Libido Out the Window? Hormones and Peptides Can Help!

You love your partner, but your libido is low. Between late nights, early mornings, work stress, family obligations, and a million other balls in the air, there is little time and energy left for sex. But relationships change, and sex drive softens as we age… so, it’s perfectly normal, right?

Not necessarily. In fact, some reports suggest that our best love-making years are the ones that may lie ahead of us. A recent survey of 5,000 singles of all ages, ethnicities and income levels across the U.S. revealed that the best sex happens at age 66 for women and at 64 for men. It is at this time that our youthful self-consciousness wears off, communication becomes more comfortable, and greater creativity is embraced. So, if others are having the best sex of their lives as they grow older, perhaps it’s worth considering why you’re not enjoying sex?

Common Issues That Can Affect Your Libido

There are a number of factors that can affect the sex drive. One of the biggest influences is hormones. Hormones affect so many different parts of the body that when one chemical is out of sync, it can cause a nasty brew of issues. Hormones that specifically have an impact on libido include estrogen, progesterone, and testosterone.

Estrogen & Progesterone

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When our bodies slow down on progesterone production, it can lead to estrogen dominance, which causes low libido in women. This can happen naturally during perimenopause, or it can also be brought on by stress.

Yes, stress can actually throw your hormonal balance out of whack. When we’re running top speed on life’s hamster wheel, we produce an excess of cortisol – our stress hormone. The spike in our cortisol levels can then end up blocking our progesterone receptors. The irony is that sex can usually be a huge stress buster.

symptoms of a progesterone deficiency can include decreased clitoral sensitivity, vaginal dryness, loss of vaginal muscle tension, as well as more general mood killers like fatigue, weight gain, headaches, and depression. Interestingly, a lack of estrogen can also cause similar symptoms. If any combination of these issues sounds familiar to you, it might be your hormones blocking your path to pleasure.

Testosterone

If you’ve always thought testosterone was only important for men, think again. Reduced testosterone levels can have an impact on libido for both sexes.

In women, testosterone is what gives orgasms their oomph, heightening the sexual experience. As you can imagine, low testosterone is going to have the opposite effect, reducing sexual desire and satisfaction. Low testosterone levels in women can also result in lethargy, depression, and muscle weakness. In post-menopausal years, reduced ovarian function and hormone imbalances can reduce the amount of testosterone a woman produces.

Meanwhile, testosterone levels in men gradually decline with age. Testosterone deficiency in men not only diminishes libido and cause erectile dysfunction, but it can also result in a wide range of other symptoms including anxiety, depression, irritability, insomnia, poor memory, and reduced muscle and bone mass. Low testosterone levels can now be found in men of all ages.

Low Energy

Another factor people often associate a low libido with aging is due to the decrease in energy levels that can come with getting older. The same could be said about life after kids. As we age or when we become parents, our sleep patterns are interrupted with more frequent awakenings. The libido-crushing effects of a poor-quality sleep do not only impact seniors and parents, in fact feeling sleepy and irritable can happen to the best of us. Those who suffer from insomnia, irregular sleep patterns, or have sleep apnea may be able to relate particularly well to this.

Sleep & Libido

In one study, sleep apnea was shown to have an impact on testosterone levels in men. And as mentioned before, fatigue and lethargy can also be a result of hormonal imbalances in women. You see, when it comes to our bodies, everything is connected, which is why it is so important to think of our health as a whole and not in separate parts. In order for us to get better, we need to identify and treat the cause, not the symptoms.

Solutions For A Low Libido

Practice Mindfulness

Sure, “mindfulness” might sound like a cure-all buzzword, but there is a lot of truth to its power. Mindfulness, whether practiced through meditation, yoga or other means, helps us to reduce stress. When we reduce stress, we lower our cortisol levels. And as we already know, when our cortisol levels spike, it has a way of messing a lot of things up inside our bodies.

A moment of prevention is worth a pound of cure. By starting each morning with a few minutes alone in quiet reflection, we can set the stage for a better day, and more easily ground ourselves when life begins to get busy.

Let’s not forget that a more mindful day can also help lead to a more restful night. According to the Journal of Sex and Medicine, getting just one more hour of sleep per night could increase your libido by 14 percent.

Get Your Hormone Levels Checked

Our bodies are constantly changing, and the longer we ignore symptoms, the more out of balance we can get. When it comes to conditions brought on by our hormones, there is no reason why we have to “learn to live with it”. Start by getting your hormone levels tested properly in order to identify if an imbalance might be at play. At YM we specialize in Bioidentical Hormone Replacement pellet therapy which can help get you back on track to feeling like yourself again.

Peptides That Can Help Libido & Sexual Dysfunction

Peptide therapy is an emerging therapeutic area that we’re very excited about at YM. These are a few of the peptides that we have learned can work wonders for your energy levels and libido.

PT-141

PT-141 boosts libido by stimulating the release of Dopamine, the hormone responsible for reward-motivation behavior. This therapy directly interacts with the hypothalamus which positively affects sexual function. PT-141 is a hormone developed from the peptide hormone Melatonin II for its aphrodisiac effects.

PT-141 works in both men and women to improve sexual function. Men have reportedly had an 80% increase in the ability to have an erection, even if they have not responded well to other methods such as Viagra or Cialis. While women have experienced a 50% increase in having at least one sexually gratifying experience.

Why would I want to use PT 141?

PT 141 has been shown to:

Produce rapid onset of sexual arousal
Heighten libido
Improve symptoms of female sexual dysfunction
Induce erection in men suffering from ED
Improve sexual dysfunction on the level of the central nervous system

CJC-1295

CJC-1295 has been shown to have some of the same effects on libido as PT-141 but it also helps with your overall mood and wellbeing. It has been shown to be effective in raising growth hormone/insulin growth factor – 1 levels.

This affects almost every cell in the human body from bone and muscle, lungs, skin and even the central nervous system. These are essential components in the regulation and promotion of healing and recovery as well as in the regulation of the metabolism.

What are the benefits of using CJC1295?

Based on the literature, CJC1295 has been shown to be effective in raising growth hormone/insulin growth factor – 1 levels which helps to:

Increase bone density
Strengthen the cardiovascular system
Increase muscle mass
Improve the ability to burn fat
Increase sex drive
Improve recovery and repair from injuries
Regenerate nerve tissues
Strengthen the immune system
Improve cognition and memory
Outperforms sermorelin due to longer half-life and increased efficacy

Ipamorelin

Ipamorelin is often used in conjunction with CJC1295. These two combinations act together to increase Human Growth Hormone by acting on two different families of receptors.

Benefits Include:

Anti-aging effects
Increased lean muscle mass growth
Faster weight loss
Healthy skin, nails and hair growth
Decreases blood pressure

Sermorelin

Sermorelin is a synthetic hormone peptide composed of 29 amino acids. Growth Hormone Releasing Peptides stimulate the pituitary gland’s natural production of endogenous human growth hormone. However, it can also help to boost your libido!

Why Would I Want to Use Sermorelin?

Based on the literature, Sermorelin has been shown to:

Increased bone density
Strengthen Cardiovascular system
Increase muscle mass
Improve ability to burn fat
Increase sex drive
Improve recovery and repair from injuries
Regenerate nerve tissue
Strengthen the immune system
Enhance energy levels
Improve cognition and memory

Are you worried that you’ve lost your mojo? Fear not. We can help you get it back. If you have been experiencing a low sex drive or suspect imbalanced hormones might be at play in other areas of your life, please do not hesitate to contact YM at 352-209-4249. We can help rebalance your system naturally.

A low libido can affect your enjoYuniqueent of life and your relationships. There is no reason you should have to settle for less.

Larry Siegel, NP – YM

Larry Siegel is an ARNP and certified SottoPelle practitioner who offers his services at several clinics in the greater Ocala, Daytona Beach, and Villages area of Florida. He founded YM in 2016 in order to create a clinic that offered only the highest quality of ongoing care and anti-aging therapies (including bioidentical hormone replacement, and more) outside the rigid standards of traditional medicine.

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Libido Out The Window? There Are Plenty Of Ways Hormones And Peptides Can Help!