The REAL reason for your lifeless libido, revealed

Feel like you lost your libido years ago and you’ve got no idea how you can get it back?

Help is at hand, by way of the Melbourne-based fertility specialist, Nat Kringoudis, who spoke to FEMAIL about just why your libido has gone AWOL – and how you can fix it.

For Nat, there are countless reasons why your desire to slip between the sheets may have waned – from time of the month to medications and stress. 

However, there are also several simple ways you can pep yourself back up.

Among the most common reasons you might feel a loss in libido are your cycle, pregnancy, breastfeeding, peri-menopause and the menopause itself:

‘Your libido should rise and fall in accordance to your cycles,’ Nat explained to FEMAIL. 

‘When your hormones are well balanced it will peak mid cycle, around ovulation and for many a second peak is experienced during the period time. The lowest is typically leading into the period time where you body has other priorities on the go.’

Meanwhile, if you’re pregnant, Nat said a feeling of low libido is very common at this time – ditto while you’re breastfeeding and then before and during the menopause.

According to Nat, there are many reasons for low libido, including cycle, pregnancy, menopause and the biggest of all – stress (stock image)

However, there are other factors which might influence your libido including medications such as antidepressants, the removal of adrenal glands and ovaries and stress:

‘This is the biggest libido-fizzer of them all,’ Nat explained. 

‘High stress triggers the release of your stress hormones, cortisol and adrenaline which for some will either hinder or shut down sex hormone production.’

When it comes to getting your libido back on track, Nat (pictured) recommends you make yourself be up for it more often and consider your stress levels and hormones

So what can you do to try and get your libido back on track, and how can you have yourself jumping back into your bed with your partner as if you were teenagers?

First of all, consider your habits.

‘Ask yourself, is it just a bad habit?,’ Nat explained. ‘The more we fall into a libido funk, the less we may think about it. Try to commit yourself to be up for it more often and see if things change.’

Next, consider your gender.

Nat outlined that men ‘are generally more driven sexually and women aren’t necessarily great at initiating intimacy and that’s perfectly fine – in fact really normal.

‘Checking in to see if that once you’re in the moment, things feel good or it’s a total no go zone many help you to see that your libido maybe hasn’t gone AWOL, it’s just not you who is doing the tapping on the shoulder.’

You might be struggling with high oestrogen – in which case increasing fibre intake, green leafy veg and increased exercise can all help (stock image)

Then, consider your stress levels and act accordingly.

‘When you’re under pressure, being randy is probably the last rung on the ladder in terms of priority,’ Nat said.

Finally, ‘reign in the troops if you feel your hormones are at play.

‘In cases of really low libido, you might also see other key symptoms of vaginal dryness, painful intercourse, difficulty maintaining muscle mass, general low mood and lethargy,’ Nat said.

‘Libido can also take a nose dive when oestrogen is high.’

Counteract this by increasing fibre in the diet and adding in more green leafy veg.

Increasing exercise is also another way to begin to get a better grasp on oestrogen.

To read more from Nat Kringoudis, you can visit her blog here.