Whether you are using Depo-Provera, patches, or pills, hormones in birth control are systemic—which means that they are intended to affect your hormones throughout your body. Hormonal birth control methods are incredibly effective and often women find they can connect more to their sex drive once they are no longer worried about getting pregnant. But many women also experience negative effects that hinder their sex drive. Many patients tell me, “I feel like I have a slipcover on my body.”

Here’s how the hormones in your body usually work: As your period and the bleeding ends, FSH (follicle-stimulating hormone) and LH (luteinizing hormone) rise, signaling that the oocyte (egg) is ready to be ejected from the ovary. Meanwhile, estradiol, one form of estrogen, is starting to climb as well. A few days later, FSH and LH spike, and this ... Читать дальше »