Subject that is dear to me, because too often “taboo”, in particular concerning women (patriarchal values, when you hold us), even though we should not only speak about it completely, without embarrassment or shame, but that our doctors, they should, in a context of treatments such as androcur, evoke it ...
few practitioners have done so, focusing on the pathology .
To start, a definition, which I will hasten to complete:
"Libido or sexual desire is the desire to indulge in sexual activity".
That's basically that ...
However, first nuance, we are not equal to the libido. Some have a naturally very active libido, others, less. In any case, they can, therefore, be judged, by society, by those around them, and this, from the moment when they have started to feel these "desires" until the end of their life (sex life does not stop, neither in menopause, nor at an age or a specific era, which had believed it?), Or precisely, not, or little, to live them.
I pass on all the stereotypes that result from it, between the “Marie-Carte-ài” and the “Sainte-Nitouche”, the “respectable” woman and the “delusional”, the “old girl”, or the “slut”, let's use what is used!
Then, it is crucial to recall that libido, it is also very strongly linked to self -esteem , and that, depending on its physical, or psychological state, depending on the circumstances of life, the meetings that we do or does not do, it is not only variable - which, in the Androcur context can mislead us on our own perception of the thing - and that a defective or non -existent libido can have an impact on the whole Life : conjugal, social, friendly, professional ...
It has often been mentioned, the Androcur should only be prescribed in 3 cases , within the framework of the AMM (marketing authorization):
I quote a document of 2012, the high authority of health, on its indications:
" -major female female hirsutisms of non-tumor origin (...), when they seriously sound about psycho-affective and social life.
-Palliative anti-Androgenic treatment of prostate cancer .
- Reduction of sexual impulses in paraphilies in association with psychotherapeutic management. ».
Basically, it deals with many rapists and other sex offenders ...
The treatments used within the framework of this “chemical camisole” are Androcur but also the stripping : “
They do not act only on sexuality, describes the doctor. There are side effects like hot flashes, fattening of muscles or character disorders. ” (
How chemical castration works for rapists )
On the other hand, for this to be possible, it takes an informed agreement of the patient, and the follow -up of an endocrinologist and a psychiatrist.
Concerning us, because we must refocus the subject on us, the victims ... If you still have an Androcur notice that drags, you will see that there is a question of " increase or decrease in libido" ... something that has never been mentioned to many of us, and which revolts me, on several levels, after having read over the months, of sometimes terrible testimonies, and in any case, frightening.
I will briefly illustrate them by examples, whose aspect “in bulk” will allow me to quickly make you understand why this theme is crucial. In addition to the fact that some will discover, unfortunately, or, "fortunately" to a certain extent, my subject, which will undoubtedly allow them to finally put an explanation on many things in their life as a woman ...
I allow myself to quote these women , in a voluntarily succinct way, in all the brevity imposed by discretion with regard to this problem:
- The one who has never had any sexuality , because she has taken Androcur since adolescence, and who, at 45, has never had a boyfriend, never had the life she would have liked, nor the children she would have so much desired, and who said " I cry while reading you, I was stolen my life as a woman ";
- The one who testified to her only boyfriend, in college, she who had always been under treatment, and who had ended up making a reason by making love with as much desire as we go to the prison, and who, after stop, believed herself for a moment "nymphomaniac", when she had just just discovered as she was, that is to say completely "normal";
- the one who wrote to me, in private, revolted and relieved at the same time: “ I discovered almost 50 years that I am not frigid “;
- the one who believed that her couple no longer worked , because she no longer wanted her girlfriend, and who decided, wrongly, to leave her, taking this as a “symptom” of the end of their lives;
- The one who, again, in private, said to me “ your testimony is timely, I am on the verge of divorce , and I have finally understood many things “;
- The one who asked himself questions, in adolescence, and who, adult, did not know. “ Am I gay, straight? Am I asexual, quite simply? “;
- The one who had had friends and a little benevolent family, throughout her life, and who was, for these people, become " an old girl ", which is revolting, both for this despicable entourage, as because "as a couple", "single" or what, does not mean anything about what you are and your value in this world!
And I'm finally going to quote myself, because I can allow myself to do it, being the author of this subject. I had a drop in libido, after a while, without understanding too much. I put this on “my age”, “wisdom”, the fact that I was projected myself with anxiety in the future, being a little recluse in my house, to write a thesis which I did not know if she was going to propel me to Pôle Emploi or elsewhere ... I was going out a little less, I met a little less people, but above all, I had lost the desire, to conquer, to conquer, to conquer, to conquer, to conquer, to conquer, to conquer , applied to all the pleasures of life. I was bored, sexually, and above all, I was very wise, which the perfect opposite of my person.
After many (recent) readings, while I thought I had become “myself” after a stop of the Androcur in 2013 of my own, and against the advice of the endocrinologist (due to a diabetes and a suspicion of stroke), I finally understood, and I spoke to my friends.
I have long believed that this revival of libido was linked to a kind of “re” awareness of my life as a woman, associated with a dark period, which reminds you that we die tomorrow, that we must enjoy life, as much as possible. I had, after the judgment, in addition to a suspicion of stroke, a suspicion of breast cancer, then of the endometrium, with all the terribly distressing examinations associated.
Well yes, it was not until the end of 2018, my MRI and my meningioma for me to understand that I actually had another “undesirable” effect of Androcur , this damn drop in libido !!
I wanted to let you know, because there are more and more of you, and that this subject is by far the priority of all the actors of our health!
I know that not all of them are concerned, but I address myself to those who will read me, either in silence or who will express themselves, and who were also impacted, because once again, libido, it is much more than sexuality.
It is, according to, feeling different, without understanding, or badly in your skin, sometimes to the point of sinking into a depression. It is also not to launch in a professional project, because we are “zero”. It is sometimes, not participating in social events, etc. Because you don't feel comfortable. It is, not to live your sexuality as we should, or sometimes say to yourself " I became a mom, I thought it was linked " (another testimony, read some time ago). And when, in addition, we have endometriosis, or a pathology or disruption that touches his life in his life in the depths of his being, such as hirsutism, acne, and "image" that we have of self and "refers" or believes to return to society, obviously that this "adverse effect" is not limited in any case to sexuality , and that is the main motive for which I wanted to approach with you.
I hope that each of you can have this information, so that you can identify any disorders that you would have been led to undergo, and that you may still suffer. Just know that this zero or decreased libido, it is not irreversible, and that it takes a little bit of time, after stopping. I would just like, that in the long term, all the victims concerned can “find” or discover themselves as they are, and finally get to know or return to themselves.
????
???? A spectacular difference ”of an area of the brain in women under pill ????
Women who take a contraceptive pill would have a much less developed hypothalamus than normal . This key region of the brain is in particular in charge of the regulation of hunger , the rhythm of sleep, the nervous system and the hormones .
Decrease in libido, weight gain, irritability , the symptoms associated with taking the contraceptive pill are numerous.
Linked to a hormonal change in the body, they could more specifically be due to alterations in the brain of women who take this type of contraception. According to recent works presented to the Radiological Society of North America (RSNA), they have a hypothalamus significantly lower than that of women who do not take the pill.
The hypothalamus? This brain area located at the base of the brain produces hormones and helps regulate essential body functions . Like the stability of the body's temperature, mood , but also the regulation of appetite, libido, sleep cycles or heart rate .
“A spectacular difference”
To achieve this result, the researchers gathered a group of 50 women in good health, so 21 were under oral hormonal contraception. A brain MRI was carried out on each of them, which made it possible to measure very exactly the volume of the hypothalamus. " We have noticed a spectacular difference of size of this brain structure between women who take oral contraception and those who do not take it ," explains Dr. Michael Lipton, radiology professor at the Gruss Magnetic Resonance Research Center at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine and Director of the Montefiore Medical Center imaging service.
" This first study in the matter shows a strong association [between pill and narrowing of the hypothalamus] and should motivate to start more extensive research on oral contraceptives and the structure of the brain but also on their potential impact on brain functions ," says the specialist.
The pill against acne or endometriosis
If the study has not shown any significant correlation between taking the pill and an alteration of cognitive functions -the functions of the brain linked to memory, language or reasoning -, scientists have however been able to observe that a small hypothalamus was associated with
" stronger anger " as well as a larger
depressive symptom to the promised computer program, developed by a public health agency American ). This is the first time that such an observation has been made with women who have taken the pill. "
There is a lack of research on the effects of oral contraceptives on this part of the human brain, which is certainly small but essential ", regrets Dr. Lipton.
The authors of the study specify that beyond a contraceptive use,
The pill is also used in other medical indications, such as irregular menstruation, cramps, acne,endometriosis and polycystic ovary syndrome. In the United States, out of 47 million women between 15 and 49 years old, taking contraception, 12.6% of them had chosen to take the pill according to figures from
Center for Disease Control and Prevetion National Center for Health Statistics from 2015 to 2017.
In France, the pill remains the most used contraception, with 37% users in 2018 against 45% in 2010 according to a study carried out in 2018 by Ifop.
Women under pill have a key region of the brain less developed
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