Paroxetine and Sexual Dysfunction
Does the US Paxil label say the same as the UK leaflet? Whether paroxetine's sexual side effects can last after stopping, and next steps.
Has sex felt different on paroxetine (Seroxat in the UK, Paxil in the US)? You are not alone. It commonly changes sex drive and can make orgasm hard to reach.
These problems don’t always end with the last tablet. The UK leaflet warns they have sometimes continued after stopping, a condition known as post-SSRI sexual dysfunction, or PSSD.
The NHS page on paroxetine lists low sex drive but doesn’t say it can carry on after the last tablet. If you’ve stopped and sex still feels different, the leaflet line is something you can show your doctor.
Bram was 23 when he wrote about his time on paroxetine for the PSSD Network. He took it for about three months in 2020.
“While taking Paroxetine I experienced extreme genital numbness, erectile dysfunction, pleasureless and weak orgasms.”
He says the symptoms were “still in full effect” after he came off it. Nearly three years later, he writes, the numbness, weak erections and weak orgasms were still there, with “some windows of improvement” but “nothing significant”.
So what does the leaflet list, and can it last for years?
What are the sexual side effects of paroxetine?
Mostly changes in sex drive and trouble reaching orgasm, which the UK leaflet lists as very common. Under “very common” side effects, the Seroxat leaflet says: “Change in sex drive or sexual function. For example, lack of orgasm and, in men, abnormal erection and ejaculation.”
In practice, that can mean wanting sex less, or an orgasm that takes much longer or never comes. For men it can be an erection that won’t last, or ejaculation that’s delayed or doesn’t happen.
These problems seem to turn up more often when someone actually asks. A Spanish study put the same questions about sex to everyone it followed. About 7 in 10 people on paroxetine reported some kind of sexual problem (Montejo and colleagues). It had no dummy-pill group, and it only covered the time people were taking the tablets.
Can paroxetine’s sexual side effects last after stopping?
For some people, yes. The UK leaflet says: “In some cases, these symptoms have continued after stopping treatment.” The information for doctors puts it this way: “There have been reports of long-lasting sexual dysfunction where the symptoms have continued despite discontinuation of SSRIs.”
That wording comes from Europe. In 2019 the EU medicines regulator weighed side-effect reports and published research, then asked for this warning on ten antidepressants. Paroxetine is one of the ten.
You’ll find the same warning in paroxetine’s texts in Australia, New Zealand, Brazil, Germany, France, Italy and Spain. The official texts, country by country, are at the end of this page.
For some people it has lasted years after stopping. Nobody knows yet who will be affected, or whether it will ease.
Does the Paxil label in the US say the same?
Not about the time after stopping. Paxil’s US label has a warning on sexual dysfunction. It tells prescribers to ask about sex before treatment starts and during it, because people may not bring it up themselves. It has no line saying the problems can carry on after the last tablet.
Among the US antidepressant labels we checked, that line appears only on fluoxetine’s, as our Prozac article explains.
If you took Paxil and your sex life hasn’t come back since you stopped, the UK and EU wording is still worth knowing. The medicine is the same.
What can I do?
These medicines help many people. If you have side effects, that’s a decision for you and your prescriber. Don’t stop suddenly.
If the problems haven’t lifted since you stopped, tell your GP and give your dates: “Paroxetine 20 mg from June 2022, last tablet May 2024.” Say what changed, in your own words: “touch feels numb”, “orgasm with no pleasure”.
Many people say it took time to be taken seriously. Bring the leaflet line. You can report it without a doctor agreeing.
Report it: it helps everyone
A doctor's note helps you. A report to the medicines regulator helps everyone else: it is how patterns get noticed.
- No proof needed. A suspicion is enough, even years after stopping.
- Where: the Yellow Card scheme in the UK, MedWatch in the US.
- Use the right words. If symptoms continued after stopping, write Post-SSRI sexual dysfunction (MedDRA 10086208).
What else do people ask?
Will the UK leaflet name PSSD? It’s been announced. On 15 October 2026 the UK medicines regulator, the MHRA, said the term PSSD will be added to the leaflets of antidepressants linked to lasting sexual problems. Paroxetine is one of them. As of October 2026, it isn’t in any leaflet yet.
Could it be my depression? It can play a part, since depression itself often lowers sex drive. The criteria for PSSD proposed in 2022 ask what sex was like before the medicine. Their key sign is a lasting change in how the genitals feel, such as the numbness Bram describes.
Does paroxetine affect women too? Yes. The leaflet’s line on sex drive and orgasm applies to everyone, and Paxil’s US label names lower desire and delayed or absent orgasm in women. PSSD in women has its own page, and our guide to sexual problems after antidepressants covers the wider picture.
Bram put his symptoms down in plain words, years after his last tablet. If sex has felt different ever since you stopped paroxetine, report it and read more about PSSD.
Sources
- Seroxat 10 mg, 20 mg and 30 mg film-coated tablets, patient leaflet, Electronic Medicines Compendium (EMC 7593), last revised October 2024. Section 2, “Important side effects seen with Seroxat”; section 4, very common side effects. EMC marks the Seroxat brand as discontinued; the generic leaflet (Paroxetine 20 mg and 30 mg film-coated tablets, Milpharm, EMC 537, revised October 2025) has the same two lines.
- Seroxat 20 mg film-coated tablets, summary of product characteristics, EMC 7593, text revised 4 April 2025. Section 4.4, “Sexual dysfunction”; section 4.8, sexual dysfunction very common.
- NHS, Side effects of paroxetine, page last reviewed 23 July 2026, read 20 October 2026.
- European Medicines Agency, Pharmacovigilance Risk Assessment Committee, recommendations on signals adopted at the 13-16 May 2019 meeting, EMA/PRAC/265212/2019, section 1.3: persistent sexual dysfunction after drug withdrawal. The wording is for ten medicines: citalopram, escitalopram, fluoxetine, fluvoxamine, paroxetine, sertraline, desvenlafaxine, duloxetine, milnacipran and venlafaxine.
- Paroxetine’s product information elsewhere, read 20 October 2026. New Zealand: Aropax data sheet and consumer leaflet (Medsafe). Australia: Aropax product information, section 4.4, revised 7 January 2026, and consumer leaflet, revised August 2026 (TGA; summarised, not quoted). Brazil: Aropax professional and patient texts (GSK Brazil). Seroxat or Deroxat texts in Germany, France, Italy and Spain.
- Paxil (paroxetine) tablets, US prescribing information, DailyMed, version effective 29 September 2026. Section 5.11, sexual dysfunction (ask about sexual function before and during treatment; women: decreased libido, delayed or absent orgasm). No sentence on symptoms continuing after stopping. Our search of US labels: PSSD warnings around the world.
- Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency, Drug Safety Update: Antidepressants: new safety measures for all patients, 15 October 2026. “New measures”, third item, and footnote 1 (the medicines covered, paroxetine among them). Announced, not yet in any leaflet as of October 2026.
- Montejo AL, Llorca G, Izquierdo JA, Rico-Villademoros F. Incidence of sexual dysfunction associated with antidepressant agents: a prospective multicenter study of 1022 outpatients. J Clin Psychiatry 2001;62 Suppl 3:10-21. Open-label, no placebo group; people with normal sexual function at the start, asked with a questionnaire. Paroxetine: 147 of 208 (71%).
- Healy D, Mangin D. Post-SSRI sexual dysfunction: barriers to quantifying incidence and prevalence. Epidemiol Psychiatr Sci 2024;33:e40.
- Healy D, Bahrick A, Bak M and colleagues. Diagnostic criteria for enduring sexual dysfunction after treatment with antidepressants, finasteride and isotretinoin. Int J Risk Saf Med 2022;33(1):65-76.
- PSSD Network, Patient spotlight: Bram, in his own words. Paroxetine from February 2020 to May 2020.
- Videos: PSSD Network, Professor Joanna Moncrieff discusses Post-SSRI Sexual Dysfunction, June 2026; PSSD Hilfe Deutschland, We explain post-SSRI sexual dysfunction, July 2023.
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Paroxetine: what the official texts say, country by country
For the SSRI antidepressant paroxetine (Paxil, Seroxat), the product information we read in the United Kingdom says there have been reports of long-lasting sexual dysfunction where symptoms continued after SSRIs were stopped. This is known as post-SSRI sexual dysfunction (PSSD). The EU medicines regulator set the wording of this warning in 2019 for ten medicines, paroxetine among them, and a government answer in Parliament says UK product information for all SSRIs was updated in 2019 to carry it.
This is a record of what each text says and of the date it prints. A text is quoted in its own words, or summarised where the row says so. It is not a comparison of countries. All medicines and countries
Paroxetine: the official texts, country by country (38 texts read)
| Country or region | What the text says | Document | Dates |
|---|---|---|---|
| United Kingdom | Sexual side effects that continue after stopping4.4 Special warnings and precautions for use · Sexual dysfunction Sexual side effects, as listed4.8 Undesirable effects · Reproductive system and breast disorders · Very common Sexual side effects, as listed4.8 Undesirable effects · Reproductive system and breast disorders · Very rare The same text also says4.8 Undesirable effects | Text for professionals Summary of Product Characteristics (SmPC): Seroxat 20 mg film-coated tabletsSeroxat 20 mg film-coated tablets, SmithKline Beecham Limited · Read in a compendium of product information: emcAlso on record: 1 more text for professionals, with such a sentence; 2 patients' leaflets, with such a sentence; 3 related documents, with such a sentence | Text revisedChecked |
| European Union | Sexual side effects that continue after stopping3. Serotonin and noradrenaline reuptake inhibitors (SNRI); selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRI) – Persistent sexual dysfunction after drug withdrawal (EPITT no 19277) · Summary of product characteristics · 4.4. Special warnings and precautions for use · Sexual dysfunction Sexual side effects that continue after stopping3. Serotonin and noradrenaline reuptake inhibitors (SNRI); selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRI) – Persistent sexual dysfunction after drug withdrawal (EPITT no 19277) · Package leaflet · 2. What you need to know before you take [Invented name] · Warnings and precautions The wording is for ten medicines: citalopram, escitalopram, fluoxetine, fluvoxamine, paroxetine, sertraline, desvenlafaxine, duloxetine, milnacipran and venlafaxine. This is wording for national product texts. There is no single EU product text for this medicine. | Document from the regulator New product information wording – Extracts from PRAC recommendations on signals. Adopted at the 13-16 May 2019 PRACRead on the regulator's site: European Medicines AgencyAlso on record: 1 more related document, with such a sentence | PublishedChecked |
| United States | Sexual side effects, as listed5 WARNINGS AND PRECAUTIONS · 5.11 Sexual Dysfunction The same text also says5 WARNINGS AND PRECAUTIONS · 5.11 Sexual Dysfunction This text has no sentence about sexual side effects continuing after the medicine is stopped. This text names sexual side effects in several places that this row does not show. Together those passages are too long to reproduce here. The document link in this row opens the text. That they are not shown says nothing about how common these side effects are. On 20 October 2026 we searched the labels in openFDA, the FDA's open database. A sentence about sexual dysfunction continuing after stopping stood on none of the 274 labels in that database that name paroxetine. | Text for professionals PAXIL (paroxetine) tablets, for oral use; PAXIL (paroxetine) oral suspension: Full Prescribing InformationPaxil tablets 10 mg, 20 mg, 30 mg and 40 mg and Paxil oral suspension 10 mg/5 mL, Apotex Corp · Read in the government's medicines database: DailyMedAlso on record: patients' leaflet, with no such sentence | Text revisedChecked |
| Canada | Sexual side effects that continue after stopping7 WARNINGS AND PRECAUTIONS · Reproductive Health: Female and Male Potential · Function Sexual side effects that continue after stopping8 ADVERSE REACTIONS · 8.2 Clinical Trial Adverse Reactions · Male and Female Sexual Dysfunction with SSRIs The same text also says8 ADVERSE REACTIONS · 8.2 Clinical Trial Adverse Reactions · Male and Female Sexual Dysfunction with SSRIs This text names sexual side effects in several places that this row does not show. Together those passages are too long to reproduce here. The document link in this row opens the text. That they are not shown says nothing about how common these side effects are. | Text for professionals Product Monograph Including Patient Medication Information: PAXIL, Paroxetine TabletsPaxil tablets 10 mg, 20 mg and 30 mg, GlaxoSmithKline Inc. · Read in the regulator's own database: Drug Product DatabaseAlso on record: patients' leaflet, with such a sentence; 2 related documents, with such a sentence | Text revisedChecked |
| Australia | Sexual side effects that continue after stoppingSection 4.4 · Sexual dysfunctionSection 4.4 of Australia's product information for Aropax has a warning headed sexual dysfunction. It says there are reports of sexual dysfunction that lasted a long time, with symptoms going on after SSRIs or SNRIs were stopped.Summarised, not quoted, because of the TGA's access terms. The regulator's site asks readers to accept its terms before it shows this text. | Text for professionals AUSTRALIAN PRODUCT INFORMATION – AROPAX (PAROXETINE (AS HYDROCHLORIDE)) TABLETSAROPAX, Aspen Pharmacare Australia Pty Ltd · Read in the regulator's own database: TGA eBSAlso on record: patients' leaflet, with such a sentence | Text revisedChecked |
| New Zealand | Sexual side effects that continue after stopping4.4 Special warnings and precautions for use · Sexual dysfunction: Sexual side effects, as listed4.8 Undesirable effects · Reproductive system & breast disorders · Very common Sexual side effects, as listed4.8 Undesirable effects · Reproductive system & breast disorders · Very rare The same text also says4.8 Undesirable effects | Text for professionals New Zealand Data Sheet, AropaxAROPAX 20 mg film coated tablet, GlaxoSmithKline NZ Limited · Read in the regulator's own database: MedsafeAlso on record: 1 more text for professionals, with such a sentence; 2 patients' leaflets, with such a sentence; 2 related documents, with such a sentence | Text revisedChecked |
| Germany | Sexual side effects that continue after stopping2. Was sollten Sie vor der Einnahme von Seroxat beachten? · Wichtige Nebenwirkungen, die bei Einnahme von Seroxat beobachtet wurden Sexual side effects, as listed4. Welche Nebenwirkungen sind möglich? · Weitere mögliche Nebenwirkungen, die während der Behandlung auftreten können · Sehr häufig auftretende Nebenwirkungen Sexual side effects, as listed4. Welche Nebenwirkungen sind möglich? · Weitere mögliche Nebenwirkungen, die während der Behandlung auftreten können · Sehr selten auftretende Nebenwirkungen The same text also says4. Welche Nebenwirkungen sind möglich? This is the copy in a compendium of product information. The regulator's database asks visitors to accept its terms first, which we did not do. | Patient leaflet Gebrauchsinformation: Information für PatientenSeroxat 20 mg Filmtabletten, GlaxoSmithKline GmbH & Co. KG · Read in a compendium of product information: Gebrauchsinformation 4.0Also on record: text for professionals, with such a sentence; text for professionals, could not be opened; 1 more patients' leaflet, with such a sentence; related document, with such a sentence | Text revisedChecked |
| France | Sexual side effects that continue after stopping4.4. Mises en garde spéciales et précautions d'emploi · Dysfonction sexuelle Sexual side effects, as listed4.8. Effets indésirables · Troubles des organes de reproduction et du sein · Très fréquent Sexual side effects, as listed4.8. Effets indésirables · Troubles des organes de reproduction et du sein · Très rare The same text also says4.8. Effets indésirables The text itself prints no date of revision. Texts for other products in this country do not all say the same. We searched them for sentences about sexual side effects continuing after stopping and did not read them whole. This row shows the product named, and no other. | Text for professionals Résumé des Caractéristiques du ProduitDEROXAT 20 mg, comprimé pelliculé sécable, Laboratoire GLAXOSMITHKLINE · Read in the government's medicines database: Base de données publique des médicamentsAlso on record: patients' leaflet, with such a sentence | Updated by the regulatorChecked |
| Italy | Sexual side effects that continue after stopping4.4 Avvertenze speciali e precauzioni di impiego · Disfunzione sessuale Sexual side effects, as listed4.8 Effetti indesiderati · Patologie dell’apparato riproduttivo e della mammella · Molto comuni Sexual side effects, as listed4.8 Effetti indesiderati · Patologie dell’apparato riproduttivo e della mammella · Molto rari The same text also says4.8 Effetti indesiderati The text itself prints no date of revision. | Text for professionals Riassunto delle caratteristiche del prodottoSeroxat 20 mg compresse rivestite con film, GlaxoSmithKline S.p.A. · Read in the regulator's own database: Banca Dati FarmaciAlso on record: patients' leaflet, with such a sentence | Made available by the regulatorChecked |
| Spain | Sexual side effects that continue after stopping4.4. Advertencias y precauciones especiales de empleo · Disfunción sexual Sexual side effects, as listed4.8. Reacciones adversas · Trastornos del aparato reproductor y de la mama · Muy frecuentes Sexual side effects, as listed4.8. Reacciones adversas · Trastornos del aparato reproductor y de la mama · Muy raras The same text also says4.8. Reacciones adversas | Text for professionals Ficha técnicaSeroxat 20 mg comprimidos recubiertos con película, GlaxoSmithKline, S.A. · Read in the regulator's own database: CIMAAlso on record: patients' leaflet, with such a sentence; related document, with such a sentence | Text revisedChecked |
| Brazil | Sexual side effects that continue after stopping5. ADVERTÊNCIAS E PRECAUÇÕES · Disfunção sexual Sexual side effects, as listed9. REAÇÕES ADVERSAS · Reações muito comuns (>1/10) The same text also says9. REAÇÕES ADVERSAS This is the holder's own copy. The regulator's database refused our requests (it blocks by country; we asked from Denmark). | Text for professionals Aropax® Comprimidos revestidos, Modelo de texto de bula – Profissional de SaúdeAropax comprimidos revestidos 20 mg, GlaxoSmithKline Brasil Ltda. · Read on the holder's own site: GlaxoSmithKline Brasil Ltda.Also on record: 1 more text for professionals, with such a sentence; 2 patients' leaflets, with such a sentence | Text approvedChecked |
| India | We could not open this text on 20 October 2026: this regulator publishes no database of such texts. This says nothing about what the text contains. | Text for professionalsWe tried: cdsco.gov.in/opencms/opencms/en/Notifications/Prescribing-Information/ | Tried |
Brand names
These are the brand names of paroxetine we saw in the official lists, compendia and regulators' pages we opened on or after 20 October 2026. A country may have more.
- Paxil
- United States, Canada
- Seroxat
- United Kingdom, Germany, Italy, Spain
- Deroxat
- France
- Aropax
- New Zealand, Brazil
- Paxil CR
- United States, Canada, Brazil
- Brisdelle
- United States
- Loxamine
- New Zealand
- Divarius
- France
- Sereupin
- Italy
- Eutimil
- Italy
- Dropaxin
- Italy
- Stiliden
- Italy
- Ecutin
- Italy
- Daparox
- Italy, Spain
- Serestill
- Italy
- Dapagut
- Italy
- Tekisippis
- Italy
- Arzinka
- Italy
- Frosinor
- Spain
- Motivan
- Spain
- Cebrilin
- Brazil
- Parox
- Brazil
- Paxtrat
- Brazil
- Pondera
- Brazil
- Pondera XR
- Brazil
- Roxetin
- Brazil
- Roxetin XR
- Brazil
- Sincro
- Brazil
- Sincro XR
- Brazil
- Zyparox
- Brazil
What is not known
- No reliable figure exists for how often PSSD happens. (source)
- One study of health records gives an estimate for men, counted through prescriptions for erection medicines. (source)
- It is not known how many people fully recover. (source)
- None of the product texts we read says how long the sexual dysfunction can last. (source)
Code and reporting
In a report to a medicines regulator, the term is Post-SSRI sexual dysfunction (MedDRA code 10086208). Where to report, country by country
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