Losing my libido: Is my mental health affecting my sex drive?

Mental health conditions and their treatments can have serious ramifications in the bedroom. The experts weigh in on what can be done to address a waning sex drive

Some medications used for treament of mental health conditions can have sexual dysfunction as a side effect, reducing or even banishing entirely libido and sexual desire.

Sex is not everything, yet we can’t deny the importance of intimacy in our lives. It provides and builds on connection, love, and respect in our intimate relationships, raises our self-esteem and confidence, even decreases stress, and lowers our heart rate and blood pressure. And it’s fun, thrilling, and exciting, but despite the obvious benefits, there are likely to be periods in our relationships and lives when sex is not something we want or need. Exhaustion, stress, an unsteady work/life balance, poor sleep, relationship issues, technology addiction, and struggling with our mental health can all play a part in whether sex even crosses our mind.

“There’s no need or want for intimacy. It’s just gone,” says Meggan O’Reilly, who found her mental health acutely affected her libido and desire to have a sex life with her long-term partner. A low or vanishing sex drive is not unusual when it comes to balancing our mental wellbeing with a conventional libido. There is nothing predictable about our mental health and so our sexual relationships can take a hit when times are difficult.