Recovery from long-term sexual dysfunction

Hello.

I developed a sexual dysfunction after two-three weeks on Oxycodone. I'm a young female.

For various reasons that I can't really justify rationally I stayed on the medication for two years after getting the side effect.

I was told that it was likely a side effect by the doctor.

Now that I've finally quit, it's still not gone away after 8 weeks off. It's pretty much as it was on them, just a little better.

It's primarly strongly delayed orgasms and weakened intensity of orgasm.

I know that there are permanent side effects to some medications, like tardive dyskinesia and PSSD.

There's not that much litterature that I could find on opioid induced sexual dysfunction, just studies that show that a lot of people on them (more than 50 % in many studies) have sexual dysfunction and others that talk more generally about the opioid system inhibiting or delaying orgasms.

I think I was holding on to the belief that it wasn't the medication before, because of how hard it was for me to get off it. I got withdrawal RLS.

I'm kind of more upset because sexuality has always been a very big part of my life. It was effortless and very enjoyable. It's still enjoyable, just takes more effort and time. For example before I could come 10 times in 15 minutes with a vibrator and in under 5 minutes usually with my hands. I would sometimes take it slowly just to make it last longer. I could masturbate 10 times a day without a problem because it took so little time. Now, if I get horny (which I often still do), it still takes me 20-30 minutes to reach climax, so it's obviously not something I can do as often. It's also less pleasurable because of less intense orgasm. Sometimes it doesn't come at all or takes longer than 30 minutes.

I think I can live a happy life without orgasms or with this issue, but I'm still upset at myself mostly for not quitting the drug sooner.

I've read studies on pregabalin and gabantenin induced anorgasmia, which was reversible, but the cases described always talked about a person who quit the drug shortly after the side-effect appeared. I think most people would be a little more unhappy and concerned about such a big change, I was a little nonchalant about it. I think I even maybe developed somewhat of a sexual OCD and mild PGAD (very mild arousal/tingling a lot of the time) where I was masturbating 3-4 hours daily with just a few orgasms.

There is described something called opioid induced hypogonadism, but I'm not sure that hormonal issues would cause mainly orgasm problems. My periods are also normal, I think.

Has anyone here had sexual dysfunction from a drug they stayed on for a while and had it go away? If so, I'd like to hear about your story and the drug used, duration etc, if you'd like to share.

Has anyone had a SD for years and then got better later (including with medical assistance)?

If you have gotten better, I would like to hear your story and what you did if you'd like to share.

It seems that there's very little treatment for this, so I would also have to find doctor who's willing to do things out of the box to help me, which is very rare where I live.

I stopped using a vibrator since I was getting issues with numbness and pins and needles because of the duration. I don't think that is the solution for me, though it is a nice thing to have/use in moderation.

Hello, and welcome to the forums!

Unfortunately, I myself can't give a whole lot of support on this- hopefully someone else can answer better- even better if they're also female. I have boy bits.

I think a lot of the stories I've seen on here as a moderator have been in conjunction with SSRIs diminishing sexual drive or causing physical sexual dysfunction. I myself began Lexapro & Trazodone a little over a month ago, and have noticed orgasms are largely (but not completely) unattainable. I'm rather older than you I'm sure (and have indications that my testosterone has been low for some years, though I don't know that), and of course I don't have female genitalia.

I was already suffering from performance anxiety and I think I have lost some sensation 'down there' over the past five years, give or take a little. So for me, while solo masturbation doesn't generally get affected as much by performance worries as if another person was involved, I was still already finding it harder to finish.

After a month on these antidepressants, I'm definitely noticing even more trouble. Which wasn't completely unexpected, considering I've read of complaints in the forums re: SSRIs. Since I've now been on them long enough to really be in my system (Lexapro takes roughly three weeks before it really begins to kick in), I've managed orgasm all of once- however it was stronger than usual, which has been reported by some others with delayed orgasm from Lexapro. I still get horny, & I still wake up with a happy little Snaga- so I don't necessarily have decreased erectile function before/after medications- but trying to get from Here to There seems to be mostly a memory. For now- some people regain normal function after SSRIs have been in their system a while. And some don't.

I personally have no real experience with opioids, save for limited periods of time.

I went and did some digging as well- have you looked into androgen levels? You need some testosterone, yourself- and the use of opioids long-term is linked with hypogonadism.

https://www.painphysicianjournal.com/20 ... -ES156.pdf

A lot of sites I found were trying to sell testosterone-boosting cures; but I kept at it until I found a paper that wasn't hawking anything, that mentions men and women with Opioid-Induced Androgen Deficiency (OPIAD).

One thing I haven't seen via scanning several web pages, is how permanent or long lasting this is- but the link I posted it sounds as if it can be something lasting and in need of remedial treatment post-long term opioid use. It also mentions women tend to be underdiagnosed for low testosterone.

Have you run into any of that in your search?

Ah I'm a fool- yes you ran into the hypogonadism- but I keep reading that that can affect orgasm as well.