Let me start by saying I’m not morally opposed to any birth control unless it destroys a fertilised egg. As best as I can determine from a good deal of study, that only happens with progestogen-only pills other than Cerazette and IUDs. There is a link at the bottom for more on this issue. If you think life starts at implantation, this is not an issue for you. If you see preventing contraception as wrong then the only acceptable form of birth control is avoiding sex when you’re fertile. These are issues well-studied and well-meaning Christians disagree on and I really don’t want to get into that here.

What I do want to address is the possibility that the pill and other forms of hormonal birth control may be reducing or killing your sex drive.

There are not enough studies on this and much of what has been done is contradictory. Part of the problem is that sex drive is self-rated rather than measured objectively. The other big thing is that the pill changes sex by making it possible to have sex any time (and anywhere) without having to think about birth control. Lori and I had more sex, and especially more intercourse, after my vasectomy for this reason. The procedure didn’t change my sex drive, but the convenience it provided did change things. The pill can do the same. So just tracking changes in the frequency of sex don’t tell us if or how the pill has changed sex drive. Then there is the fact that changes tend to happen gradually. And finally, some women were not sexually active prior to going on the pill, so they have nothing to compare to how they function on the pill.

All that said, it’s been known for decades that hormonal forms of birth control reduce sex drive in at least some women. This may be because the hormone(s) used increase sex hormone-binding globulin (SHBG) which in turn reduces testosterone. Depending on the form used, free testosterone can decline by more than half. Even worse, at six months after going off of hormonal contraception, women still had twice as much SHBG as women who never used such birth control, and levels didn’t drop much more at a year. So the effects may last for years or decades. 

Various studies look at this differently and with different criteria. However, several have shown that women on the pill experience less arousal, have fewer orgasms, have difficulties with lubrication, experience decreased pleasure, and have less frequent sex than women who have never used the pill.

Because these forms of contraception are so popular, it’s difficult to get the funding needed to do a large, proper study. And it’s not like anyone selling them wants to do a study that could show they interfere with sex! This issue has been known for decades and it’s not likely we will see a well-done study on this issue. So while I think this is often a problem, I can’t prove to you that it is. If you use any hormonal method of contraception, please prayerfully consider the issue.

~ Paul – I’m XY, and I’m glad Lori only used the pill a short time.

References:

• Family planning professor John Guillebaud | When do contraceptives work? 
• Inside Tracker | A Surprising Way Birth Control Affects Your Health and Hormones

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