Odd SE

sun · 12-30-2003, 07:07 PM

Since starting Glucophage/Met I have had a MUCH lower libido - (kinda defeats the purpose, since I'm ttc). Just wondered if anyone else had this SE.

I've had the nausea, diarhea, dizziness, etc. too. I asked my GYN if lowered libido is a se, and she hadn't heard of it being one.

I also thought it could be the stress of ttc, depression setting in b/c of no success ttc, the fact that I've been married 4 yrs - who knows!

Would appreciate any info!

christyz · 12-30-2003, 07:27 PM

It stands to reason that met *could* affect libido, since met lowers male hormones and male hormones definetly affect sex drive.

But don't under-estimate the effect of TTC on your libido. I know from experience, trying to "perform on cue" can take a lot of the romance out of sex. By the end of TTC my son, it started to feel like sex was for procreational purposes only and I found it really mentally hard. I actually gave up TTC and made a really deliberate effort to feel connected to my man, and wouldn't you know, that's when I got pregnant. Try to ease up on the pressure to perform (I know how hard that is when a baby is all you dream about) and try to see the real purpose of sex, to bring you and your Dh closer.

I would definetly monitor this part of your life in the months ahead and talk to your Dr again if it continues. It's a serious and legitimate concern, and it can be a tough thing to talk about, so I admire your courage to talk about it. I hope you can get some answers.

All the best!

sun · 12-30-2003, 07:46 PM

Thanks for the quick reply. Right now dh & I aren't charting, doing temps, etc. I'm still not getting AF regularly enough for that. So, it's not a matter of scheduling that takes the fun out of it. If we were "scheduling", I could totally see that being the cause!

We still do the "fun" things we've always done - camping out in the living room to watch movies all night; hugging, kissing, snuggling with no ulterior motives; calling each other during the day. Everything else is there, I just have absolutely no interest in sex anymore.

PaintedDaisy · 12-31-2003, 12:01 PM

sun, you're not alone!

I started taking met in August and my libido dropped like a lead weight.

I have always had a really high libido but now I realize that was probably due to the excess androgens I had. The first two-three months on met I had no interest in sex at all, either, but them bam! it just returned. I've been on met now for nearly 5 months and I have a healthy libido. This is TMI I'm sure, but before I was almost ravenous with sex and could never get enough but now I feel I'm more normal and I am much more happy. I used to think I just had a strong libido but in hindsight the androgens were making me crazy.

I say keep an eye on it but don't stress over it too much right now. It may take a while for your hormones to level out and when they do you may very well see a return in your libido. I had a freakout moment 1-2 months in thinking "omg! what if I never want to have sex again?!?" but just a month or two after that things settled down. However, if your libido doesn't return after a while, definitely bring it back up to your doc. Just like Christy says (what a smart girl!) it's a very real complaint and nobody should have to live like that forever. Good luck and let us know how it goes.

KYBluegrass · 12-31-2003, 12:11 PM

I had the same sorta thing in the beginning too, but it did go away. Sometimes I wonder if it was due more to the gastric side effects than anything else. I suppose anything is possible when your hormones are being worked on, but yes, monitor it....if it doens't imporve, talk with your doc.

sun · 12-31-2003, 12:40 PM

Thanks so much for the replies! I will give it a couple more months - I just hate that it's so opposite of where I need to be to ttc! And it DOES make sense that my libido was high to begin with, so it makes sense that "normal" would feel low - just hope it goes up a lil soon!

Thanks again!

Starla · 12-31-2003, 07:28 PM

This happened to me too! It actually really makes sense if you think about it, for the reasons others have already mentioned. Since a lot of PCOS'ers have excess testosterone (male hormone), essentially our bodies react like men's (i.e. very high libido). Then the met helps our hormones straighten out, so it can change. I used to be almost insatiable. When DH and I got together, it was like this and he got used to it. Then I started on Gluc almost 9 months later, and my libido went through the floor. DH is having a very hard time understanding that its nothing personal against him, I just don't want any part of it. We still bd almost every day, I'm just usually not into it. Hope this helps!

Bertiebugg · 12-31-2003, 11:28 PM

I had the same side effect... now it comes and goes sometimes... but typically my sex drive is pretty good... at least I think.

Is 3-5 times a week good?

prunepie · 01-01-2004, 01:24 AM

3- 5 times a week..sigh...i wish my man wanted it that much lol

before met/gluc.... i was single and excuse my language..but i was sooooooo horny i could have had sex with a doorknob..no joking..i felt like a perve, freak and sex addict( even though i wasnt with anyone i was allllways thinking about sex)
since met it has significantly gone down and for a while it freaked me out..but now its what i think normal is..meaning i love sex, but if i dont have it i wont pout and freak out like a man lol

good luck xo jenn

sun · 01-01-2004, 08:14 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by prunepie
before met/gluc.... i felt like a perve, freak and sex addict

I felt the same way! Now I just kinda give in b/c we're ttc. I know it discourages dh since I'm not into it, but I've told him from what I've read from my cysters, it should at least, level out some soon!

Thanks!