anyone...urm... have O problems 'cause of meds? | Arthritis Information

 

OK...so the few times lately that me and the hubby have been intimate (few and far between due to pain blah, blah, blah) I haven't been able to reach the big O and I'm wondering if it is due to meds like Lyrica (being muscle relaxants)...and if anyone else is having the same issue????  Not trying to be all ** about it, just wondering if others...you know  I know when I'm on anti depressants, I get like that too. lol   But, so far havent had problems. I'm on Plaquenil and celebrex. I will be starting Methotrexate soon. I'm not sure about Lyrica though?? SSRIs such as Zoloft, Paxil and Prozac are notorious for those issues. No problem, but I'm not on Lyrica.  I certainly hope any of the meds don't have that side effect.  That's just adding insult to injury.  I mean, come on, enough already.  Does THAT have to be taken away too, in addition to so many other things?  Maybe it's that your pain  is making it impossible for you to relax enough to reach that level.  Did you notice the problem only after starting Lyrica?  

Tramadol has SSRI properties - if you take it frequently it can also cause problems in that department. Had some problems before Lyrica (hello - pain anyone!!!) but since Lyrica no...but I love my Lyrica because it helps so much....arggh....just seeing if anyone has suggestions??? similar story??   Not to be graphic, but everything gets going...but it goes nowhere.... When I saw those ads that say "And have a minimum of sexual side effects" I thought they meant it wouldn't suppress the libido.  I had no idea it could affect the big O.  Good to know.  And to avoid if at all possible.  So, does anyone have any suggestions for gimpymamma, assuming she can't change her meds?  Gmama, I'm sorry that's happening...that's not fair!!  I'm on Lyrica and Orencia like you are, and I'm also on an NSAID (Relafen rather than Mobic) and a muscle relaxant (Skelaxin rather than Flexeril), and fortunately I'm not having this issue.  I do sometimes have problems if I am in more pain than usual or have more fatigue than usual...do you think that could be the case for you?

 

But I looked up about the potential side effects:

 

Lyrica - sexual problems can be a "rare" side effect

Lexapro - sexual problems can be a "common" side effect

Orencia - didn't see any sexual side effects

Mobic - didn't see any sexual side effects

Flexeril - didn't see any sexual side effects

Tramadol - didn't see any sexual side effects

 

Lyrica isn't that easy to go on and off, so if it's working for you, I'd try to eliminate other possibilities first.  It seems more likely to be the Lexapro.  I believe there are some websites with suggestions...let me see if I can find some for you.

Gimpymomma I wish I could give you a suggestion as you were so encouraging with your post to me.   I have not had that problem but I'm not taking Lyrica.  I hope you find a good answer soon...Hiking_galAlso wanted to add that there are some AD's that don't have sexual side effects, like Wellbutrin (bupropion)...and that particular one I just found out is thought to possibly have anti-inflammatory properties as well.  If you haven't already tried it, maybe you could talk to your doc about switching?

 

Ok, here's one of the articles about dealing with the side effects:

http://www.healthyplace.com/communities/depression/treatment/antidepressants/sexual_side_effects_2.asp

"In a recent review, Maurizio Fava, M.D., and Meredith Rankin, B.A., described the main approaches to managing antidepressant-induced sexual dysfunction. First, clinicians may attempt to alleviate the sexual side effects of a drug by reducing the dose or switching to an alternative therapy that may be less likely to cause sexual side effects. Both of these strategies risk sacrificing the therapeutic benefit of treatment and are more likely to be used in patients who are not responding fully to treatment.

Second, nonpharmacologic interventions -- such as behavioral and cognitive-behavioral techniques employed by sex therapists -- have been used extensively, but studies evaluating their success in patients taking antidepressants are needed.

Lastly,a number of medications have been reported to be useful in the treatment of sexual dysfunction associated with antidepressants, but few placebo-controlled trials have been conducted. According to Fava and Rankin, the most common medications for antidepressant-induced sexual dysfunction fall into three categories:

• a2-adrenergic receptor antagonists such as yohimbine.
• Serotonin 5-HT2 or 5-HT3 receptor antagonists, including nefazodone, cyproheptadine and granisetron.
• Dopaminergic agents, such as amantadine and pramipexole.

Some agents that fall into more than one of these categories include mirtazapine (an 2 and serotonin receptor antagonist) and bupropion (a dopaminergic/noradrenergic agent). Other agents that may be useful are gingko biloba and sildenafil, note Fava and Rankin. The potential for new side effects and drug-drug interactions is one concern with this approach. The lack of research for treatment-emergent SD is common to all of these pharmacotherapies. "

I found another article (but then lost the window and accidentally closed it) that suggested two other possibilities:  reducing the dose, or "taking weekends off", either of which needs be done with your doctor's permission/supervision.I used cyproheptadiene (Periactin) to deal with antidepressant intimacy side effects in the past.  It did the job. I would definitely suspect the Lexapro as the culprit, the exact same thing happened to me on every SSRI's I've taken, you get almost there but can't quite get over the finish line, so to speak. Frustrating in the extreme, for me and for my hubby, who is very "goal -oriented".  (Hope that's not TMI.)  I take Wellbutrin rather than an SSRI for that very reason and it works great.  The clinical term is anorgasmia, if you google that plus SSRI you get lots of hits. Is that because you've never had a woman Boney???  well last woman took 4 hrs to blow up.... Thank you all for your help - Inner Glow, Jasmine Rain, Former Mermaid!  I am checking out the links and the med mentioned...also enjoyed Boney's & Hillhoney's comments   and, for me, there is no such thing as TMI!!!  The more I know the more I can forget (or something like that)  Peter, are you promising an "O" in every patch?I never connected this problem with Lycria but I take lycria and also am vitamin O deficient!  LOL!!  I will google those drugs mentioned, didn't know they had such drugs.  I also take cymbalta, not sure how that measures up in creating problems in this area.  I have a heart condition called prolonged qt caused from my sarcoidosis which has a long list of drugs I can not take, a lot of SSRI's are on that list.  Wellbutrin helped my depression but made my tummy (IBS) way worse.

I know from urine and blood tests that I have extremely low DHEA which can cause low sex drive.  I am also a couple of quarts low on progesterone and human growth hormone.  The big O has evaded me for a long while now and it sure would be nice to at least have that one pleasure back!
Did you hear about the woman on the plane that kept sneezing?  And every time she sneezed she would groan.  Finally the man sitting next to her asked her about her sneezing and asked why she groaned each time.  She replied that every time she sneezed she had an orgasm.  And he replied OMG, what do you take for it and she replied "PEPPER"
Since this is the subject matter, I couldn't resist this one.
great....
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