Filbanserin works by targeting serotonin in the brain to promote sexual desire. (Addyi is currently only approved for premenopausal women, but it can be a viable option for women after menopause as well, off-label.) You can also use bremelanotide (Vyleesi), which you self-inject via a clicky pen at least 45 minutes before you might have sex.
| Food Item | Rich in | Benefits |
|---|---|---|
| Avocados | Healthy fats, vitamin E | Hormone production, blood flow |
| Dark Chocolate | Phenylethylamine, magnesium | Mood booster, increased desire |
| Oysters | Zinc | Hormone synthesis |
| Watermelon | Citrulline | Improves blood flow |
It works by mimicking neurotransmitters in the brain associated with sexual desire.
5. 🍑 Peach and Apricot: hormonal sweetness & beta-carotene
Still, before choosing any supplement, it’s important to purchase those that are third-party certified, which ensures that they are labeled correctly and do not contain contaminants. Doing so helps you stay safe when taking them—a must even when they’re available over-the-counter. Supplements are unlikely to be the answer to your libido problems. Your health, life stage, lifestyle, and relationship are all pieces to figuring out exactly why your desire is down—and how to get it back up. Most women benefit from a treatment plan that's more holistic, including a combination of lifestyle changes, medications, and maybe even libido booster for woman some supplements, to get your libido back on track.
Boron Citrate
There are many science-backed options available to you to get your sex life back on track. Midlife women in the menopausal transition often benefit from hormone replacement therapy (HRT), especially if you’re besieged with symptoms that may be interfering with intimacy. (Some experts now use the terms hormone therapy (HT) or menopausal hormone therapy, or MHT). The name is a tad misleading because you’re not replacing any hormones in your body so much as you’re giving them a little boost. “Adding back just a tiny percentage of the hormones your body made during your peak reproductive years “is all that is needed to gain so many benefits,” says Midi’s Chief Medical Officer Kathleen Jordan, MD. Sexual desire doesn’t just come out of nowhere.
- Engage in weight training to increase testosterone levels, boosting libido.
- Reduce screen time before bed to improve sleep quality and hormonal response.
- Use guided imagery or fantasies to mentally prepare for intimacy.
- Incorporate new activities or positions to keep sex exciting.
- Avoid medications known to reduce libido unless prescribed by a doctor.
- Maintain healthy relationships, as emotional intimacy directly influences desire.
- Focus on self-care and self-love to improve body confidence and libido.
There are a lot of things that have to go right in your body to stoke that fire. Health issues like diabetes, high blood pressure, cancer, and thyroid disease can sometimes sneak in and steal your sex drive when you're not looking. They might be harboring some libido-dampening culprits too, from cholesterol and blood pressure meds to birth control, antidepressants, and chemo drugs. Some meds can put your desire on pause without giving you a heads-up first so if you started a new medication around the same time you started having desire problems, it may be related.
| Product | Dosage | Quantity + Bonus | Price | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cialis Generic | 40mg | 60 + 6 Pills | 130.98€ 124.74€ | |
| Cialis Generic | 20mg | 60 + 6 Pills | 117.76€ 112.15€ | |
| Cialis Generic | 10mg | 270 + 10 Pills | 308.71€ 294.01€ | |
| Priligy Generic Dapoxetine | 60mg | 120 + 10 Pills | 341.26€ 325.01€ | |
| Cialis Generic | 20mg | 270 + 10 Pills | 335.21€ 319.25€ | |
| Viagra Oral Jelly | 100mg | 30 + 5 Sachets | 115.76€ 110.25€ | |
| Cialis Original | 20mg | 64 + 4 Pills | 274.18€ 261.12€ | |
| Cialis Black | 80mg | 180 + 10 Pills | 356.64€ 339.66€ | |
| Viagra Generic | 200mg | 180 + 10 Pills | 277.56€ 264.34€ | |
| Cialis Black | 80mg | 90 + 6 Pills | 207.88€ 197.98€ |
Talk to a healthcare professional to see if any untreated health issues or the medications you take could be to blame. It’s no surprise that your mood and relationships affect if and when you want to have sex.
8. Other foods
Testosterone is the spicy hormone behind your sex women libido pills drive, and according to a major study on postmenopausal women, testosterone therapy can effectively reverse low desire. Despite its stellar performance, there's currently no FDA-approved testosterone product for women in the U.S. However, it's still prescribed off-label for women whose testosterone levels have gone south, contributing to libido hibernation or other symptoms. Potential side effects like acne or hair growth can crash the party, but a simple dose adjustment usually addresses these issues. This underscores why getting testosterone treatment from a trained professional (like the experts at Midi) is absolutely crucial. For one, mood disorders like depression can decrease your interest in pleasurable activities (yes sex, but pleasure in general), decrease your self esteem, and lower your energy in ways that put sex and orgasm very low on your list of priorities. Then, in a rather cruel twist, many of the antidepressants prescribed to treat depression also decrease sexual desire.
- Incorporate foods rich in healthy fats like avocados and nuts for hormonal production.
- Practice positive affirmations to boost confidence and sexual self-esteem.
- Use music or ambient sounds to create a romantic atmosphere.
- Limit exposure to hormonal disruptors like BPA and parabens.
- Schedule intimate moments to prioritize and foster desire intentionally.
- Seek professional help for medical conditions affecting libido.
- Keep a journal to track factors influencing your sexual desire and habits.
(Fun tip: Exercising right before having sex might boost your libido if you’re taking antidepressants, one study found.) Keeping that spark alive with your partner isn't just nice—it's often the secret sauce in relationships! Chatting openly with your partner (yes, actually talking about it!) can help you discover fun new ways to get cozy, both emotionally and in the bedroom.
- Regular exercise boosts blood flow and energy, enhancing female libido naturally.
- Maintain a balanced diet rich in omega-3s, zinc, and vitamins to support hormonal health.
- Manage stress through meditation or yoga to prevent libido decline caused by anxiety.
- Prioritize sleep to regulate hormones like testosterone and estrogen, essential for desire.
- Communicate openly with partner to improve intimacy and emotional connection.
- Limit alcohol intake, as excessive drinking can decrease sexual desire.
- Herbal supplements such as maca or ginseng are believed to boost libido in women.
And hey, even couples who've been together forever can find this conversation a bit awkward—no shame in that game! If you're both tongue-tied, a relationship or sex therapist can be your personal conversation starter kit, helping knock down those walls so you two can build that connection bridge together.
What Nutrients Have Been Proven to Boost Libido?
Sleep affects your overall well being in so many ways, including your sexual desire. Think about it: If you’re conked at the end of the day, do you really want to expend the energy to have sex? But here’s the kicker: Getting good sleep is related to higher libido the next day. In fact, getting just one extra hour of sleep was associated with a 14% increase in the odds of engaging in sexual activity with a partner, according to research in The Journal of Sexual Medicine. Women who got more sleep also reported better genital arousal.
Questions your doctor may ask
When searching for solutions for low libido, you may have come across libido gummies, which are supplements (in gummy form) that contain ingredients that, companies claim, improve sexual desire and function. Products differ across the board but they may include a combination of the following: These herbs are added to libido gummies for one of several reasons: They may help reduce stress and anxiety, are considered an aphrodisiac, improve blood flow, or are linked to enhanced sexual desire. There is, however, a lack of evidence showing that libido gummies will effectively improve your sex life (or desire for one), and individual data on many of these ingredients is also lacking, conflicting, or shows limited evidence. The choice is yours if you’d like to try them to see if they benefit you. These types of gummies aren’t considered harmful, so even if it’s just the placebo effect that has you feeling more perked up, take it. After all, sometimes the most romantic thing you can do is simply ask for directions!
Do Aphrodisiacs Work?
(Heads up: Testosterone treatments have different restrictions depending on where you live, so chat with a clinician about the options available in your state.) Other bedroom-boosting treatments might include vaginal DHEA/estradiol cream — which can improve moisture and elasticity of vaginal tissues, making sex more comfortable and potentially turning up the heat on your desire. Dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA) is a hormone produced by the adrenal glands and it can be converted to estrogen and testosterone. When used as a topical cream, it has been shown to reduce symptoms of vaginal dryness and painful intercourse. If you are premenopausal, then you may benefit from one of the FDA-approved medications that treat HSDD. Options include the pink pill flibanserin (Addyi), which is a non-hormonal treatment that you take daily. Your sex drive is a serious thing—many women consider their sexual health to be an important factor in their overall quality of life, research shows. If low libido is causing you distress or affecting your relationship, reach out for help.
Menopause & Low Libido
These products make penetration more comfortable and a whole lot more enjoyable. If you’re using condoms, you’ll want to ensure that the lubricant you’re using is also condom compatible. (That includes silicone- and water-based lubes, but often not oil-based ones.) No matter what OTC product you’re using, make sure that it’s fragrance-free (and, if a lubricant, also free of colors and flavorings) to protect the health of your vagina. Getting your body moving at the gym (or anywhere, frankly) can help amp up the energy elsewhere. One study found that women who engaged in frequent physical activity had an up to 80% reduction in the chances of having low libido.
3. Optimize hormones
Exercise helps you in a variety of ways: It has a positive impact on hormones and your nervous system that promote mental and physiological arousal, plus it’s a bonafide mood and body image booster, notes research. (When you’re feeling yourself, you may also be more likely to say ‘yes’ to sex.) You know the feeling of having a high-stress day where you’re left frayed and frazzled? The last thing on your mind might be having sex with your partner. Research shows that higher amounts of daily stress is linked to lower sexual activity—and lower relationship satisfaction, too. Improving stress management by lessening stressful situations, scheduling time for self-care (in whatever way that looks like for you), getting enough sleep, exercising, and eating well can all help improve your mental health and mood. We realize that talking to your doctor can be a tough ask, especially if you two don’t have that type of communication. (You’ll talk to them about how your shoulder hurts or if your blood pressure is okay, but you draw the line at talking about how your husband doesn’t turn you on anymore.
2. Cope with stress
Available in a pill, patch, vaginal ring, topical cream or gel, the medication provides small doses of estrogen (plus progesterone if you have a uterus) to your body. Estrogen deficiency in menopause is linked to a low libido, as well as vaginal dryness and thinning that make sex uncomfortable and painful. Research suggests that HRT can improve sexual desire and symptoms like vaginal dryness. “We know that declining estrogen levels that occur with menopause can affect individual women differently,” says Dr. Goldman.
Chronic stress reduces sexual desire
“About 50% of menopausal women will get symptomatic Genitourinary Syndrome of Menopause, or GSM. This collection of symptoms is due to declining estrogen and can include symptoms like vaginal/vulvar dryness, burning, pain, sexual dysfunction as well as urinary symptoms.” All things that can do a real number on your libido. If you’ve also been experiencing menopausal symptoms like night sweats and hot flashes—which can wreak havoc on your overall wellbeing—HRT can be a huge help. HRT relieves hot flash symptoms by up to 90 percent. To inject some life back in your libido, testosterone supplementation during perimenopause and menopause might just be your ticket to reviving your missing mojo.