Depression

Depression can impact a woman’s quality of life in many ways. Some symptoms of depression include a depressed mood, diminished interest or pleasure in activities one used to enjoy, significant weight loss or gain, insomnia or hypersomnia, fatigue or loss of energy, feelings of worthlessness, and a diminished ability to think or concentrate. Each of these symptoms alone may be enough to negatively influence a woman’s sexual function.

A high percentage of women suffering for mild-severe forms of depression also experience sexual dysfunction. In women, depression is most frequently found co-morbidly with low sexual desire. It is often unclear if depression symptoms preceded low sexual desire or the other way around. Current research indicates that an improvement in sexual functioning is a significant predictor of depression remission. It is therefore recommended that treatment of sexual functioning should be an integral component of therapy for depressed women.