‘I STRUGGLED TO REACH ORGASM UNTIL I FOUND HRT’
‘I was so happy to have my mojo back’
Author Jane Lacey-crane, 48, from Spalding, Lincs, lost her ability to orgasm due to the menopause. Jason, 50, and I have been together for 28 years with a healthy sex life that has ebbed and flowed over the years, as is normal for any couple.
We had children in our thirties and our sex life was quiet for a while, but things picked up as the kids got older and we had more time for ourselves.
But around three years ago, I suddenly developed a real lack of interest in sex.
Difficult conversations
When we had sex, I struggled to reach orgasm. I was also suffering from memory loss, brain fog and a lack of concentration. It was so severe that I saw my GP, worried I was experiencing early-onset dementia. He prescribed antidepressants for me.
Next came the hot flushes and I knew that something wasn’t right. I was in my early-forties, so I didn’t think it was linked to the menopause, but then my periods became irregular.
As a working mum of two, my lack of sex drive bothered Jason more than it did me and it caused a few difficult conversations. I told Jason that I still fancied and loved him.
Soon it became more than just a lack of interest in sex. If I wasn’t bad-tempered, I was crying.
After watching the Davina Mccall TV documentary Sex, Myths And The Menopause, which featured interviews with women experiencing the same symptoms as me, I found the confidence to book another appointment with the GP. This time, I insisted on HRT. I like sex and I like being close with my husband – I wanted that back.
Help is there
I was prescribed oestrogen patches to stick on my bottom, which replace my dwindling hormones. A few months on, I have already noticed a difference.
For a long time, I could not orgasm, even by myself. But we had sex a few weeks back and I had one. I was so happy to have my mojo back that I burst into tears.
I’d convinced myself that all of that side of things had stopped working, so I was relieved to experience it again. Help is there, but women need to have the confidence to ask for it.