I’m going to mark this as NSFW just because I am talking about sex.
When I was first diagnosed with Breast Cancer, I did a lot of research… like too much research. One common theme I kept on seeing pop-up was sex during treatment, what chemo does to your sex drive, yadda yadda. Now I have a high sex drive so for me to see this, I rolled my eyes and was like, “no way chemo is going to affect my sex drive.”
Chemo drugs actually damage nerves and muscles involved in feeling pleasure from touch or reaching orgasms. Chemo drugs can also make sex painful if you are not properly lubricated because of the dryness.
~and the kicker~ Some chemo drugs actually put woman in a “menopausal state.” The side effects are exactly the same as a woman going through menopause; irregular periods or none at all, damage to your ovaries, dryness of the vaginal area, tightness of your vagina walls, emotional changes, hot flashes and so forth.
I can say though that even if chemo affects your sex drive, I haven’t had issues BUT after my last round of A/C, I experienced the most painful sex, followed by small cuts around my vagina because of it being dry (and a fun visit to my OBGYN). And besides that, I’m relieved it was only that because sex is very important for the human body. There are so many benefits.
Some of the positive affects of sex include, boosting your libido, lowers blood pressure, it counts as exercise, improves sleep and decreases stress, improves intimacy and relationships. I’m sure I’m missing some other benefits but you get the point. And because Cancer strips away a lot of things from you, to actually have control over something is amazing and mentally and physically, sooooooo beneficial to me, and I’m sure others who are in my position and feel the same.
If you have been recently diagnosed with cancer, please talk with your Oncologist about what chemo, radiation, surgery can do to your sex drive, if it’s important to you. My doctor never brought it up until I did, and I don’t think it was intentionally on her part. It’s something most people aren’t worried about but I think it’s important to understand and know what your treatment is going to do to affect all aspects of your daily life.
xx Kelsey
Tales of TNBC 