Building Intimacy to Rekindle Female Desire

You may opt out of email communications at any time by clicking on the unsubscribe link in the email. You'll soon start receiving the latest Mayo Clinic health information you requested in your inbox. Please, try again in a couple of minutes Healthy lifestyle changes can make a big difference in your desire for sex: Regular aerobic exercise and strength training are great for you in general. But they also can increase your stamina, improve your body image, lift your mood and boost your libido.

Lifestyle and home remedies

Take a break from use of the antidepressant. Switching to a different type of antidepressant may lead to fewer sexual side effects. Your healthcare professional may recommend medicines such as: If you take an SSRI, your healthcare professional might add bupropion to your treatment. Along with recommending counseling, your healthcare professional may prescribe a medicine to boost your libido. Options for women who have not yet reached menopause include: This is a pill that you take once a day at bedtime.

What can cause your libido to be low?

Side effects include low blood pressure, drowsiness, dizziness, upset stomach and fatigue. Drinking alcohol can make these side effects worse. So can taking a common medicine to treat vaginal yeast infections, called fluconazole (Diflucan). You give yourself this shot just under the skin in the belly or thigh before sexual activity. Some women get an upset stomach after taking the medicine.

What you can do

This is more common after the first shot. This side effect tends to get better with the second shot. Other side effects include vomiting, flushing, headache and a skin reaction at the site of the injection. In the United States, these medicines aren't approved for use after menopause. Dryness or shrinking of the vagina is one of the hallmark symptoms of genitourinary syndrome of menopause (GSM). Finding ways to cope with stress tied to work, money and daily hassles can enhance your sex drive.

For instance, you could try journaling or meditation. Couples who learn to talk in an open, honest way often keep up a stronger emotional connection. And that can lead to better sex. Sharing your likes and dislikes can set the stage for more intimacy.

But making the extra effort to be intimate can help put your sex drive back on track.

• Avoiding excessive caffeine can prevent overstimulation and hormonal imbalance affecting libido.
• Supplements like D-aspartic acid may support hormone synthesis and increase desire.
• Engaging in new sexual activities or fantasies can enhance arousal and libido.

Add a little spice to your sex life. Try a different sexual position, a different time of day or a different location for sex. Ask your partner to spend more time on foreplay.

• Aromatherapy with ylang-ylang and rose essential oils can stimulate sexual arousal.
• Herbal teas like chamomile and lavender help reduce stress, which can improve libido.
• Supplements containing L-arginine increase nitric oxide, improving blood flow and desire.

If you and your partner are open to new ideas, sex toys and fantasy can help spark your sexual desire.

• Maca root is known to improve sexual desire and energy levels in women.
• Ginseng may enhance libido by improving circulation and reducing fatigue.
• Tribulus terrestris is used to support hormonal balance and increase female sex drive.

If you have genitourinary syndrome of menopause, these products may ease certain symptoms, such as vaginal dryness. With regular use, they might work about as well as estrogen therapy.

Coping and support

Review/update the information highlighted below and resubmit the form. Sign up for free and stay up to date on research advancements, health tips, current health topics, and expertise on managing health. We use the data you provide to deliver you the content you requested. To provide you with the most relevant and helpful information, we may combine your email and website data with other information we have about you. If you are a Mayo Clinic patient, we will only use your protected health information as outlined in our Notice of Privacy Practices. Smoking, using illegal drugs and drinking too much alcohol can dampen your sex drive. Stopping these habits may help give your sex drive a boost. It can improve your overall health too. Talking about low sex drive with a healthcare professional can be hard for some people. So some people decide to try herbal supplements available without a prescription. Herbal supplements can have side effects or change how other medicines work.

4. DHEA: Hormone Precursor

This condition might make sex not comfortable and, in turn, reduce your desire. Some hormone medicines that aim to relieve GSM symptoms could help make sex more comfortable. And being more comfortable during sex may boost your desire. These include pills, patches, sprays and gels. Smaller amounts of estrogen are found in vaginal creams and a slow-releasing suppository or ring.

Toy-Safe Harmonizing Lube

Your healthcare professional can help vigora 200 mg you understand the risks and benefits of each form. Vaginal estrogen used in small doses is unlikely to raise the risk of breast cancer. But estrogen won't improve sexual functioning related to sexual interest-arousal disorder. This hormone plays a key role in female sexual function, even though testosterone level is much lower in women than in men. In the United States, testosterone isn't approved by the FDA to treat sexual conditions in women.

Hormone Replacement Therapy

Still, sometimes it's prescribed to help lift a lagging libido. Testosterone that is delivered to the blood through the skin may be helpful in women after menopause. At first, this treatment can be tried for up to six months. If it helps, it can be continued with close monitoring by a healthcare professional. The use of testosterone in women can cause acne, extra body hair, and mood or personality changes. Always talk with a healthcare professional before using them. One herbal supplement blend is called Avlimil. This product has estrogen-like effects on the body. While estrogen may boost your sex drive, it also may fuel the growth of certain breast cancers. Another product called Zestra is a plant-based massage oil. One small study found that Zestra increased arousal and pleasure when compared with a placebo oil. But some participants in the study said they had mild burning in the genital area.

7. L-citrulline

Chasteberry: There is some evidence that chasteberry can alleviate premenstrual syndrome (PMS) symptoms in women. Horny goat weed: The herbal ingredient horny goat weed contains compounds that may affect blood flow to the penis and have been linked to improved erectile function in animal studies. To arrange an appointment, please call HOTLINE or make your reservation directly HERE. You may also download the MyVinmec app to schedule appointments faster and manage your reservations more conveniently. If low sex desire concerns you, talk with your gynecologist or another member of your healthcare team.

Stress And Mental Health

For some women, low sex drive is part of an ongoing condition called sexual interest-arousal disorder. It involves having at least three of the following symptoms, which cause sadness or anxiety: No desire to have any type of sexual activity or to masturbate. Few or no sexual thoughts or fantasies. Not wanting to make the first move in a sexual encounter with a partner. Less or no pleasure during sexual activity.

Reduce your stress levels

Less or no interest in any sexual or erotic cues from a partner. Few or no physical sensations during sexual activity in most sexual encounters. You don't have to fit this definition to reach out for help. Your healthcare professional can look for reasons that your sex drive isn't as high as you'd like. During your appointment, your healthcare professional asks you questions about your medical and sexual history. Low sex drive can be challenging for you and your partner.

It's natural to feel frustrated or sad if you aren't able to be as sexy and romantic as you want or used to be. At the same time, low sex drive can make your partner feel rejected. That can lead to conflicts and strife. And this type of relationship stress can lessen the desire for sex even more. It may help to remember that changes in sex drive are typical. They're part of every relationship and every stage of life. Try not to focus all of your attention on sex. Instead, spend some time nurturing yourself and your relationship. Kiss your partner goodbye before you head out the door. Make a date night at your favorite restaurant. Feeling good about yourself and your partner can be the best foreplay.

Natural Ways to Increase Libido

This checks for signs of physical changes that sometimes play a role in low sexual desire. These changes can include certain skin diseases of the vulva, thinning of the vaginal tissues, vaginal dryness or pain-triggering spots. They also can look for thyroid problems, diabetes, high cholesterol and liver disorders. A counselor or sex therapist can help check for emotional and relationship factors that can cause low sex drive. Most women benefit from a treatment approach aimed at the many causes behind this condition.

Panax Ginseng

Recommendations may include sex education, counseling, and sometimes medicine and hormone therapy. Talking with a sex therapist or counselor skilled in addressing sexual concerns can help with low sex drive. Therapy often includes education about sexual response and techniques. Your therapist or counselor likely will offer recommendations for reading material or couples' exercises. Couples counseling that addresses relationship issues also may help boost feelings of intimacy and desire.

Systemic hormone replacement therapy (HRT)

Your healthcare professional reviews any medicines you take. The review is done to see if any of the medicines tend to cause sexual side effects. For example, SSRI antidepressants such as paroxetine (Paxil) and fluoxetine (Prozac) may lower sex drive. If your antidepressant might be the cause of your low sex drive, your healthcare professional may recommend that you: Wait to see if your sex drive improves. Lower the amount of medicine you take, called the dose. Primary healthcare professionals and gynecologists often ask about sex and intimacy as part of a routine medical visit.

8. Exercise: Physical Activity Benefits

This vaginal insert delivers the hormone dehydroepiandrosterone directly to the vagina to help ease painful sex. You use this medicine nightly to ease the symptoms of moderate to serious vaginal dryness linked with GSM. Taken daily, this pill can help ease painful sex symptoms in women with moderate to serious GSM. This medicine isn't approved for women who've had breast cancer or who have a high risk of breast cancer. There is a problem with information submitted for this request. Take this chance to talk about your sexual concerns. If your healthcare professional doesn't mention the subject, you can bring it up. You might feel embarrassed to talk about sex with your healthcare professional. But this topic is perfectly fine to talk about.