POLL: Do You Experience Sexual Side-Effects Due to Your Antidepressant?
Tuesday February 19, 2008
Published reports about how common sexual side-effects are vary quite a bit, probably because many patients are shy about such a personal topic. How common are they really? Voting in our poll does not reveal your identity to anyone. Please join us in creating an honest assessment of just how common sexual side-effects are. Any type of sexual difficulty that you developed as a direct result of taking an antidepressant that can't be accounted for otherwise by other drugs, illness or the depression itself would count. Symptoms that you might have experienced would include low libido, difficulty with orgasm, erectile dysfunction, decreased vaginal lubrication or ejaculatory difficulties.
POLL: Do You Experience Sexual Side-Effects Due to Your Antidepressant?
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Comments
Wellbutrin changes my normally very strong libido into a mystifying force of nature. It has had a similar effect on everyone I’ve ever known who took it. I think it’s odd that this potential side effect isn’t mentioned more often– I would think more people would be encouraged to try the drug and enjoy a more normal sex life.
i really hope taking wellbutrin helps my libido. im 20 years old and been on remron for 3 years. its making me more depressed that i cant enjoy or even get into a relationship cause i dont have a sexual desire. this is day one of wellbutrin
This may be an interesting question with which to play around, but your results will obviously be skewed, as a result of a selection bias. Obviously, people who have not experienced sexual side effects are far less likely to respond at all. I would predict that the majority of your respondents will report side-effects.
I’m happy that my medications have completely removed all my sexuality.
If I were in a good sexual relationship, of course I would be extrmely unhappy about this! It would absolutely ruin my marriage or relationship.
However, I used to have a very intense, constantly high libido (desire). It’s said that bipolar disorder has periods of increased sexuality. Not me! Mine was ALWAYS strong. It was miserable, because (1) although over my lifetime I probably had close to 40 relationships with me, only 4-5 of which were serious ones (4 marriages), only TWO of these men were any good in bed! Fortunately, one of my husbands gave me 11 terrific years — sexually, but he was very emotionally and financially abusive!
Most of my serious relationships have turned into where I was emotionally and occasionally somewhat physically and somewhat sexually, or drastically financially abused.
Had I not been so sexually driven, I could have been as happy as I am now,alone with many good friends of both genders, and not impoverished b/c I would hot have been moved from place to place by husbands who tried to isolate and control me.
After my 2nd and 3rd marriages ended, I asked physicians to spay me, like a cat, but they said this was not possible.
Well, yes, it is! Take antidepressants! I have vaginal dryness; no more desire to masturbate; no interest in men in a romantic and sexual way, don’t flirt. I just tell men who are interested in me or try to flirt that I’d make a very good friend, but that I want to be upfront right away, that I have NO sexual drive, NO interest in romantic relationship with ANYONE. I tell them if they would like to be friends, here are some of the things I enjoy doing together (I list some, like videos, going to the theatre, hiking, parties, not a drinker,etc). I tell them if they are looking for a partner, it’s fine with me, that I have no jealousy and would be very happy for them to take out other women; that if they find a committed relatonship, I would be prepaared to lose their friendship — because I know when I had a romantic partner I strongly objected to my man hanging around with all his old “girlfriends” and “women friends.” I would have expected him to say goodbye to them, and I said goodbye to my male friends when I met him!
So that’s how it is for me, now. I am free of being controlled by male egos and by my own female libido! And I am very, very happy about it. Losing one’s sexuality is not bad, for some of us!
Effexor did me in right away. Prozac that I was taking before Effexor did not effect me sexually. I am now on Wellbutrin which does not effect me,though the Klonopin does to some extent or is it just middle age? Anyway my wife left so does masturbation count in the survey? lol
I am 25 and recently became sexually active. I have been on antidepressants since I was 17 years old.
Looking back on my childhood I realized that I used to have orgasms as a little girl by rubbing on the floor. Now when I do the same thing it doesn’t work. Neither does any other touching or rubbing. I can get to a certain point but just can’t get over the edge.
I started taking wellbutrin 150mg. twice a day for about 6 months.my sexual side effect is that I get erections several times a day. they won’t go away on their own. thank god my wife is so understanding and helps me with them as much as she can, but she can’t be there 24 hours a day. she said she is so understanding about my side effects because her mother took wellbutrin and had over sexed side effects. if anyone else has the same side effects as I do feel free to email me or answer here. my email is mgl1951@sbcglobal.net. thanks for any comments or just to talk to someone who has these side effects.
Every since I started taking Wellbutrin almost 4 months ago, I have noticed that it has taken the “edges” off my highs and lows as far as my emotions but hasn’t changed who I am. That is good. I have also felt a little spacey sometimes, with out losing concentration if that makes any sense. As far as sexual side effects, well, I have noticed that I don’t have as many erections during the day but as soon as I go to sleep it seems I have one all night long. I’m almost 39, so unfortunately a nocturnal emmision is probably out of the question but we will see.lol. My libido has definately increased and oddly the strength and length of an orgasm has very much increased since I started the Wellbutrin (as opposed to almost never acheiving orgasm on Lexipro). Over all I am pretty happy with wellbutrin.
I took Wellbutrin for 14 mo. I had E.D. to some degree before starting the drug and it was increased quite a bit while on Wellbutrin. My libido was always quite strong and it did not decrease much while on the drug. The first day of reduced dosage (from 100mg twice a day to 100mg once a day) I experienced much stronger erections.
Doctors like to downplay the negative sexual effects of anti-depressants, but they are wrong. Effexor, Cymbalta, and Limbitrol all effected me. And if anything, people are less likely to admit to a doctor that they are having sexual problems, particularily one of the opposite sex. So when doctors tell you only the problem people are the ones on the internet complaining, that is hogwash. They will tell you the % is only about 5% that have sexual problems, when in reality, it has to be at least 50%. On this poll it is 86%, for crying out loud. Doctors just want to sell their medications that they are told to by the big pharmaceuticals.
I took Effexor for the first two or three years of my major depression. The drug probably saved my life but in doing so many things were changed–no sex drive. I suppose a complete loss of sex drive versus being alive is a small price to pay. Of course my dosage was gradually reduced and due to other side effects I then went on Prozac, then eventually to Welbutrin. I live a good, quiet life, I am quite functional. I could blame all three drugs for a total loss of libido, which still continues, but who knows maybe it was approaching middle age, maybe some depression lingering–I don’t know. I do know that I ended a nine year relationship due to the lack of libido. I actually felt guilty about avoiding sexual encounters and felt he deserved a fully functioning mate. I do not miss sex. I tried to explain it to my doctor and my former boyfriend by saying you don’t stop to eat a meal when you aren’t hungry.
I’ve taken most all of the SSRI’s over the years - some work better than others on the depression, but all SSRI’s did away with my libido. Erections were almost impossible and when I got one, if I could climax (which seldom happen), it was not much of a climax compared to the ones I had while not on SSRI’s.
I took Wellbutrin (not a classical SSRI) several times over a couple years. It seemed to work well on the depression after a few weeks but after 6 months or so it did not work near as well. The good thing is that Wellbutrin did not hinder my libido or erections and even seemed to enhance them (as you mention).
FYI - have you ever considered using St. John’s Wort? Its over the counter in the States but its Rx only in Europe and there it is the most widely prescribed depression med. I’ve taken it for some time now and there are no side effects for me except relief of my depression
Well I had no sexual dysfunction at all taking anti-depressants so seeing the poll results saying that only 5% said the same as me (with another 7% undecided and the rest saying yes to the question) quite staggered me. This left me wondering if it was actually the peoples’ depression itself causing a lot of the sexual dysfuntioin rather than the anti-depressant medication they were on?
Sincerely from Richard
Btw, to add to my previous message - I was on citalopram (ciprimil) for a lenghty period and later fluoxetine (prozac) for another lengthy period. Neither hindered me or effected me sexually. But then neither did both drugs ressolved my depression nor my reasons for it either. Problems still exist behind when one is taking anti-depressants. I have no experience with other anti-depressants. I am off them now at long last and feel better for it in myself as a whole. Also maybe I came to see that the anti-depressants were not really making any worthwhile benefit to me. Still I do not know either what I’d have been like if I had not taken these anti-depressants - so maybe they did benefit me at least by giving me some resbite.
Sincerely from Richard
I have been on every other class of antidepressant and am now taking MAOI’s in the form of the emsam transdermal patch. I also have a VNS implant.
No medications have ever had a percievable benefit for me. None have decreased my very strong labido. However, while my drive has not diminished, my ability to reach orgasm has diminished in the last two weeks. I started taking emsam on 12/25 and have just started the 12 mg patch.
Besides the fact that I am overall feeling worse and not better, this side affect is just no acceptable. Before I make an issue of this with my physician, I will give it a few more weeks to get to full dosage, but unless a miracle happens with my mood, I done with MAOIs!
Before I began taking an antidepressant my sex drive was like that of a 18 year old male. Granted, this was only when I wasn’t in one of my two week depressive episodes, stuck in bed or on the couch. Now, my depression is under control and I feel GREAT - these antidepressants certainly saved my life!!! HOWEVER, my husband and I have not had sex yet this year…AND IT’S FEBRUARY 27th!!! I just don’t have any interest. I wish I wanted to - it doesn’t turn me off but it sure doesn’t bother me to go without it for weeks on end (obviously). I’ve tried the “drug holiday” and that didn’t/doesn’t work for me. Another bummer - I AM taking one of the antidepressants that’s supposed to minimally affect libido - I take Wellbutrin (and Lexapro) - but let me tell ya, THAT doesn’t help me either. I’m really frustrated because I want to want to have sex - but I just don’t want to!!! On the rare occasion I do, it takes me short of forever to climax. As one of my male friends who was taking Wellbutrin and Lexapro so eloquently put it, ‘I could show up to the birthday party, I just couldn’t open the gifts.’ I know actually wanting to live and having hope and a positive attitude should FAR outweigh the significance of losing one’s libido - and it does - it’s just disappointing that I have no interest in the one activity that separates me and my husband from me and the male friend I was referring to above. Any one have any suggestions?
Been on Anti-depressants for a little over 10 years. OCD was my issue. Now I have none of that…thank God.
Not sure the trade off is what I want though.
My libido has reduced to zero unless I take a drug holiday for a couple days prior to planned activity.
For the women who may not understand, also included in this is reduced sensations which in my mind can be a turn off. That could be the reason why some males get a good erection yet cannot ejaculate. Lack of sensation can also take away drive after awhile.
I do know though from experience that if you tried to plan your time together say on a Sat., do not take any medication on Friday or prior to the activity and see what happiness. This advise came from my
shrink.
It is not a pleasant experience to feel this way. I had a hi libido before I started to go thru all this
sh….
The stats are alarming…86% with difficulty. This should have been further broken down by type of med and whether one was male or female. In effect, the poll tells us something but how do we isololate this?
Age should also be included in a poll
cause when your older, libido may reduce somewhat.
signed… me.