What birth control pill is best for higher libido?
I’ve been taking Junel Fe for about 3 years now. Junel contains norethindrone (a progestin) and ethinyl estradiol (an estrogen). I’ve noticed that my sex drive has decreased insanely. It’s to the point that I do not even want to have sex anymore or even masturbate! And during sex/masturbation it is very hard to feel good. I want to switch birth control but I want to try a different type of pill. I don’t want to try any other form. What is the best pill that will increase my libido and also doesn’t have many side effects such as weight gain?
Clever Girl!2021-03-17T03:57:15Z
The problem with birth control pills, at least for some women, is that while the body responds to the excessive estrogen in the pill by increasing the breakdown of all sex hormones, including testosterone. Many people think of testosterone as a "male" hormone, but it's also important for a woman's sex drive (even though our testosterone is at lower levels than men's). When there's excess estrogen, the body releases SHBG (sex hormone binding globulin) that takes the estrogen, and the testosterone, out of circulation. So what to do? I was initially going to say, "Get an IUD" or "Try Nexplanon." But then I read that you don't want to try anything other than pills. They make pills that don't contain estrogen, but just have progestin (sometimes called the "mini pill"). It's still effective for birth control, but it needs to be taken ever day at the same time of day to be effective; so if you're the sort who sometimes misses a dose, it's not a great choice. Hope that helps you get your mojo back! Just realize that even after you switch, it may take several weeks for you to start to return to normal since the SHBG levels don't just go away overnight, it'll take time for the body to return to normal.