Low Libido: Reasons You May Have A Low Sex Drive

Your body naturally creates your sexual urges, a chemical response to your biological programming to reproduce. While your libido is partially a chemical reaction, the human ability to reason and respond with free will and thought means that sexual desire is a complex combination of factors, all of which can be deeply personal. 

Often, the definition of libido is what you decide, and it’s normal for it to roll through cycles. Low libido occurs when you’re not feeling sexual desire, and you (or you and your partner) want to feel it more often. 

As low libido specialists, the team at The Well for Health in Mooresville, North Carolina, is here to help. We offer diagnosis and treatment for both women and men, so visit us soon to take charge of your sexual life. 

Understanding the sexual response cycle

Understanding your libido requires some knowledge of the four phases of your sexual response cycle, which include:  

• Desire: the level of interest you have in sex
• Arousal: your body’s physical response to sexual excitement
• Orgasm: the release of genital tension in response to arousal
• Resolution: returning to a neutral, unaroused state

When any phase of the sexual response cycle alters, the cycle breaks down. Regardless of the reasons for this dysfunction, it creates a state that can be described as low libido. 

Reasons for lowered sex drive

It’s possible when you have low libido that you’re so completely absent of desire for sex that you’re not aware there’s a problem. You may be able to recognize symptoms from other perspectives of your life. You may notice things like: 

• No fantasies or sexual thoughts
• Little to no interest in sexual activity
• The usual stimuli don’t start the arousal response of your body
• Little or no pleasure is created by having sex
• Discomfort or pain during or after intercourse

Changes in libido throughout your life are normal. Though desire may fall as you age, this may be due to normal body changes. Your libido is low only if you want to have more sexual desire than these changes permit. 

We start by examining why conditions have changed; for both women and men, it often comes down to hormones. 

The importance of hormonal balance

A common reason for low libido in women is changing estrogen levels associated with menopause. As your body stops producing the hormone, you lose the chemical signals that create desire mentally, as well as physical changes that can make sexual activity uncomfortable or painful. 

For men, the usual culprit is lower levels of testosterone, the primary male hormone and the source of desire and arousal in both women and men. 

However, hormones aren’t the only reason for low libido. These can result from drug side effects, emotional or psychological effects, physical condition, and much more. 

We will explore the reason or combination of reasons why your libido isn’t where you want it to be. Depending on our discoveries, we can offer treatments like bioidentical hormone replacement therapy, counseling, lifestyle and medication assessments, and, for women, treatment of vaginal atrophy symptoms associated with menopause with the MonaLisa Touch® fractional CO2 laser system. 

Contact The Well for Health today to schedule a libido assessment consultation. Call or click to schedule your visit today.