Low sex drive

[srovski2008]

Hello,

This is my first visit to this site and I think it's great how so many people share their information. I was diagnosed with MS last year from the numbess in my right thumb which is almost gone now and I haven't had any change in my body from 3 years ago (6 months after giving birth) which I thank god for every day. My last visit to the specialist he told me that it all looks good and there seems to be no change. Around a month and half ago I'm have lost my mood when it come to it and no matter how much my husband tries I don't achieve the required wetness. My period is a little off now (a little too early) and I was taken off betaseron 6 months ago and placed on Copaxone which is by far better. The betaseron cause some hyperthyroidism (painful). The thyroid specialist informed me that hyperthyroidism is overactive thyroid and then it will go underactive (hypoactive) before going back to normal. I've been reading on the net that low sex drive comes from messed hormones, lesions, drug side effect, thyroid problems...etc. I haven't noticed any other change in my body except low sex drive (overly sensitive down there too probably due to the dryness). Also, I've been reading on the net that 30-40% of population (without MS) go through this after the age of 30 as well. I'm 32 years old and I was wondering if this because of my MS (new lesions) or is it because of Copaxone, hormone imbalance, stress of family life? I work fulltime, have 3 years old son. Has anyone else have had this issue? can you have low sex drive after 3 years with no other symptoms be MS lesions?


Thank you
S.

[jimmylegs]

hi S welcome to the site. sorry to hear you are having issues. i recently had a weird sex drive experience... i had found out i was zinc deficient and then i overdid my supplements so that my zinc was too high. around the same time, my sex drive skyrocketed. zinc is also typically lower on average in MS patients, even though the result is still inside the normal range. zinc is required for testosterone production which controls male and female libido. you have to be really careful when supplementing zinc or other minerals though - here's a link to some zinc-y foods if you don't want to go for a supplement.

[ssmme]

Don't be shy about using other forms of help as you wait for the zinc to take effect. Use personal lubricants and adult toys to see if they help make it more satisfying.

[Lars]

Jimmylegs,
I know from reading your posts that you are a advocate of Zinc. Since Zinc apparently strengthens the immune system the Heuga Center Nutritionists have it on the "don't take" list. Thoughts?
Lars

[srovski2008]

I did some reading on it and it seems to work for guys only (not for me).

Thanks
S.

[srovski2008]

Besides focusing on somethings to improve it, does this sound like a new MS lesion? or with lesion you usually will feel a change in your body? Anyone else expereincing this? Low sex drive with no other symptoms?

Thanks
S.

[ssmme]

does this sound like a new MS lesion

It is possible and I wouldn't rule it out but I think the incredible ms fatigue and other symptoms may also contribute. If this is a lesion issue then you might eventually see improvement if/when it's no longer active.

If you think it's an exacerbation I would talk to your neuro to see if any meds are in order to help clear it up faster or at least to validate why you are having these issues.

Marcia

[jimmylegs]

zinc works for both male and female libido. i know my story is just anecdotal, but i am female myself.

lars, zinc is (on average) lower in ms patients than in healthy controls. when we talk about nutrients that affect immune function, we have to consider that our immune system is a complicated arrangement.

in a very simplistic way, some messages say 'attack', and other messages say 'stop attacking'. if the body is low on ingredients that constitute the 'brakes', then one can certainly do well by strengthening that part of the immune system. vitamin d3 improves immune function in just this way. it strengthens the immune system by beefing up the brakes (among other things).

it's a long time ago now, but i've also seen research that indicates ms patients experience a drop in their natural killer cells in advance of a relapse. so you could consider adding a number of things that boost your body's natural killer cell level in hopes of preventing or minimizing the impacts of a relapse. it's a boost to the immune system, but likely a positive one. [update: i have taken echinacea which does exactly that, raise natural killer cells, but whether it was that or one of the other ingredients in the "immu-9" formula, it made me feel kind of non-specifically blah. it has to be a personal evaluation i guess!]

getting back to zinc and ms. we have had a fair amount of discussion here on uric acid levels and ms and relapse. ms patients typically have reduced levels of uric acid, and also on average, lower zinc. it turns out that adequate zinc is needed to maintain levels of uric acid (in rats), so those two phenomena of the ms patient are potentially linked. http://jn.nutrition.org/cgi/content/abstract/105/1/26

uric acid is pretty important to immune support in ms. admittedly the following is just a murine EAE study, but you can find lots more research out there
http://www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/articl ... tid=138606

inflammation can certainly be altered in both excess zinc and in zinc deficiency states. zinc status has to be balanced and optimized. ms patients who are deficient in zinc should certainly not avoid it for worrying about the inflammatory consequences of excess zinc. better to aim for that sweet middle ground of optimal. it's pretty important to have your bloodwork monitored if you're going to supplement zinc. other options are to boost the intake of zinc-rich foods.

if you check out the thread 'ms, zinc, boys, girls, and controls', you can see the chart which will give you a sweet spot to aim for.

[jimmylegs]

hey there szrovski, did you ever try out the zinc? or at least get tested to see if you're in that typically low zinc ms female range? i was outright deficient at a level of 8, normal range 11-20. it certainly did fire up my female instincts when i corrected the problem.

lars, any comment on the line of reasoning related to zinc and the immune system? it's so important for a long list of other MS-related ills. i think i'll have to look at that site you mentioned to see how they support the 'don't take' statement. i hope they aren't portraying the immune system as volume when it's EQ!

[jimmylegs]

hi lars i was on the heuga site, i don't think i can access their rationale for non-use of zinc without paying for one of their programs.

[Miss_Feisty]

Children and a busy life can both tire the sex drive without ms. Why has no one mentioned this yet?

I don't know any women who run home from work everyday, finish their chores, feed the children and can hardly wait for a romp in the hay later that evening. Really. Why do you think people remove themselves from the home for a quiet night out? It helps to reconnect intimately.

Yes ms can play a role in the sex drive but so can life. Hormones shifting are a culprit, but so is stress and the factors that contribute to the hormones.
I have heard time again during the "girl talk" with non ms'ers that the drive is not what it was when life is too busy.

This is partly ms and partly a stage in a woman's life when she is responsible for so much in life. Consult your doctor and continue to look into other ways of enriching this part of your life. Sometimes, just having some time for yourself makes YOU feel good and in turn you can share that with your husband.

If it is nothing hormonal or an ms issue, sometimes doing something to make yourself feel "like a woman" can help in "being a woman". The humdrum of family life can sometimes de-sex at the best of times. It is important to feel good, get your hair done, get dressed up for a night on the town. This may not sound practical, but can take you out of the "work/mommy" mode.

Take care of your body and your soul. I wish you the best.

[ursula]

I think there are many women (also without ms) who take lubricants - it´s more fun anyway.
Dryness needn´t mean that you have a lack of sex drive..!

[wannabepirate]

Hi everyone this is my first posting to the site as I only discovered it a few days ago. It is so brilliant that people are prepared to post about sex and MS I find it difficult stuff to share that stuff with people not affected by the issues.
Anyway here's my thoughts: the whole physiology of my vagina and genitals has changed with MS, I've been diagnosed 12 years and have had Copaxone and currently Mitoxantrone. I have had hypersensitivity and pain in my vagina for a few years now and in the last 3-4 months I have been looking at hormone deficiency which there seems to be lots written about on this site. I have been using Estriol vaginal cream for a little while and it has made a big difference in reducing discomfort and improving sexual responsiveness. Who knew! I would be really interested to hear if anyone else has similar experiences, this is especially relevant to me now because the Mitox has brought on early menopause (I'm 44).
JJ