Jump to content
×
Are you looking for the BariatricPal Store? Go now!

Zero sex drive...



Recommended Posts

A little background: my husband and I have been married since May 2014 and together since October 2009. My sex drive has always been less than normal. I was admitted to the hospital with large blood clots in my lungs in September 2016 due to birth control (which I no longer can take). My husband was sleeved early December 2017 and myself at the end of December 2017. I am down a little over 100 pounds and my husband down 150+. Sex pre-surgery was difficult as we were both large. I was hoping that after both of us lost weight that my sex drive would come back but no such luck. My husband's sex drive is high than ever. I feel horrible that I have no sex drive. I know it has to be hurting my husband but he doesn't voice his feelings so I don't know how much. Has anyone else gone through something similar or have any advice on where to go from here? I have a doctor's appointment this week with my GP to address high copper levels so I am hoping to address this problem as well.

I am Prozac and have been since middle school with no dosage change in 10+ years (30mg). I also am on medication for hypothyroid. I also am seeing a therapist for my depression.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

This has nothing to do with my surgery or weight, but for a really long time, I struggled with a low sex drive. Here is something I learned: with women, the more frequently we have sex, then our desire to have sex increases. What my husband and I did was commit to having sex every day for a certain # of days. This really helped a lot. Another thing, and I'm just going to be totally honest, I was not able to have the big o without assistance. If this is an issue with you, I will be happy to tell you what helped me.

Sent from my SM-G930V using BariatricPal mobile app

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

I agree with the sentiments of doing it without prior motivation. Not making it a chore but a lifestyle choice. If you can still "O" that is a good sign , keep working at it and look up those social experiments where couples commit to intimacy for a certain period and the effects it as on their relationship on a whole.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

I do sympathise - this mismatch can be so painful.

You might not feel like sex because you are poorly, or because you are depressed...or maybe you just don't fancy him any more?

I've experienced all three of these situations. For me, when I got over the first two, the desire came back eventually. The desire never came back with the last one. It was scary to admit it, but it was a relief once I did.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Chiming in here- did you know that Prozac can lower your libido? Prozac is an SSRI and SSRIs can lower the libido of people taking them.

Pre-surgery I was switched from Cymbalta (an SNRI) to Celexa (an SSRI) because Cymbalta is only available as an extended release medication and my surgeon worried it wouldn’t be absorbed quickly enough. Celexa destroyed my libido which had been fine on the Cymbalta. I am now switching from Celexa to a non- SSRI medication and seem to be getting my groove back.

Also- depression can make you not want to have sex, too. It can lower your interest in many things, sex included.

Talk to your doctor about the libido stuff, but more importantly, don’t beat yourself up over it! Your doctor and/or therapist can help you sort out the cause of your decreased sex drive and it’s a totally normal thing to go through!

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Hmmn food for thought, unused , been a widow 6+ years, but the right time , right guy, pray that things still work, if not" il fait rien" and we cuddle, we did make it into our 70s but I still am gonna hope for the Big Good O!

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

1 minute ago, CrankyMagpie said:

@photogirl70 please share what worked for you?

My husband and I decided to have sex daily for a set period of time. Bottom line for me, because I was non-orgasmic, I did a lot of reading and research and bought some "toys". The one item I would highly recommend (and the only one we still use) is Hitachi Magic Wand. You can get it from Amazon

I also recommend checking out the site Christian Nymphos - I found a good bit of support there.

Our marriage had all kinds of problems and lack of sex was just one of them (or more like a symptom of them). We ended up in a 911 save our marriage kind weekend program that did make a huge impact. This was 8 years ago. We are approaching our 25th wedding anniversary. If you want to dig deeper into your marriage, I high recommend starting with His Needs/Her Needs and doing the emotional needs questionnaire. This can be a great tool for you and your spouse to use as a guide to talk through your thought and feeling about how your needs are or are not being met.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Right now, we are focusing on strengthening our emotional relationship and hoping that will naturally lead to reigniting our physical relationship. We fell into a rut where we really we went to work, ate dinner and then went and did our own things in different parts of the house; we were more like roommates than husband and wife. We are trying to communicate more and spending time together on the weekends, even if it is just going grocery shopping or running errands. Weekdays we are usually both tired after work but we are making an effort to go on a bike ride 1-2 times a week; it is a nice way to spend time together and support each other on keeping up with the physical exercise part of our journey. We both went through a huge physical change and so now we are both working on the mental changes that come along with it. There are two people in this relationship and we both need to make an effort to make things better.

I also realized that I was not being as thoughtful about his feelings as I should be. I was so wrapped up in how I was feeling and how to fix it that I didn't really think about some of the things that I said did that could be hurting his feelings. He is not huge on verbal communication and I usually have to make an effort to try and get something out of him. I was so focused on myself I kinda forgot about the communication piece.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Not that you need or require my vote, but you are a caring person and a good wife to work to make things better. Continue to feel each,you are the lucky one in the relationship and I believe things will go well!😛&😛Forever

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now

  • Trending Products

  • Trending Topics

  • Recent Status Updates

    • LeighaTR

      I am new here today... and only two weeks out from my sleeve surgery on the 23rd. I am amazed I have kept my calories down to 467 today so far... that leaves me almost 750 left for dinner and maybe a snack. This is going to be tough for two weeks... but I have to believe I can do it!
      · 0 replies
      1. This update has no replies.
    • Doughgurl

      Hey everyone. I'm new here so I thought I should introduce myself. I am 53y/o and am scheduled for Gastric Bypass on June 25th, 2025. I'm located in San Antonio, Texas. I will be having my surgery in Tiajuana Mexico. I've wanted this for years, but I always had insurance where bariatric procedures were excluded. Finally I am able to afford to pay out of pocket.  I can't wait to get started, and I hope I'm prepared for the initial period of "hell". I know what I have signed up for, but I'm sure the good to come will out way the temporary period of discomfort and feelings of regret. I'd love to find people to talk to who have been through the same procedure or experience before. So I look forward to meeting you all. Hope you have a great week!
      · 2 replies
      1. Selina333

        I'm so happy for you! You are about to change your life. I was so glad to get the sleeve done in Dec. I didn't have feelings of regret overall. And I'm down almost 60 lbs. I do feel a little sad at restaurants. I can barely eat half a kid's meal. I get adults meals often because kid ones don't have the same offerings at times. Then I feel obligated to eat on that until it's gone and that can be days. So the restaurant thing isn't great for me. All the rest is fine by me! I love feeling full with very little. I do wish I could drink when eating. And will sip at the end. Just a strong habit to stop. But I'm working on it! You will do fine! Just keep focused on your desire to be different. Not better or worse. But different. I am happy both ways but my low back doesn't like me that heavy. So I listened (also my feet!). LOL! Update us on your journey! I'm not far from you. I'm in Houston. Good luck and I hope it all goes smoothly! Would love to see pics of the town you go to for this. I've never been there. Neat you will be traveling for this! Enjoy the journey. Take it one day at a time. Sometimes a few hours at a time. Follow all recommendations as best you can. 💗

      2. Doughgurl

        Thank you so much for your well wishes. I am hoping that everything goes easy for me as well. We don't eat out much as it is, so it wont be too bad in that department. Thankfully. Also, I hear you regarding your back and feet!! I'd like to add knees to the list. Killing me as we speak! I'm only 5' so the weight has to go. Too short to carry all this weight. Menopause really did a doosey on me. (😶lol) My daughter also lives in Houston. with her Husband and my 5 grand-littles. I grew up in Beaumont, so I know Houston well, I will be sure to keep in touch and update you on my journey. I may need some advice in the future, or just motivation. Thank You so much for reaching out, I was hoping to connect with someone in the community. I really appreciate it. 💜

    • Alisa_S

      On day 4 of the 2 week liquid pre-op diet. Surgery scheduled for June 11th.
      Soooo I am coming to a realization
      of something and I'm not sure what to do about it. For years the only thing I've enjoyed is eating. We rarely do anything or go anywhere and if we do it always includes food. Family comes over? Big family dinner! Go camping? Food! Take a short ride or trip? Food! Holiday? Food! Go out of town for a Dr appointment? Food! When we go to a new town we don't look for any attractions, we look for restaurants we haven't been to. Heck, I look forward to getting off work because that means it's almost supper time. Now that I'm drinking these pre-op shakes for breakfast, lunch, and supper I have nothing to look forward to.  And once I have surgery on June 11th it'll be more of the same shakes. Even after pureed stage, soft food stage, and finally regular food stage, it's going to be a drastic change for the rest of my life. I'm giving up the one thing that really brings me joy. Eating. How do you cope with that? What do you do to fill that void? Wow. Now I'm sad.
      · 1 reply
      1. LeighaTR

        I hope your surgery on Wednesday goes well. You will be able to do all sorts of new things as you find your new normal after surgery. I don't know this from experience yet, but I am seeing a lot of positive things from people who have had it done. Best of luck!

    • Alisa_S

      On day 4 of the 2 week liquid pre-op diet. Surgery scheduled for June 11th.
      Soooo I am coming to a realization
      of something and I'm not sure what to do about it. For years the only thing I've enjoyed is eating. We rarely do anything or go anywhere and if we do it always includes food. Family comes over? Big family dinner! Go camping? Food! Take a short ride or trip? Food! Holiday? Food! Go out of town for a Dr appointment? Food! When we go to a new town we don't look for any attractions, we look for restaurants we haven't been to. Heck, I look forward to getting off work because that means it's almost supper time. Now that I'm drinking these pre-op shakes for breakfast, lunch, and supper I have nothing to look forward to.  And once I have surgery on June 11th it'll be more of the same shakes. Even after pureed stage, soft food stage, and finally regular food stage, it's going to be a drastic change for the rest of my life. I'm giving up the one thing that really brings me joy. Eating. How do you cope with that? What do you do to fill that void? Wow. Now I'm sad.
      · 1 reply
      1. summerseeker

        Life as a big person had limited my life to what I knew I could manage to do each day. That was eat. I hadn't anything else to look forward to. So my eating choices were the best I could dream up. I planned the cooking in managable lots in my head and filled my day with and around it.

        Now I have a whole new big, bigger, biggest, best days ever. I am out there with those skinny people doing stuff i could never have dreamt of. Food is now an after thought. It doesn't consume my day. I still enjoy the good home cooked food but I eat smaller portions. I leave food on my plate when I am full. I can no longer hear my mother's voice saying eat it all up, ther are starving children in Africa who would want that!

        I still cook for family feasts, I love cooking. I still do holidays but I have changed from the All inclusive drinking and eating everything everyday kind to Self catering accommodation. This gives me the choice of cooking or eating out as I choose. I rarely drink anymore as I usually travel alone now and I feel I need to keep aware of my surroundings.

        I don't know at what point my life expanded, was it when I lost 100 pounds? Was it when I left my walking stick at home ? Was it when I said yes to an outing instead of finding an excuse to stay home ? i look back at my last five years and wonder how loosing weight has made such a difference. Be ready to amaze yourself.

        BTW, the liquid diet sucks, one more day and you are over the worst. You can do it.

    • CaseyP1011

      Officially here for a long time, not just a good time💪
      · 0 replies
      1. This update has no replies.
  • Recent Topics

  • Hot Products

  • Sign Up For
    Our Newsletter

    Follow us for the latest news
    and special product offers!
  • Together, we have lost...
      lbs

    PatchAid Vitamin Patches

    ×