Skip to main content

Advertisement

SpringerLink
Log in

“I’ve Lost My Mojo, Baby”

A Narrative Perspective on the Effect of Depo-Provera on Libido

  • Published:
Sexuality Research and Social Policy Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Few studies have explored women’s subjective experiences with Depo-Provera, in particular its impact on their sexual selves and everyday lives. Thirty-four (34) women were interviewed about their experiences using Depo-Provera and other methods of contraception, with interviews analyzed using a thematic narrative analysis approach. A key theme emerging in interviews was decrease in libido (sexual desire) in taking Depo-Provera, which was linked with emotions, body image, and had social ramifications. Four participants’ stories serve as exemplars for exploring subjective complexity. "Lived" accounts of user experiences are essential for overcoming a reductive focus on contraceptive side effects, which elides connections and obscures user understanding. A narrative perspective provides an empirical basis for developing family planning programs and sexual health policies that acknowledge more experientially grounded conceptualizations of women's sexual and reproductive health and wellbeing.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

Notes

  1. I have also conducted a complementary study of women’s (student, faculty, and staff) experiences with Depo-Provera at surrounding private colleges and a public university in Western Massachusetts to provide additional perspectives on the contraceptive method.

  2. All participants have received a pseudonym to protect confidentiality.

References

  • Abel, K., Rourke, T., Lu, D., Bost, K., McChesney, M. B., & Miller, C. J. (2004). Abrogation of attenuated lentivirus-induced protection in rhesus macaques by administration of depo-provera before intravaginal challenge with simian immunodeficiency virus. Journal of Infectious Diseases, 190(9), 1697–1705.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Allen, L. (2004). Beyond the birds and the bees: Constituting a discourse of erotics in sexuality education. Gender and Education, 16(2), 151–167.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Anderson, J. E., Santelli, J., & Gilbert, B. C. (2003). Adolescent dual use of condoms and hormonal contraception: Trends and correlates 1991–2001. Sexually Transmitted Diseases, 30(9), 719–722.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Author. (2005). Growing up stories: Narratives of rural African American women. Unpublished Dissertation, University of Florida, Gainesville.

  • Bahamondes, L., Trevisan, M., Andrade, M., Andrade, L., Marchi, N. M., Castro, S., et al. (2000). The effect upon the human vaginal histology of the long-term use of the injectable contraceptive Depo-Provera. Contraception, 62(1), 23–27.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Bordo, S. (1993). Unbearable weight: Feminism, Western culture, and the body. Berkeley: University of California Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bunkle, P. (1993). Calling the shots? The international politics of Depo-Provera. In S. Harding (Ed.), The "racial" economy of science: Toward a democratic future (pp. 287–302). Bloomington: Indiana University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Center for Disease Control and Prevention. (2011). Morbidity and mortality weekly report: CDC health disparities and inequalities report — United States, 2011 (Supplement, Vol. 60). Atlanta, GA: CDC, USDHHS.

    Google Scholar 

  • Chandra, A., Martinez, G., Mosher, W., Abma, J., & Jones, J. (2005). Fertility, family planning and reproductive health of U.S. women: Data from the 2002 National Survey of Family Growth (No. Series 23, Number 25). Washington, DC: USDHHS, CDC, NCHS.

  • Civic, D., Scholes, D., Ichikawa, L., LaCroix, A. Z., Yoshida, C. K., Ott, S. M., et al. (2000). Depressive symptoms in users and non-users of depot medroxyprogesterone acetate. Contraception, 61, 385–390.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Conscience. (2010). Roundtable: Talking about…population. Conscience: The Newsjournal of Catholic Opinion, 31(2), 22–30.

  • Consumer, F. D. A. (2005). "Black box" warning added to contraceptive injection. FDA Consumer, 39(2), 3.

    Google Scholar 

  • Corea, G. (1991). Depo-Provera and the politics of knowledge. In P. Hynes (Ed.), Reconstructing Babylon: Essays on women and technology (pp. 161–184). Bloomington: Indiana University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Downing, R. A., LaVeist, T. A., & Bullock, H. E. (2007). Intersections of ethnicity and social class in provider advice regarding reproductive health. American Journal of Public Health, 97(10), 1803–1807.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Espey, E., Steinhart, J., Ogburn, T., & Qualls, C. (2000). Depo-Provera associated with weight gain in Navajo women. Contraception, 62, 55–58.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Family Health International. (2006). Community-based distribution of Depo-Provera: Evidence of success in the African context: Family Health International, USAID.

  • Fine, M. (1988). Sexuality, schooling, and adolescent females: The missing discourse of desire. Harvard Educational Review, 58(1), 29–51.

    Google Scholar 

  • Fine, M. (2006). Bearing witness: Methods for researching oppression and resistance—A textbook for critical research. Social Justice Research, 19(1), 83–108.

    Google Scholar 

  • Fine, M., & McClelland, S. I. (2006). Sexuality education and desire: Still missing after all these years. Harvard Educational Review, 76(3), 297–338.

    Google Scholar 

  • Flyvbjerg, B. (2004). Five misunderstandings about case-study research. In C. Seale, G. Gobo, J. Gubrium, and D. Silverman (Eds.) (2009). Qualitative research practice (pp. 420–434). London: Sage Publications.

  • Ford, C. L., & Airhihenbuwa, C. O. (2010). The public health critical race methodology: Praxis for antiracism research. Social Science & Medicine, 71, 1390–1398.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gubrium, A. G. (2005). Growing up stories: Narratives of rural African-American women. PhD Dissertation, Department of Anthropology, University of Florida.

  • Gubrium, J. F., & Holstein, J. A. (2009). Analyzing narrative reality. Los Angeles: Sage Publications.

    Google Scholar 

  • Guttmacher Institute. (2006a). Contraception counts: Ranking state efforts (No. 1). Washington, D.C. : Guttmacher Institute.

  • Guttmacher Institute. (2006b). Facts on American teens' sexual and reproductive health (Fact sheet). Washington, D.C.: Guttmacher Institute.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hampton, M., & McWatters, B. (2003). A process model of Depo-Provera use in Canadian women. Health Care for Women International, 24(3), 193–208.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Hampton, M. R., McWatters, B., & Jeffrey, B. (2000). Method-related experiences of Canadian women using Depo-Provera for contraception. Canadian Journal of Human Sexuality, 9(4), 247–257.

    Google Scholar 

  • Harel, Z., Biro, F., & Kollar, L. (1995). Depo-Provera in adolescents: Effects of early second injection or prior oral contraception. Journal of Adolescent Health, 16(5), 379–384.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Hartmann, B. (2005). Reproductive Rights and Wrongs. Boston, MA: South End Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Higgins, J. A., & Hirsch, J. S. (2007). The pleasure deficit: Revising the "sexuality connection" in reproductive health. International Family Planning Perspectives, 33(3), 133–139.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Higgins, J. A., Hirsch, J. S., & Trussell, J. (2008). Pleasure, prophylaxis and procreation: A qualitative analysis of intermittent contraceptive use and unintended pregnancy. Perspectives on Sexual and Reproductive Health, 40(3), 130–137.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Irvine, J. M. (1994). Cultural differences and adolescent sexualities. In J. M. Irvine (Ed.), Sexual cultures and the construction of adolescent identities (pp. 3–28). Philadelphia, PA: Temple University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Jain, J., Jakimiuk, A. J., Bode, F. R., Ross, D., & Kaunitz, A. M. (2004). Contraceptive efficacy and safety of DMPA-SC. Contraception, 70(4), 269–275.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Kaunitz, A. M. (2005). Depo-Provera's black box: Time to reconsider? Contraception, 72, 165–167.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Khoiny, F. (1996). Use of Depo-Provera in teens. Journal of Pediatric Health Care, 10(5), 195–201.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Macklin, R. (1996). Cultural difference and long-acting contraception. In E. H. Moskowitz & B. Jennings (Eds.), Coerced contraception? Moral and policy challenges of long-acting birth control (pp. 173–191). Washington, DC: Georgetown University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Malat, J. (2000). Racial differences in Norplant use in the United States. Social Science & Medicine, 50(9), 1297–1308.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Maletzky, B. M., & Field, G. (2003). The biological treatment of dangerous sex offenders, a review and preliminary report of the Oregon Pilot Depo-Provera Program. Aggression and Violent Behavior, 8(2003), 391–412.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Massachusetts Alliance on Teen Pregnancy. (2010). Trends in teen birth rates for selected communities, 2007–2008. Boston, MA: The Massachusetts Alliance on Teen Pregnancy.

    Google Scholar 

  • Mauck, C. (2005). Overview of why hormones may be an issue. Journal of Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome, 38(Supplement 1), S11–S12.

    Google Scholar 

  • Metoyer, A. B. (2009). Racial and socioeconomic disparities in use of long-lasting contraception. In J. J. Kronenfeld (Ed.), Social sources of disparities in health and health care and linkages to policy, population concerns and providers of care (Vol. 27, pp. 109–134). Emerald Group Publishing Limited.

  • Mishler, E. G. (1991). Research interviewing: Context and narrative. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Morrison, C. S., Bright, P., Wong, E. L., Kwok, C., Yacobson, I., Gaydos, C. A., et al. (2004). Hormonal contraceptive use, cervical ectopy, and the acquisition of cervical infections. Sexually Transmitted Diseases, 31(9), 561–567.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Morrison, C., Chen, P.-L., Kwok, C., Richardson, B., Chipato, T., Mugerwa, R., et al. (2010). Hormonal contraception and HIV acquisition: reanalysis using marginal structural modeling. AIDS, 24(11), 1778–1781.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Mullings, L., & Schulz, A. J. (2006). Intersectionality and health: An introduction. In A. J. Schulz & L. Mullings (Eds.), Gender, race, class, & health: Intersectional approaches (pp. 3–17). San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.

    Google Scholar 

  • National Black Women’s Health Project. (2002). African American women and contraceptive options: Our choices. Philadelphia Black Women’s Health Project (Contraception). Electronic Document: http://www.blackwomenshealthproject.org/aacontraception.htm, Accessed February 28, 2011.

  • Pazol, K., Northcutt, K. V., Wilson, M. E., & Wallen, K. (2006). Medroxyprogesterone acetate acutely facilitates and sequentially inhibits sexual behavior in female rats. Hormones and Behavior, 49, 105–113.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Report, National Women’s Health. (2006). Teen pregnancy update. National Women's Health Report, 28(1), 10.

    Google Scholar 

  • Riessman, C. (2008). Narrative methods for the human sciences. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications, Inc.

    Google Scholar 

  • Santelli, J., Rochat, R., Hatfield-Timajchy, K., Gilbert, B. C., Curtis, K., Cabral, R., et al. (2003). The measurement and meaning of unintended pregnancy. Perspectives on Sexual and Reproductive Health, 35(2), 94–101.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Schaffir, J. (2006). Hormonal contraception and sexual desire: A critical review. Journal of Sex & Marital Therapy, 32, 305–314.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Schmitz, A. (1993). A shot in the dark. Health, 7(1), 1–3.

    Google Scholar 

  • Shulman, L. P. (2008). Contraception and sexual health. Current Sexual Health Reports, 5(3), 149–153.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Smith, R., Cromer, B., Hayes, J., & Brown, R. (1995). Medroxyprogesterone acetate (Depo-Provera) use in adolescents: Uterine bleeding and blood pressure patterns, patient satisfaction, and continuation rates. Adolescent and pediatric gynecology, 8(1), 24–28.

    Google Scholar 

  • Solheim, F. (1992). An assessment of quality of life in women treated with Depo-Provera in Sweden. Oxford, UK: Oxford Clinical Communications.

    Google Scholar 

  • Stevens-Simon, C., Kelly, L., & Kulick, R. (2001). A village would be nice but…it takes a long-acting contraceptive to prevent repeat adolescent pregnancies. American Journal of Preventive Medicine, 21(1), 60–65.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Trunova, N., Tsai, L., Tung, S., Schneider, E., Harouse, J., Gettie, A., et al. (2006). Progestin-based contraceptive suppresses cellular immune responses in SHIV-infected rhesus macaques. Virology, 352, 169–177.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Westhoff, C. (2003). Depot-medroxyprogesterone acetate injection (Depo-Provera): A highly effective contraceptive option with proven long-term safety. Contraception, 68, 75–87.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Wilkin, T. (2003). Hormonal contraceptives increase HIV risk; Vitamin A levels unrelated to viral load. Electronic Document: http://www.thebody.com/content/art15070.html, Accessed January 5, 2009.

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Community Health Education, School of Public Health and Health Sciences, University of Massachusetts, Amherst, MA, USA

    Aline Gubrium

Authors
  1. Aline Gubrium
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Aline Gubrium.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Gubrium, A. “I’ve Lost My Mojo, Baby”. Sex Res Soc Policy 8, 321–334 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13178-011-0055-0

Download citation

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s13178-011-0055-0

Keywords

Search

Navigation