Did the BCP knock out my hormone levels?

[twizler]

Here is my question: 3 mos before I got married I went on the bcp, Yaz. Before I took the pill, my whole life, I had a high sexual drive and arousal was not a problem. But after being on the bcp 2 mos, I noticed that I didn't want sex at all. By the time we got married, it was a big problem - sex is painful all the time, and even if I feel love for my husband, which I do, my body does not respond at all!!!

On top of this, I have vaginal dryness BIGtime, and I've noticed lots of other changes in my body - dry skin, dull hair, I just look older, etc. and my body doesn't "bounce back" the way it used to if I don't sleep enough. Also, I have anxiety attacks now!! Something is seriously wrong with me.

My question is this: I went off the bcp after 5 mos of taking it - and that was a year and a half ago and still nothing has changed. If anything my symptoms are getting worse! I'm not depressed, I get plenty of exercise, I eat healthy, etc. and my husband and I have a great relationship, and he's a really sweet understanding guy. But we never have sex and it *****!! I really want to, but it just hurts so much because I'm not ready for it - at least my body is not ready. :-(

So, did the bcp knock my hormones out of whack or what? I know I'm exhibiting a lot of the symptoms of low estrogen / progesterone, and I need to have that checked out. But CAN that even happen because of the bcp? Has it happened to anybody else out there?? And what did you do about it? I hear lots about Natural HRT and how it's supposed to be really great, but I'm only 29... is it okay to take something like that at my age? I certainly FEEL menopausal!!!

Help!

twiz

[cici2009]

Hello yet again, twiz.  I just thought more about the symptoms you mentioned and wanted to suggest that you also find out if you have developed any thryoid problems.  A lot of doctors don't know much about this so you have to find a good person, I don't know much about it either but I think there is a woman, Mary Shomon who is the sort of underground expert - she wrote a book called "Could it be my thryoid?".   A search for her would probably turn up a lot of information.  And the good news about thryoid problems is that a lot of people get treated and actually get much better.    GL again!

[cici2009]

Hi again, I did not realize the link would not show up automatically.  The title of the article is "Birth Control Pills Could Cause Long-Term Sexual Problems" dated Jan 9 2006.

The publication they discuss in the article is "Impact of Oral Contraceptives on Sex Hormone-Binding Globulin and Androgen Levels: A Retrospective Study in Women with Sexual Dysfunction"   This was published in Jan 5, 2006 Journal of Sexual Medicine.

The researchers are Claudia Panzer, MD*, Sarah Wise, MS † , Gemma Fantini, MD † , Dongwoo Kang, MD † , Ricardo Munarriz, MD † , Andre Guay, MD, FACP, FACE ‡ , and Irwin Goldstein, MD §

[cici2009]

Hi there.  I am on this site to check out something else but I saw your post and it's a subject I happen to know something about.  

And, the truth is that unfortunately you're not imagining things.  A few years ago they did discover that women who had taken the pill in the past often had much more problems with libido.  It turned out that taking the pill left them with elevated levels of SHBG - sex hormone blinding globulin, which is something that actually represses sex drive:  

http://www.*****************/gynecology/articles/contraception/pill_sexual_dysfunction/

SHBG binds free testosterone.  Too much SHBG means  too much free testosterone gets mopped up and is not available for libido.  I do not know what the solution for this  is but I do know of women who've recovered their sex drives after Depo Provera and other birth control damage.   Not very many women know about this or have tried to reverse the situation as far as I know, because there is practically no awareness.  

I have not tried either because I am dealing w/a different problem, long-term loss of sex drive caused by anti-depressants. That is more challenging to solve because it seems to involve alterations in the brain.  I hope you find your solution ASAP.      
Best wishest to you!