Antidepressants and Sexual Dysfunction
One of the great ironies of depression treatment is that while depression
can rob you of your desire for sex, the drugs that treat it can be much
worse, causing not only low libido, but also erectile dysfunction and
difficulties with orgasm. The following are some tips that you may wish
to discuss with your doctor that can help restore you sex life. 1. Reduce
Your Dose Under the supervision of a physician, it may be possible to
lower your dose enough to reduce sexual side effects while still obtaining
depression relief. For example, it has been shown that for some people
5-10 mg of Prozac may be just as effective as the standard 20 mg dose.
Schedule Your Dose Right After Sexual Acitvity With certain drugs, such
as sertraline and clomipramine (brand names Zoloft and Anafranil), it
may be possible to schedule your daily dose right after the time you would
normally expect to engage in sexual activity, when the drug's level in
your body would be at its lowest. For example, if you normally have sex
at night, schedule your daily dose near that time and take it just after
sex.
Augment With a Drug That May Reduce Dysfunction Case reports and small
clinical studies have found the following to be potentially helpful in
counteracting sexual dysfunction: Amantadine, Bupropion, Buspirone, Cyproheptadine,
Dextroamphetamine, Pemoline and Yohimbine. Your doctor may suggest taking
the drug prior to sexual activity or may put you on a daily regimen.
Take a Drug That Treats Sexual Dysfunction Drugs targeted at erectile
dysfunction, such as Viagra, may help some patients.
Take a "Drug Holiday" With the drugs sertraline and paroxetine (brand
names Zoloft and Paxil) it may be possible to schedule a two day drug
holiday each week in order to restore sexual function without losing the
efficacy of the antidepressant.
Switch to an Antidepressant That Causes Fewer Side-Effects Nefazodone
and bupropion
(brand names Serzone and Wellbutrin) have been shown in double-blind studies
to have less effect on sexual function than SSRIs. If either of these
have an adequate antidepressant effect for an individual patient they
may be a viable treatment alternative to reduce sexual side effects.
See Generic
Zyban offer (Bupropion, Zyban® equivalent)
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