you the dose but dd got a hold of the bottle the other day and sucked the paper off, lol. But I've noticed that I have no sex drive. I would love to go off of it, but I find that when I forget to take it, I have the really strange thoughts too. Sorry no advice, but I would love to hear what others have to say.

NAK

[Faithsmom]

I am on Zoloft too. I've been on 50mg for about 4 months now. My sex drive has not been changed that much from taking it. It's about the same as it's been since I had my DD... a bit lower than usual. I lend the lower sex drive to being tired, being a sahm etc. One sexual side effect that I did notice from taking the Zoloft (sorry if this is TMI) is that it takes longer for me to have an orgasm... like I said, sorry if it's tmi. Other than that, I lend everthing else to being a tired mama.

[Red Sonja]

Originally Posted by Faithsmom

One sexual side effect that I did notice from taking the Zoloft (sorry if this is TMI) is that it takes longer for me to have an orgasm...

me too

[sbgrace]

I did zoloft and also noticed the orgasm thing...as well as a low sex drive--but I attribute that to lactation, exhaustion, and not enough time with hubby as well as the medication. Zoloft is the safest med for nursing. I also did Celexa early on...but it has similar sexual effects. I just did the best I could to meet hubby's needs even though I wasn't feeling much passion. I hate that but it's true. When you are done nursing, if you still need medication, wellbutrin doesn't have the same effects (I take mine for anxiety so I've never been able to do wellbutrin)

[Book Addict Jen]

The only one I know of that doesn't affect the sex drive is Wellbutrin. Once I switched to that I was much better.

[sterlingW]

thanks

Hello and Happy Sunday! Thanks to everyone who posted to my thread, I know that I will find the right answer for me. My 10 month old baby decided to play till wee hours in the morning, I am so tired and I just hope that he doesnt do that tonight! The joys of motherhood....
..... Sterling

[lizzie]

Hi!
I take 50mg zoloft and have actually noticed an increase in my sex drive over just being angry and anxious all the time. However... now that you all mention it, I think I see a pattern with the orgasms taking forever too!

I took celexa before too, and it made me so tired. And no interest in sex. But I'm not nursing anymore, so it could be everything going on in your life.

I actually recommended zoloft to friends who lost their sex drive on prozac or just lost it to depression! So I hope they're aren't having the same problem.

lizzie

[Ellien C]

Well, my DH is on zoloft (and not nursing!) and it pretty much had the same affect on him. I'm still nursing, but my sex drive came back after over a year of nursing.

[Red Sonja]

Well, I am now off the Zoloft and taking Pamelor and I can tell my sex drive is starting to come back. Now I just need DH home from deployment to take advantage of it.

[pammysue]

When I took Zoloft a few years ago I noticed that my sex drive was down slightly.

I just recently statred Zoloft agian and one of the reasons was I was so depressed that I had ZERO sex drive. Since I have been on Zoloft this time my sex drive is back to normal.

So, I guess it depends on the person and the situation.

[Vito's Mommy]

Hi moms! I just joined mdc today and haven't had the time to fancy up my profile. I saw this thread and had to jump in. I'm about to take the plunge and go on Zoloft. Question: What do some of you mean by "strange thoughts" when referring to going off Zoloft? I am trying to collect as much info as I can so I know that this med is right for me. Thanks, I'm very glad to have found this group.

[LoveChild421]

I used to take Zoloft (only half the usual dose) and I did notice dramatic differences in my sex drive and quality of orgasm. I then tried Celexa which was even worse (and didn't help my depression). Then I tried Wellbutrin- which WORKED WONDERS!!! I felt more like myself than I had when I was on Zoloft or celexa and I had my normal sex drive and great orgasm quality.

I would definately recommend trying Wellbutrin (I took half the normal dose and it worked well for me so that may be a good option while nursing as you don't want to pass on more meds than you have to). I don't know how "safe" Wellbutrin (or any antidepressant really) is considered while nursing but I know that it won't make you or your newborn sleepy (it works differently than SSRI's such as Zoloft, Celexa, Paxil, Prozac, etc which can make you lethargic).

I would also try Saint John's Wort over Zoloft. I know that Zoloft was definately the worst thing ever as far as sex drive.

[Red Sonja]

Originally Posted by Vito's Mommy

Hi moms! I just joined mdc today and haven't had the time to fancy up my profile. I saw this thread and had to jump in. I'm about to take the plunge and go on Zoloft. Question: What do some of you mean by "strange thoughts" when referring to going off Zoloft? I am trying to collect as much info as I can so I know that this med is right for me. Thanks, I'm very glad to have found this group.

Vito's Mommy - I'm PM'ing you. (You can read your PMs by clicking the "Private Message" link toward the top right corner of your screen, underneath your username.)

[mommyofboy]

I would say there are multiple reasons for your low sex drive. Zoloft is known to decrease libido. Also, I think breastfeeding doesn't make sex as appealing either, it's like it's not your body, etc (baby at breast all the time). Exhaustion doesn't help either. I have heard it can take up to a year to get the sex drive back.

[SpiralChrissy]

I've heard that Ginkgo Biloba can help increase your sex drive. They've done some studies in Denmark recently that suggest Ginkgo can counteract the sexual side effects of anti-depressants. I'm on Zoloft and I added Ginkgo. I definately think it helped. I stopped taking Ginkgo a while ago (cause we're short on $$) and I forgot ALL about sex.
Hmmmm.... I think I'd better grab some Ginkgo and try again. Now that y'all mention it, I miss my husband
Chrissy

[Jish]

Chrissy, nice to see you here!!!

How are you doing?

[SpiralChrissy]

Hey! I'm o.k. I'm actually checking today cause I've been having a rough day. I feel pretty depressed and I needed to connect with y'all. I just feel really blue and worn out and tired of everything.
On the plus side, I've found some resolution. In addition to the PPD, I've got PMDD (premenstal dysphoric d.o.) so I get super crazed or depressed the 3rd week of my cycle. (sorry if that's tmi!) Realizing this has been a big relief. Before, everytime I hit my 3rd week, I'd think my PPD was worsening and we'd adjust my meds, etc. Now that I see the pattern, we've balanced out my meds and I'm learning to cope. The PPD is almost completely gone!! Hurray! It's been 16months with PPD! I still have my days but mostly I'm fine til the PMDD hits. And that's only for a few days. Hurray!!
I'm getting involved here with our local PPD group. I'm going to be taking on some volunteer work for them soon. I'm so inspired to help other women. Lord knows we can use some more understanding!
thanks for asking. It's good to hear from you!!
Chrissy

[simply me]

Hi, i can totally relate. I WAS taking zoloft, i also tried paxil, prozac & another forget the name. Anyhow i was so not interested in sex. I have tried all these other meds sincethe birth of my 1st 7 years ago. Finally 2 years ago my ob switched me to effexor. WOW what a difference. I love sex again, i am not depressed & my only issue now is losing the weight from the 3kids!! Can't many of us relate to that??
Anyhow, it is a hard decision as wel lto breastfeed on meds. The effexor is one of those where you have to make the decision about it. I did bf shortly & my kids were fine.
good luck & remember if you aren't feeling right on a med then it's not the right med for you. goodluck