How Menopause Affects Hormone Levels and the Libido

Many women experience loss of libido during and after menopause. Menopause affects hormone levels and women can suffer from symptoms for years until their hormone levels balance out. Many women turn to hormone replacement therapy (HRT) to relieve menopausal symptoms like hot flashes, insomnia, mood swings, and loss of sexual desire. HRT, which is mainly the hormones estrogen and progesterone, does not always solve low libido problems in women.

Many doctors suggest taking a small amount of the hormone testosterone to help low female libido. Sometimes a small amount of testosterone can improve sexual desire and response in women. Testosterone can increase libido, female sex drive, sexual desire and intensity of orgasms. Why does testosterone, often thought of as a male hormone, help women achieve stronger orgasms?

Well, the ovaries make the hormones estrogen and progesterone, both of which decline after menopause, but they also produce small amounts of testosterone. During and after menopause, testosterone levels decline also. Premenopausal women may also experience low testosterone elevels, which can be measured by a simple blood test. Some women fear that testosterone will make them grow facial hair or develop deep voices. This simply has not been proven and is not likely since the testosterone dose is very small. But some experts caution that the long-term side-effects of HRT in women are unknown. Some doctors believe HRT can put women at greater risk for developing breast cancer and ovarian cancer.

Women who suffer from low libido should have a thorough medical examination to determine if there are any underlying physical factors that are the cause of her sexual problems. Sometimes sexually transmitted diseases or even high blood pressure may cause low female libido and loss of sexual response. If a woman is has difficulty with sexual arousal and response, the problem could be emotional and she may benefit from professional counseling or therapy or evn female libido enhancement. Each woman has her own symptoms when going through menopause and each woman should be treated as a unique individual.

No woman wants to feel the loss of libido and lack of sexual desire. There are many developing remedies for the ease of menopause symptoms, which specifically address low female libido. Women should educate themselves about all of the treatments on libido enhancers that are available for them and not be afraid to ask for what they need and want to regain their sexuality.