Posted by Prozac Pro on August 31, 2010, at 11:13:36
Hello-
I am posting to find out what SSRI users are doing these days to manage the sexual side-effects of SSRIs.I had a severe depressive episode in 1995, that was cured with fluoxetine and lithium. I tapered off of the lithium after two years, and remained depression-free on fluoxetine alone. Around 2006, I was diagnosed with adult ADHD, and started Adderall XR 30 mg/day.
My libido and erectile function gradually diminished on fluoxetine, especially over the last three years, which is, coincidentally or not, when I started the Adderall XR. I tapered off the meds AMA in April-June of this year. Sexual function was starting to return, when depression hit me like a sledgehammer. Prozac didn't touch it, but Lithium worked like a miracle drug. I'm back on the Adderall XR, too.
Those nascent sexual urges are now gone. I'm resigned to a lifetime of SSRI therapy, so I'd like to know what others have done with success (or not) to manage this problem.
A few ideas:
1. Might a short-acting Adderall as needed work (by increasing dopamine). As things are, I take Adderall XR in the AM, and it's all worn off by bedtime.
2. Pull the Adderall XR, and initiate bupropion? I know some people have had success with bupropion for both ADHD and SSRI side effects. I asked my p-doc to give me a tral od bupropion in lieu of Adderall XR, and he was resistant to the idea.
3. Try another SSRI? However, my understanding is that fluoxetine is considered to be more benign than most other SSRIs in regards to sexual side effects.
4. Try an antidote med, preferably OTC? I tried a few days of loratadine once, and all I got was a headache. Anyone try diphenhydramine?
5. Try a nutritional supplement? I've dabbled with maca, with no luck. Maybe I wasn't taking enough.
I have had an improvement in erectile function with Cialis, but it doesn't do much for libido, and it makes me head-achy and miserable for a few days afterward.
I have done quite a few searches of this board, and most of the info on this issue is a few years, or more, old. Hence, I'm starting this discussion. Thanks in advance for any suggestions.
poster:Prozac Pro
thread:960799
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20100829/msgs/960799.html