Dr. Gil

A woman's sexual desire never remains the same. It fluctuates with a woman’s menstrual cycle, age, mental state and health. Life changes like pregnancy, menopause and social dynamics like family relationships and stress at work affect her libido. But there are other reasons which are more ‘chemical’ for a woman’s sexual highs and lows, as we shall soon see. Before we get to the symptoms and reasons for low libido in women, let’s define what low sexual drive is.

If a woman has persistent or recurrent lack of sexual interest, she may be suffering from hypoactive sexual desire disorder or low sex drive. This is the most common form of sexual dysfunction among women of all ages.

Common symptoms of low sex drive are

1. No interest in any type of sexual activity, like touching, kissing or even self-stimulation
2. Absence of sexual fantasies or thoughts

Physical causes which lead to low sex drive in women

1. Diseases: Arthritis, cancer, back pain, diabetes, high BP, coronary artery disease and neurological diseases can affect arousal and sexual enjoyment in women.
2. Low testosterone: This male hormone affects sexual drive in both men and women. The levels of testosterone peak in the 20s in women and then decline, which means older women have lower sex drives than younger ones. The levels tank dramatically after menopause.
3. Medications: Use of antidepressants and anti-seizure medications can cause low sex drive in women and so can certain blood pressure lowering drugs, and oral contraceptives. These drugs affect libido in many ways like decreasing available testosterone levels or affecting blood flow.
4. Disorders: Conditions like thyroid dysfunction, endometriosis and fibroids are all libido dampeners.
5. Hormonal changes: Estrogen levels fall during menopause. This affects sexual desire and may lead to dry vagina syndrome, causing pain during sex. Pregnancy and breast-feeding also take a toll on female desire as these bring about massive changes in her body image along with numbing fatigue.

Psychological factors:

1. Anxiety and depression
2. Stress
3. Poor body image
4. Low self-esteem
5. Physical or sexual abuse
6. Negative sexual experiences
7. Alcohol and drug use

Since sexual desire in women is so complex and multi-dimensional, relationships, emotional state of a woman, her sense of well-being, as well as closeness and chemistry have a role to play. However, low sexual desire has to be recognized as such, to be cured. The cure for low libido is not just physical, but it is usually a multi-pronged strategy including social, psychological and emotional factors. But we assure you that a visit to a doctor, lifestyle changes and medications can help you get into the mood more often. If you wish to discuss about any specific problem, you can consult a Sexologist.